scholarly journals Diversity of management strategies in Mesoamerican turkeys: archaeological, isotopic and genetic evidence

2018 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
pp. 171613 ◽  
Author(s):  
Aurelie Manin ◽  
Eduardo Corona-M ◽  
Michelle Alexander ◽  
Abigail Craig ◽  
Erin Kennedy Thornton ◽  
...  

The turkey ( Meleagris gallopavo ) represents one of the few domestic animals of the New World. While current research points to distinct domestication centres in the Southwest USA and Mesoamerica, several questions regarding the number of progenitor populations, and the timing and intensity of turkey husbandry remain unanswered. This study applied ancient mitochondrial DNA and stable isotope ( δ 13 C, δ 15 N) analysis to 55 archaeological turkey remains from Mexico to investigate pre-contact turkey exploitation in Mesoamerica. Three different (sub)species of turkeys were identified in the archaeological record ( M. g. mexicana , M. g. gallopavo and M. ocellata ), indicating the exploitation of diverse local populations, as well as the trade of captively reared birds into the Maya area. No evidence of shared maternal haplotypes was observed between Mesoamerica and the Southwest USA, in contrast with archaeological evidence for trade of other domestic products. Isotopic analysis indicates a range of feeding behaviours in ancient Mesoamerican turkeys, including wild foraging, human provisioning and mixed feeding ecologies. This variability in turkey diet decreases through time, with archaeological, genetic and isotopic evidence all pointing to the intensification of domestic turkey management and husbandry, culminating in the Postclassic period.

2014 ◽  
Vol 41 (7) ◽  
pp. 545 ◽  
Author(s):  
Britney Niedzielski ◽  
Jeff Bowman

Context In an era of rapid environmental change, many species are shifting their distributions. As temperate-zone species’ expand their ranges north, different and potentially severe limiting factors may begin to affect their ability to survive and reproduce. The wild turkey (Meleagris gallopavo) is one example of a species undergoing rapid northern expansion. Aims An improved understanding of wild turkey demography at the species’ northern range periphery would facilitate effective management of this important game species. Therefore, we undertook a study to evaluate survival, causes of mortality, and behavioural strategies that may govern survival of female wild turkeys. Methods We captured 53 female wild turkeys, and used backpack transmitters to monitor their individual fates during 2012–13. Key results The annual survival estimate was 0.37 (95% CI: 0.25–0.55), with the lowest seasonal survival in the winter. The most frequent cause of mortality was mammalian predation, predominately by coyotes (Canis latrans). Age, proximity to supplemental food, and habitat use did not affect risk of mortality. Conclusions Northern wild turkeys in our study exhibited lower survival and suffered higher predation than did populations in the species’ historic range. Despite our findings, the wild turkey has expanded its range northwards and continues to exist in these peripheral areas. This may be due to high productivity or a source–sink dynamic, whereby high mortality is offset by immigration from the south. Implications The low survival and high predation of wild turkeys in the north must be considered when developing management strategies, particularly if interest exists in translocating turkeys farther north. Further research is needed to better understand whether northern turkey populations persist as sinks.


2019 ◽  
Vol 28 (4) ◽  
pp. 548-562 ◽  
Author(s):  
Livio Martins Costa-Júnior ◽  
Daniel Praseres Chaves ◽  
Danilo Rodrigues Barros Brito ◽  
Vitor Augusto Ferreira dos Santos ◽  
Henrique Nelson Costa-Júnior ◽  
...  

Abstract Cochliomyia hominivorax (Coquerel, 1858), the New World screwworm, causes primary myiasis in wild and domestic animals in tropical and subtropical regions of Brazil. Although this species is considered to occur throughout the country, organized information about its recorded distribution has not been available until now. This article aimed to provide a comprehensive review of the historical and current data published on both immature (myiasis) and adult stages of C. hominivorax in Brazil. A total of 174 articles were found; of these, 141 articles reported myiasis cases in cattle (146 records), humans (68 records), and other mammalian hosts (40 records), and captures of adult flies were reported in 33 articles. C. hominivorax is widespread in Brazil, having been recorded in 208 municipalities in all major biomes of the country.


