Changes in the large carnivore community structure of the Judean Desert in connection to Holocene human settlement dynamics

Abstract Investigating historical anthropogenic impacts on faunal communities is key to understanding present patterns of biodiversity and holds important implications for conservation biology. While several studies have demonstrated the human role in the extinction of large herbivores, effective me...

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Autores principales:	Ignacio A. Lazagabaster, Micka Ullman, Roi Porat, Romi Halevi, Naomi Porat, Uri Davidovich, Nimrod Marom
Formato:	article
Lenguaje:	EN
Publicado:	Nature Portfolio 2021
Materias:	Medicine R Science Q
Acceso en línea:	https://doaj.org/article/f6921eb9635145bf80e4163c133e1baf
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spelling	oai:doaj.org-article:f6921eb9635145bf80e4163c133e1baf2021-12-02T12:09:26ZChanges in the large carnivore community structure of the Judean Desert in connection to Holocene human settlement dynamics10.1038/s41598-021-82996-62045-2322https://doaj.org/article/f6921eb9635145bf80e4163c133e1baf2021-02-01T00:00:00Zhttps://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-021-82996-6https://doaj.org/toc/2045-2322Abstract Investigating historical anthropogenic impacts on faunal communities is key to understanding present patterns of biodiversity and holds important implications for conservation biology. While several studies have demonstrated the human role in the extinction of large herbivores, effective methods to study human interference on large carnivores in the past are limited by the small number of carnivoran remains in the paleozoological record. Here, we integrate a systematic paleozoological survey of biogenic cave assemblages with the archaeological and paleoenvironmental records of the Judean Desert, to reveal historical changes in the large carnivore community. Our results show a late Holocene (~ 3400 years ago) faunal reassembly characterized by the diminishment of the dominant large carnivoran, the Arabian leopard (Panthera pardus sbsp. nimr), and the spread of the Syrian striped hyena (Hyaena hyaena sbsp. syriaca). We suggest that increased hunting pressure in combination with regional aridification were responsible for the decrease in the number of leopards, while the introduction of domestic animals and settlement refuse brought new scavenging opportunities for hyenas. The recent extirpation of leopards from the region has been a final note to the Holocene human impact on the ecosystem.Ignacio A. LazagabasterMicka UllmanRoi PoratRomi HaleviNaomi PoratUri DavidovichNimrod MaromNature PortfolioarticleMedicineRScienceQENScientific Reports, Vol 11, Iss 1, Pp 1-11 (2021)
institution	DOAJ
collection	DOAJ
language	EN
topic	Medicine R Science Q
spellingShingle	Medicine R Science Q Ignacio A. Lazagabaster Micka Ullman Roi Porat Romi Halevi Naomi Porat Uri Davidovich Nimrod Marom Changes in the large carnivore community structure of the Judean Desert in connection to Holocene human settlement dynamics
description	Abstract Investigating historical anthropogenic impacts on faunal communities is key to understanding present patterns of biodiversity and holds important implications for conservation biology. While several studies have demonstrated the human role in the extinction of large herbivores, effective methods to study human interference on large carnivores in the past are limited by the small number of carnivoran remains in the paleozoological record. Here, we integrate a systematic paleozoological survey of biogenic cave assemblages with the archaeological and paleoenvironmental records of the Judean Desert, to reveal historical changes in the large carnivore community. Our results show a late Holocene (~ 3400 years ago) faunal reassembly characterized by the diminishment of the dominant large carnivoran, the Arabian leopard (Panthera pardus sbsp. nimr), and the spread of the Syrian striped hyena (Hyaena hyaena sbsp. syriaca). We suggest that increased hunting pressure in combination with regional aridification were responsible for the decrease in the number of leopards, while the introduction of domestic animals and settlement refuse brought new scavenging opportunities for hyenas. The recent extirpation of leopards from the region has been a final note to the Holocene human impact on the ecosystem.
format	article
author	Ignacio A. Lazagabaster Micka Ullman Roi Porat Romi Halevi Naomi Porat Uri Davidovich Nimrod Marom
author_facet	Ignacio A. Lazagabaster Micka Ullman Roi Porat Romi Halevi Naomi Porat Uri Davidovich Nimrod Marom
author_sort	Ignacio A. Lazagabaster
title	Changes in the large carnivore community structure of the Judean Desert in connection to Holocene human settlement dynamics
title_short	Changes in the large carnivore community structure of the Judean Desert in connection to Holocene human settlement dynamics
title_full	Changes in the large carnivore community structure of the Judean Desert in connection to Holocene human settlement dynamics
title_fullStr	Changes in the large carnivore community structure of the Judean Desert in connection to Holocene human settlement dynamics
title_full_unstemmed	Changes in the large carnivore community structure of the Judean Desert in connection to Holocene human settlement dynamics
title_sort	changes in the large carnivore community structure of the judean desert in connection to holocene human settlement dynamics
publisher	Nature Portfolio
publishDate	2021
url	https://doaj.org/article/f6921eb9635145bf80e4163c133e1baf
work_keys_str_mv	AT ignacioalazagabaster changesinthelargecarnivorecommunitystructureofthejudeandesertinconnectiontoholocenehumansettlementdynamics AT mickaullman changesinthelargecarnivorecommunitystructureofthejudeandesertinconnectiontoholocenehumansettlementdynamics AT roiporat changesinthelargecarnivorecommunitystructureofthejudeandesertinconnectiontoholocenehumansettlementdynamics AT romihalevi changesinthelargecarnivorecommunitystructureofthejudeandesertinconnectiontoholocenehumansettlementdynamics AT naomiporat changesinthelargecarnivorecommunitystructureofthejudeandesertinconnectiontoholocenehumansettlementdynamics AT uridavidovich changesinthelargecarnivorecommunitystructureofthejudeandesertinconnectiontoholocenehumansettlementdynamics AT nimrodmarom changesinthelargecarnivorecommunitystructureofthejudeandesertinconnectiontoholocenehumansettlementdynamics
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Changes in the large carnivore community structure of the Judean Desert in connection to Holocene human settlement dynamics

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