Dataset Information

Isotopic evidence for omnivory among European cave bears: Late Pleistocene Ursus spelaeus from the Pestera cu Oase, Romania.

ABSTRACT: Previous bone collagen carbon and nitrogen isotopic studies of Late Pleistocene European cave bears (Ursus spelaeus) have shown that these bears frequently had low nitrogen isotope values, similar to those of herbivores and indicating either unusual physiology related to hibernation or a herbivorous diet. Isotopic analysis of animal bone from the Pe?tera cu Oase (Cave with Bones), Romania, shows that most of its cave bears had higher nitrogen isotope values than the associated herbivores and were, therefore, omnivorous. The Oase bears are securely identified as cave bears by both their morphology and DNA sequences. Although many cave bear populations may have behaved like herbivores, the Oase isotopic data demonstrate that cave bears were capable of altering their diets to become omnivores or even carnivores. These data therefore broaden the dietary profile of U. spelaeus and raise questions about the nature of the carnivore guild in Pleistocene Europe.

SUBMITTER: Richards MP

PROVIDER: S-EPMC2206582 | biostudies-literature | 2008 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Isotopic evidence for omnivory among European cave bears: Late Pleistocene Ursus spelaeus from the Peştera cu Oase, Romania.

Richards Michael P MP Pacher Martina M Stiller Mathias M Quilès Jérôme J Hofreiter Michael M Constantin Silviu S Zilhão João J Trinkaus Erik E

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America 20080110 2

Previous bone collagen carbon and nitrogen isotopic studies of Late Pleistocene European cave bears (Ursus spelaeus) have shown that these bears frequently had low nitrogen isotope values, similar to those of herbivores and indicating either unusual physiology related to hibernation or a herbivorous diet. Isotopic analysis of animal bone from the Peştera cu Oase (Cave with Bones), Romania, shows that most of its cave bears had higher nitrogen isotope values than the associated herbivores and wer ...[more]

PMID: 18187577

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Project description:Baylisascaris transfuga is a roundworm that has been reported worldwide in most bear species. In mammals and possibly humans, the larvae of B. transfuga can migrate in the tissues of aberrant hosts with larva migrans syndrome. The current study was performed to identify B. transfuga in faecal samples from free-ranging brown bears in the Tatra Mountains National Park in southern Poland. A commercial kit was used to extract genomic DNA directly from faecal samples. Additionally, a Chelex resin-based technique was successfully implemented to prepare a PCR template from eggs retrieved by flotation. Based on the flotation results of 32 collected faecal samples, the prevalence of B. transfuga was 15.6%. The parasite was confirmed in samples found to be positive during the initial flotation by a molecular assay using DNA isolated directly from faeces. The retrieved eggs were confirmed as B. transfuga after their DNA was extracted using the Chelex protocol. Based on PCR amplification and sequencing of a 413-bp segment of cytochrome c oxidase 1 (COI), the obtained sequence was 100% identical to the COI segment of B. transfuga after a BLAST comparison to the GenBank™ database. The current study includes the first molecular confirmation of B. transfuga in brown bears in the western part of the Carpathians. We show that direct extraction of parasite DNA from bear faeces is efficient for molecular assays. As an alternative, we present the effectiveness of a Chelex-based technique for fast and convenient DNA isolation from the difficult-to-disrupt eggs of B. transfuga for PCR. Molecular tests of parasite DNA extracted directly from faecal material have limits of detection related to the amount of eggs in the samples. Thus, using classical flotation to obtain eggs for PCR may increase the credibility of the results, particularly in cases with a low number of excreted eggs. The Chelex resin protocol has potential for application in studies of intestinal parasites in wildlife for which conventional flotation is routinely used for microscopy.

Dataset Information

Isotopic evidence for omnivory among European cave bears: Late Pleistocene Ursus spelaeus from the Pestera cu Oase, Romania.

Publications

Isotopic evidence for omnivory among European cave bears: Late Pleistocene Ursus spelaeus from the Peştera cu Oase, Romania.

Similar Datasets

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