Stable Oxygen Isotope Signature of Extant and Extinct Aplodontiids and Evidence for Water Use
| dc.contributor.advisor | Hopkins, Samantha | en_US |
| dc.contributor.advisor | Reuter, Dana | en_US |
| dc.contributor.advisor | Blumenthal, Scott | en_US |
| dc.contributor.advisor | Flora, Holley | en_US |
| dc.contributor.author | Hillard, Thomas | en_US |
| dc.date.accessioned | 2024-06-25T17:50:30Z | |
| dc.date.available | 2024-06-25T17:50:30Z | |
| dc.description | 24 pages | en_US |
| dc.description.abstract | Aplodontia rufa has a unique kidney anatomy that is inefficient at concentrating urine, and as a result the water intake for the species is high and its range is limited to the high precipitation regions of the Pacific coast. This anatomy is often considered to be a primitive condition for rodents, however we hypothesize it may be a derived character because of the range of extinct members in the clade. Stable oxygen isotope measurements from tooth enamel were used to investigate the water usage in the fossil species Liodontia alexandrae alongside the modern Aplodontia rufa. Previous studies have shown that animals that are dependent on drinking water and spend more time around water have a lower stable oxygen isotope ratio in their tooth enamel. So, we compared the oxygen isotope ratios of the aplodontines to measurements taken from lagomophs from the same localities that are better at conserving water, including the modern Sylvilagus bachmani and the extinct Oreolagus wallacei. Our data shows a significant difference between Aplodontia rufa and Sylvilagus bachmani, but no difference between Liodontia alexandrae and Oreolagus wallacei. This suggests that Liodontia does not have the same renal anatomy as A. rufa, and is evidence that the renal anatomy of A. rufa is a derived trait in the aplodontiine group. | en_US |
| dc.identifier.uri | https://hdl.handle.net/1794/29583 | |
| dc.rights | Creative Commons BY-NC-ND 4.0-US | en_US |
| dc.subject | stable oxygen isotope | en_US |
| dc.subject | water use | en_US |
| dc.subject | aplodontines | en_US |
| dc.title | Stable Oxygen Isotope Signature of Extant and Extinct Aplodontiids and Evidence for Water Use | en_US |