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Dietary Variation (dietary + variation)

Distribution by Scientific Domains

Life Sciences	77%

Selected Abstracts

Dietary variation and stress among prehistoric Jomon foragers from Japan

AMERICAN JOURNAL OF PHYSICAL ANTHROPOLOGY, Issue 4 2007
Daniel H. Temple
Abstract Current archaeological evidence indicates that greater dietary reliance on marine resources is recorded among the eastern Jomon, while plant dependence prevailed in western/inland Japan. The hypothesis that the dietary choices of the western/inland Jomon will be associated with greater systemic stress is tested by comparing carious tooth and enamel hypoplasia frequencies between the eastern and western/inland Jomon. Demographic collapse coincides with climate change during the Middle to Late Jomon period, suggesting dwindling resource availability. It is hypothesized that this change was associated with greater systemic stress and/or dietary change among the Middle to Late Jomon. This hypothesis is tested by comparing enamel hypoplasia and carious tooth frequencies between Middle to Late and Late to Final Jomon foragers. Enamel hypoplasia was significantly more prevalent among the western/inland Jomon. Such findings are consistent with archaeological studies that argue for greater plant consumption and stresses associated with seasonal resource depletion among the western/inland Jomon. Approximately equivalent enamel hypoplasia frequencies between Middle to Late and Late to Final Jomon foragers argues against a demographic collapse in association with diminished nutritional returns. Significant differences in carious tooth frequencies are, however, observed between Middle to Late and Late to Final Jomon foragers. These results suggest a subsistence shift during the Middle to Late Jomon period, perhaps in response to a changed climate. The overall patterns of stress documented by this study indicate wide-spread environmentally directed biological variation among the prehistoric Jomon. Am J Phys Anthropol, 2007. © 2007 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source]

Eating between the Lines: Mississippian Migration and Stable Carbon Isotope Variation in Fort Ancient Populations

AMERICAN ANTHROPOLOGIST, Issue 3 2009
Robert A. Cook
ABSTRACT Appreciating variation along the edges of traditional archaeological Culture Historical boundaries requires close consideration of social contexts associated with culture contact. We focus on dietary variation as a function of these concerns through a case study of Fort Ancient populations who, on average, consumed lower quantities of maize than their Mississippian neighbors as determined by stable carbon isotope ratios of bone collagen. However, this dichotomy is not as rigid as initially thought, with some Fort Ancient burials producing stable carbon isotope ratios similar to Mississippian cases. Detailed investigation of internal variation of carbon isotopes for human burials at the SunWatch site provides evidence that contact included small-scale Mississippian migrations to Fort Ancient sites. The main conclusion is that variation in diet and archaeological context can be a useful approach for examining prehistoric migration. [source]

Isotopic evidence of dietary variations and weaning practices in the Gaya cemetery at Yeanri, Gimhae, South Korea

AMERICAN JOURNAL OF PHYSICAL ANTHROPOLOGY, Issue 1 2010
Kyungcheol Choy
Abstract Stable carbon and nitrogen isotope analyses were conducted to investigate dietary variation in human skeletons (n = 109) from the Gaya cemetery at Yeanri located near Gimhae City, South Korea. The cemetery contained three distinct grave types dating to 4th,7th century AD. The main purposes of this research were to reconstruct palaeodiet in the Gaya population and to explore correlations between stable isotope compositions and burial types, inferred age, and sex of these individuals. The isotopic data indicate that the people at Yeanri consumed a predominantly C3 -based terrestrial diet supplemented with freshwater and/or marine resources. The comparison of isotopic results reveals significant differences in ,13C values among three adult burial types (wood-cist coffin: ,18.5 ± 0.5,, stone-cist coffin: ,18.1 ± 0.6,, mausoleum: ,17.8 ± 0.9,). Males in wood-cist and stone-cist coffins have relatively more elevated mean ,13C and ,15N values than females. The isotopic ratios from the two adult age groups (21,40 years and 40,60 years) indicate that there was no significant dietary change in individuals with age. The isotope data from the infants and children suggest the weaning was a gradual process that was completed between 3 and 4 years of age in the Gaya population. This evidence indicates that the dietary variations within the cemetery reflect social status, sex, and childhood consumption patterns. Am J Phys Anthropol, 2010. © 2009 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source]

Stable isotopic evidence for diet at the Imperial Roman coastal site of Velia (1st and 2nd Centuries AD) in Southern Italy

AMERICAN JOURNAL OF PHYSICAL ANTHROPOLOGY, Issue 4 2009
Oliver E. Craig
Abstract Here we report on a stable isotope palaeodietary study of a Imperial Roman population interred near the port of Velia in Southern Italy during the 1st and 2nd centuries AD. Carbon and nitrogen stable isotope analyses were performed on collagen extracted from 117 adult humans as well as a range of fauna to reconstruct individual dietary histories. For the majority of individuals, we found that stable isotope data were consistent with a diet high in cereals, with relatively modest contributions of meat and only minor contributions of marine fish. However, substantial isotopic variation was found within the population, indicating that diets were not uniform. We suggest that a number of individuals, mainly but not exclusively males, had greater access to marine resources, especially high trophic level fish. However, the observed dietary variation did not correlate with burial type, number of grave goods, nor age at death. Also, individuals buried at the necropolis at Velia ate much less fish overall compared with the contemporaneous population from the necropolis of Portus at Isola Sacra, located on the coast close to Rome. Marine and riverine transport and commerce dominated the economy of Portus, and its people were in a position to supplement their own stocks of fish with imported goods in transit to Rome, whereas at Velia marine exploitation existed side-by-side with land-based economic activities. Am J Phys Anthropol, 2009. © 2009 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source]

