Late Quaternary population expansion in gray brocket deer [<i>Subulo gouazoubira</i> (G. Fisher, 1814), Cervidae, Mammalia] in Brazil
ABSTRACT There is little information about the changes in the abundance of mammalian species in South America during the late Quaternary, which is a key parameter to understanding past ecological and evolutionary dynamics. Here, we describe a conspicuous increase in the abundance of the gray brocket deer ( Subulo gouazoubira G. Fisher, 1814; Mammalia) during the late Quaternary in Brazil based on paleontological evidence. We studied the material retrieved from pitfall deposits in Cuvieri Cave (Brazil) representing three time intervals (Late Pleistocene, Pleistocene/Holocene transition, and Holocene). The deposits in this cave were previously characterized in terms of facies composition, chronology, and overall taxa and taphonomy. We combined previous data with taxonomic identification at the species level for deer (morphological and ancient DNA analyses), quantification of the number of individuals for large mammals (>10 kg), taphonomic analyses, and stratigraphic distribution of specimens. Our results show that while in the Late Pleistocene gray brocket deer corresponded to up to 18% of 38 individuals, in the Holocene they represented at least 82% of 78 individuals. We interpret this change in frequency as a considerable increase in abundance in the surroundings of the cave, after excluding major taphonomical biases. The causes for this phenomenon are uncertain but could have involved a surplus of food availability and predation release due to the late Quaternary extinction event.
Authors
- Elver Luiz Mayer (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0597-0773)
- Mark Hübbe (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4433-3942)
- Paulo César Fonseca Giannini (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1046-0177)
- Álvaro Montenegro (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6848-1996)
- Daniel Fidalgo (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7175-1686)
- Eline D. Lorenzen (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6353-2819)
- William J. Pestle (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6257-7900)
- José Maurício Barbanti Duarte (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7805-0265)
- Marco Felipe Raczka (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6602-8087)
- Alba Rey‐Iglesia (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3768-9185)
- Walter Alves Neves
- Damon Mullen
- André Gomide Vasconcelos (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9799-7657)
- Irma Machado (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0003-0880-7482)
- Lorena Becerra‐Valdivia (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5501-5347)
- Paulo Miguel Haddad‐Martim
- Alex Hubbe (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3226-0144)
- Eluzai Dinai Pinto Sandoval (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6849-7373)
- Augusto S. Auler
- Eliane Nunes Chim
- Luís B. Piló
- Rodrigo Elias Oliveira
Institutions
- University of Copenhagen (DK)
- Universidade Federal da Bahia (BR)
- University of Miami (US)
- Universidade de São Paulo (BR)
- Staatliches Museum für Naturkunde Stuttgart (DE)
- University of Oxford (GB)
- Instituto de Ensino e Pesquisa Santa Casa (BR)
- Oxford Archaeology (GB)
- The Ohio State University (US)
- Universidade Federal do Vale do São Francisco (BR)
- University of Reading (GB)
- Universidade Estadual Paulista (Unesp) (BR)
Publication Details
- Journal
- Journal of Quaternary Science
- Published
- 2025-06-19
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.1002/jqs.3728
- Citations
- 1
- Primary Topic
- Wildlife Ecology and Conservation
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 1.72
Funders
- Pontifícia Universidade Católica de Minas Gerais
- Universidade de São Paulo