Animals ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (5) ◽  
pp. 780 ◽  
Author(s):  
Carlos Iglesias Pastrana ◽  
Francisco Javier Navas González ◽  
Elena Ciani ◽  
Cecilio José Barba Capote ◽  
Juan Vicente Delgado Bermejo

The lack of applied scientific research on camels, despite them being recognized as production animals, compels the reorganization of emerging camel breeding systems with the aim of achieving successful camel welfare management strategies all over the world. Relevant and properly-framed research widely impacts dissemination of scientific contents and drives public willingness to enhance ethically acceptable conditions for domestic animals. Consumer perception of this livestock industry will improve and high-quality products will be obtained. This paper draws on bibliometric indicators as promoting factors for camel-related research advances, tracing historical scientific publications indexed in ScienceDirect directory from 1880–2019. Camel as a species did not affect Journal Citation Reports (JCR) impact (p > 0.05) despite the journal, author number, corresponding author origin, discipline and publication year affecting it (p < 0.001). Countries with traditionally well-established camel farming are also responsible for the papers with the highest academic impact. However, camel research advances may have only locally and partially influenced welfare related laws, so intentional harming acts and basic needs neglect may persist in these species. A sustainable camel industry requires those involved in camel research to influence business stakeholders and animal welfare advocacies by highlighting the benefits of camel wellbeing promotion, co-innovation partnership establishment and urgent enhancement of policy reform.


1955 ◽  
Vol 20 (4Part1) ◽  
pp. 377-378
Author(s):  
Homer Aschmann

One is forced to admire Quimby's enterprise (1954, American Antiquity, Vol. 19, No. 4, pp. 317-31) in attempting not only a characterization but a mapping of the paleogeography of North America at 7 stages between 8500 B.C. and 500 B.C. Among other things it shows a healthful awareness that the physical environment cannot be considered a constant even in the relatively short time span generally accepted for the New World archaeological record. Fruitful investigations can be pursued through coordinating the geological, climatological, paleoecological, and archaeological evidence over extensive regions, and this tentative essay may provide a needed impetus.On the other hand, certain of the hypotheses presented in this paper seem to me to demand immediate examination before they become established dogma to burden subsequent investigations. I shall not question the eclectic use of 2 main chronological frameworks, those provided by Antevs and by radiocarbon dating, though the former, at least, is hardly established fact (Burma 1950).


2006 ◽  
Vol 71 (4) ◽  
pp. 595-620 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael R. Bever

Alaska is commonly viewed as a gateway between the Old and New Worlds, and as such, figures prominently in most models of the peopling of the New World. With a growing number of archaeological sites dating to the terminal Pleistocene, Alaska might be expected to provide direct evidence bearing on the colonization of the Americas. Based on 27 site components with 114 radiocarbon dates, this paper discusses the archaeological record of late Pleistocene Alaska, organized around the characteristics and chronology of three complexes: the microblade-bearing Denali complex, the Nenana complex, and the Mesa complex. This paper shows that the archaeological record of late Pleistocene Alaska is quite diverse, and not lacking in controversy and conflicting interpretations. In addition, this period of archaeological diversity coincides with the Younger Dryas climatic event. However, none of the reliably dated sites is older than the earliest evidence of human occupation further south in the Americas. Despite this, evidence from DNA studies points strongly to a north-central Asian homeland for Native Americans, upholding Alaska as the point of entry into the New World. Suggestions are offered, then, as to why the Alaskan record remains silent about the initial peopling of the New World.


2014 ◽  
Vol 79 (2) ◽  
pp. 204-226 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stephen L. Black ◽  
Alston V. Thorns

AbstractRemains of earth ovens with rock heating elements of various sizes and configurations are common at hunter-gatherer sites around the world. They span the last 30,000 years in the Old World and some 10,000 years in the New World. Although various foods were baked in these ovens, plants predominate. Earth ovens are ethnographically well documented as family-size and bulk cooking facilities, but related technology and its archaeological signatures remain poorly understood and understudied. These ubiquitous features are often mischaracterized as generic cooking facilities termed hearths. It is proposed that, in fact, most rock “hearths” are heating elements of earth ovens. Reliable identification and interpretation of earth ovens requires documentation of heating elements, pit structure, rock linings, and various remnants thereof. Fundamental technological concepts for investigating their archaeological signatures include thermodynamics, construction designs, and life cycles in systemic context, as informed by ethnographic, archaeological, and experimental data. Earth oven technology explains well the primary purpose of labor-intensive thermal storage for long-term cooking and conserving fuel. Information from the extensive archaeological record of earth ovens on the Edwards Plateau of south-central North America illustrates these points.


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