Isotope data from amino acids indicate Darwin’s ground sloth was not an herbivore

Abstract Fossil sloths are regarded as obligate herbivores for reasons including peculiarities of their craniodental morphology and that all living sloths feed exclusively on plants. We challenge this view based on isotopic analyses of nitrogen of specific amino acids, which show that Darwin’s groun...

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Main Authors:	Julia V. Tejada, John J. Flynn, Ross MacPhee, Tamsin C. O’Connell, Thure E. Cerling, Lizette Bermudez, Carmen Capuñay, Natalie Wallsgrove, Brian N. Popp
Format:	Article
Language:	English
Published:	Nature Publishing Group 2021-10-01
Series:	Scientific Reports
Online Access:	https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-021-97996-9

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spelling	doaj-c41e20d0d1304d09bf0d4dc3c5ef62862021-10-10T11:26:12ZengNature Publishing GroupScientific Reports2045-23222021-10-0111111010.1038/s41598-021-97996-9Isotope data from amino acids indicate Darwin’s ground sloth was not an herbivoreJulia V. Tejada0John J. Flynn1Ross MacPhee2Tamsin C. O’Connell3Thure E. Cerling4Lizette Bermudez5Carmen Capuñay6Natalie Wallsgrove7Brian N. Popp8Institut des Sciences de l’Évolution, UMR 5554, Université de MontpellierAmerican Museum of Natural HistoryAmerican Museum of Natural HistoryDepartment of Archaeology, University of CambridgeDepartment of Geology and Geophysics and Department of Biology, University of UtahParque Zoológico HuachipaParque Zoológico HuachipaDepartment of Earth Sciences, University of Hawaii at ManoaDepartment of Earth Sciences, University of Hawaii at ManoaAbstract Fossil sloths are regarded as obligate herbivores for reasons including peculiarities of their craniodental morphology and that all living sloths feed exclusively on plants. We challenge this view based on isotopic analyses of nitrogen of specific amino acids, which show that Darwin’s ground sloth Mylodon darwinii was an opportunistic omnivore. This direct evidence of omnivory in an ancient sloth requires reevaluation of the ecological structure of South American Cenozoic mammalian communities, as sloths represented a major component of these ecosystems across the past 34 Myr. Furthermore, by analyzing modern mammals with known diets, we provide a basis for reliable interpretation of nitrogen isotopes of amino acids of fossils. We argue that a widely used equation to determine trophic position is unnecessary, and that the relative isotopic values of the amino acids glutamate and phenylalanine alone permit reliable reconstructions of trophic positions of extant and extinct mammals.https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-021-97996-9
collection	DOAJ
language	English
format	Article
sources	DOAJ
author	Julia V. Tejada John J. Flynn Ross MacPhee Tamsin C. O’Connell Thure E. Cerling Lizette Bermudez Carmen Capuñay Natalie Wallsgrove Brian N. Popp
spellingShingle	Julia V. Tejada John J. Flynn Ross MacPhee Tamsin C. O’Connell Thure E. Cerling Lizette Bermudez Carmen Capuñay Natalie Wallsgrove Brian N. Popp Isotope data from amino acids indicate Darwin’s ground sloth was not an herbivore Scientific Reports
author_facet	Julia V. Tejada John J. Flynn Ross MacPhee Tamsin C. O’Connell Thure E. Cerling Lizette Bermudez Carmen Capuñay Natalie Wallsgrove Brian N. Popp
author_sort	Julia V. Tejada
title	Isotope data from amino acids indicate Darwin’s ground sloth was not an herbivore
title_short	Isotope data from amino acids indicate Darwin’s ground sloth was not an herbivore
title_full	Isotope data from amino acids indicate Darwin’s ground sloth was not an herbivore
title_fullStr	Isotope data from amino acids indicate Darwin’s ground sloth was not an herbivore
title_full_unstemmed	Isotope data from amino acids indicate Darwin’s ground sloth was not an herbivore
title_sort	isotope data from amino acids indicate darwin’s ground sloth was not an herbivore
publisher	Nature Publishing Group
series	Scientific Reports
issn	2045-2322
publishDate	2021-10-01
description	Abstract Fossil sloths are regarded as obligate herbivores for reasons including peculiarities of their craniodental morphology and that all living sloths feed exclusively on plants. We challenge this view based on isotopic analyses of nitrogen of specific amino acids, which show that Darwin’s ground sloth Mylodon darwinii was an opportunistic omnivore. This direct evidence of omnivory in an ancient sloth requires reevaluation of the ecological structure of South American Cenozoic mammalian communities, as sloths represented a major component of these ecosystems across the past 34 Myr. Furthermore, by analyzing modern mammals with known diets, we provide a basis for reliable interpretation of nitrogen isotopes of amino acids of fossils. We argue that a widely used equation to determine trophic position is unnecessary, and that the relative isotopic values of the amino acids glutamate and phenylalanine alone permit reliable reconstructions of trophic positions of extant and extinct mammals.
url	https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-021-97996-9
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Isotope data from amino acids indicate Darwin’s ground sloth was not an herbivore

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