Examining the extinction risk of specialized folivores: a comparative study of Colobine monkeys

AMERICAN JOURNAL OF PRIMATOLOGY, Issue 9 2008
Jason M. Kamilar
Abstract Species extinctions are nonrandom with some taxa appearing to possess traits that increase their extinction risk. In this study, eight predictors of extinction risk were used as independent variables to predict the IUCN category of a subfamily of specialized folivorous primates, the Colobinae. All data were transformed into phylogenetically independent contrasts and were analyzed using bivariate regressions, multiple regression, and a maximum likelihood approach using Akaike's Information Criterion to assess model performance. Once an outlier was removed from the data set, species that devote a smaller proportion of their diet to mature leaf consumption appear to be at a greater risk of extinction. Also, as female body mass increases, so does extinction risk. In contrast, as maximum latitude and the number of habitat types increase, extinction risk appears to decrease. These findings emphasize the importance of examining detailed dietary variation for predicting extinction risk at a relatively fine taxonomic scale and, consequently, may help improve conservation management. Am. J. Primatol. 70:816,827, 2008. © 2008 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source]

Feeding strategy of François' langur and white-headed langur at Fusui, China

AMERICAN JOURNAL OF PRIMATOLOGY, Issue 4 2008
Chengming Huang
Abstract We investigated the diet of a group of François' langur inhabiting a forest fragment between August 2002 and July 2003 to add to our knowledge of behavior and ecology of this langur. Our objective was to study whether the François' langur would adopt a feeding strategy similar to the white-headed langur in the same nature reserve. Data indicated that a total of 37 plant species were eaten by François' langur; however, only ten species accounted for 90% of the total feeding time. Four species belong to the ten most dominant tree species within the vegetation quadrats. Ninety-four percent of feeding time of François' langur was spent on leaves, whereas the remaining 6% of time was spent on fruits, flowers and twigs. Results also demonstrated that François' langur are similar to white-headed langur in being predominantly folivorous and that Francois' langur adopted a similar strategy to white-headed langur in diet, dietary variation and time spent on feeding. François' langur exhibited a habitat use preference for the middle zone of the forest, whereas the white-headed langur utilized the bottom zone of the forest. Further analysis indicates that human interference and habitat fragmentation caused by agriculture also impact habitat use. Am. J. Primatol. 70:320,326, 2008. © 2008 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source]

A multivariate approach to optimization of macronutrient composition in weaning diets for cod (Gadus morhua)

AQUACULTURE NUTRITION, Issue 1 2006
K. HAMRE
Abstract Atlantic cod, initial weight 0.26 g, were fed diets varying in added protein from 530 to 830 g kg,1, lipid from 50 to 300 g kg,1 and carbohydrate from 0 to 150 g kg,1 of dry weight, according to a three-component mixture design. Analysed values of protein and lipid were 500,770 g kg,1 and 30,270 g kg,1, respectively. Analysed carbohydrate levels were as added. Increasing levels of both lipid and carbohydrate had a positive effect on fish growth (P < 10,3), whereas protein levels above 600 g kg,1 gave a reduction in growth (P < 10,4). The effects on growth were evident in fish less than 4 g, whereas fish growth between 4 and 6 g was unaffected by the dietary variation. It is hypothesized that the reduction in growth at high protein levels in fish of less than 4 g could be owing to incomplete utilization of protein, as the stomach of cod is not fully developed before the fish is approximately 1 g. Mortality and cannibalism were high in fish less than 4 g but low when the fish grew from 4 to 6 g. There was a significant decrease in cannibalism with increasing dietary lipid during the first half of the experiment (P < 0.05) and cannibalism was consistently high in fish fed less than 150 g kg,1 lipid. The lipid level in whole fish increased with increasing dietary levels of lipid (P < 10,6) and carbohydrate (P < 10,4), whereas the liver lipid level increased with increasing dietary lipid up to 200 g kg,1 (P < 10,6) and decreased thereafter (P < 10,4). Whole body glycogen increased slightly with increasing levels of dietary carbohydrate (P < 0.05) and was not affected by the other dietary variables. Liver glycogen increased in response to increasing dietary carbohydrate (P < 10,5) and decreasing levels of dietary lipid (P < 10,5). An abrupt increase in liver glycogen was seen with the reduction in dietary lipid from 100 to 50 g kg,1. The hepatosomatic index increased in response to both dietary lipid and carbohydrate (P < 10,6). It is concluded that the protein requirement of young cod is less than 500 g kg,1 of dry diet. Fish of less than 4 g should not be given more than 620 g kg,1 protein and should be supplemented with 150,200 g kg,1 lipid. Carbohydrate up to 150 g kg,1 of dry diet promoted growth and did not seem to affect the fish negatively. Fish above 4 g can be given diets varying in protein and carbohydrate over the wide range of concentrations used in the present study, but lipid supplementation should be restricted to between 100 and 200 g kg,1. [source]