A paleoenvironmental reconstruction of the Elands Bay area using carbon and nitrogen isotopes in tortoise bone

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dc.contributor.advisorSealy, Judithen_ZA
dc.contributor.authorNaidoo, Navashnien_ZA
dc.date.accessioned2018-01-30T10:24:11Z
dc.date.available2018-01-30T10:24:11Z
dc.date.issued2017en_ZA
dc.description.abstractThis study explores the utility of stable light isotopes in Chersina angulata (angulate or bowsprit tortoise) bone collagen as a paleoenvironmental proxy, to augment the limited range of proxies preserved in Southern Africa. δ¹³C and δ¹⁵N were measured in 76 archaeological tortoises from Elands Bay Cave and nearby Tortoise Cave. The samples range in age from the late Holocene to the terminal Pleistocene. δ¹⁵N values are not strongly correlated with δ¹³C, indicating different drivers of variation in the two isotopes. δ¹³C and δ¹⁵N values are lower between 154-487 cal. BP, which spans the Little Ice Age, compared with 744-1 042 cal. BP, which is the period of the Medieval Climate Anomaly (MCA). This implies that conditions were cool and wet during the LIA, and hot and dry during the early MCA. δ¹³C and δ¹⁵N values were higher during the early stages of the MCA (744-1 042 cal. BP), indicating drier conditions than in the late MCA (547-669 cal. BP). In the period prior to the MCA (1180-1357 cal. BP), lower δ¹³C and δ¹⁵N values indicate cooler, moister conditions. Higher δ13C values also indicate a temperature increase at the beginning of the Middle Holocene (4005-5 720 cal. BP). These findings are generally consistent with existing paleoenvironmental records from the Cederberg and Elands Bay region. The paleoenvironmental record generated from the tortoise carapace and plastron bone provides the first evidence from the terrestrial archaeological record for the LIA and MCA at Elands Bay. Hence, the tortoise record is able to provide a more detailed climate record than the charcoal and faunal record at EBC. This study shows that the analysis of stable isotopes in C. angulata from archaeological sites is a viable option for paleoenvironmental reconstruction.en_ZA
dc.identifier.apacitationNaidoo, N. (2017). <i>A paleoenvironmental reconstruction of the Elands Bay area using carbon and nitrogen isotopes in tortoise bone</i>. (Thesis). University of Cape Town ,Faculty of Science ,Department of Archaeology. Retrieved from http://hdl.handle.net/11427/27092en_ZA
dc.identifier.chicagocitationNaidoo, Navashni. <i>"A paleoenvironmental reconstruction of the Elands Bay area using carbon and nitrogen isotopes in tortoise bone."</i> Thesis., University of Cape Town ,Faculty of Science ,Department of Archaeology, 2017. http://hdl.handle.net/11427/27092en_ZA
dc.identifier.citationNaidoo, N. 2017. A paleoenvironmental reconstruction of the Elands Bay area using carbon and nitrogen isotopes in tortoise bone. University of Cape Town.en_ZA
dc.identifier.ris TY - Thesis / Dissertation AU - Naidoo, Navashni AB - This study explores the utility of stable light isotopes in Chersina angulata (angulate or bowsprit tortoise) bone collagen as a paleoenvironmental proxy, to augment the limited range of proxies preserved in Southern Africa. δ¹³C and δ¹⁵N were measured in 76 archaeological tortoises from Elands Bay Cave and nearby Tortoise Cave. The samples range in age from the late Holocene to the terminal Pleistocene. δ¹⁵N values are not strongly correlated with δ¹³C, indicating different drivers of variation in the two isotopes. δ¹³C and δ¹⁵N values are lower between 154-487 cal. BP, which spans the Little Ice Age, compared with 744-1 042 cal. BP, which is the period of the Medieval Climate Anomaly (MCA). This implies that conditions were cool and wet during the LIA, and hot and dry during the early MCA. δ¹³C and δ¹⁵N values were higher during the early stages of the MCA (744-1 042 cal. BP), indicating drier conditions than in the late MCA (547-669 cal. BP). In the period prior to the MCA (1180-1357 cal. BP), lower δ¹³C and δ¹⁵N values indicate cooler, moister conditions. Higher δ13C values also indicate a temperature increase at the beginning of the Middle Holocene (4005-5 720 cal. BP). These findings are generally consistent with existing paleoenvironmental records from the Cederberg and Elands Bay region. The paleoenvironmental record generated from the tortoise carapace and plastron bone provides the first evidence from the terrestrial archaeological record for the LIA and MCA at Elands Bay. Hence, the tortoise record is able to provide a more detailed climate record than the charcoal and faunal record at EBC. This study shows that the analysis of stable isotopes in C. angulata from archaeological sites is a viable option for paleoenvironmental reconstruction. DA - 2017 DB - OpenUCT DP - University of Cape Town LK - https://open.uct.ac.za PB - University of Cape Town PY - 2017 T1 - A paleoenvironmental reconstruction of the Elands Bay area using carbon and nitrogen isotopes in tortoise bone TI - A paleoenvironmental reconstruction of the Elands Bay area using carbon and nitrogen isotopes in tortoise bone UR - http://hdl.handle.net/11427/27092 ER - en_ZA
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/11427/27092
dc.identifier.vancouvercitationNaidoo N. A paleoenvironmental reconstruction of the Elands Bay area using carbon and nitrogen isotopes in tortoise bone. [Thesis]. University of Cape Town ,Faculty of Science ,Department of Archaeology, 2017 [cited yyyy month dd]. Available from: http://hdl.handle.net/11427/27092en_ZA
dc.language.isoengen_ZA
dc.publisher.departmentDepartment of Archaeologyen_ZA
dc.publisher.facultyFaculty of Scienceen_ZA
dc.publisher.institutionUniversity of Cape Town
dc.subject.otherArchaeologyen_ZA
dc.subject.otherPalaeoenvironmental Researchen_ZA
dc.titleA paleoenvironmental reconstruction of the Elands Bay area using carbon and nitrogen isotopes in tortoise boneen_ZA
dc.typeMaster Thesis
dc.type.qualificationlevelMasters
dc.type.qualificationnameMScen_ZA
uct.type.filetypeText
uct.type.filetypeImage
uct.type.publicationResearchen_ZA
uct.type.resourceThesisen_ZA
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