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The Pennsylvania State University the Graduate School College Of The Pennsylvania State University The Graduate School College Of Earth and Mineral Sciences LOCAL AND BROAD SCALE CHANGES IN NORTH AMERICAN SMALL MAMMAL COMMUNITY STRUCTURE: THE LATE PLEISTOCENE THROUGH THE LATE HOLOCENE A Thesis in Geosciences by Melissa I. Pardi © 2010 Melissa I. Pardi Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Master of Science May 2010 The thesis of Melissa I. Pardi was reviewed and approved* by the following: Russell W. Graham Associate Professor of Geosciences Earth and Mineral Sciences Museum Director Thesis Adviser Mark E. Patzkowsky Associate Professor of Geosciences Richard B. Alley Evan Pugh Professor of Geosciences Alan H. Taylor Professor of Geography Director of Vegetation Dynamics Laboratory Associate Director of Earth Environmental Systems Institute Katherine H. Freeman Professor of Geosciences Associate Head for Graduate Programs and Research Department of Geosciences *Signatures are on file in the Graduate School ii ABSTRACT A new late Quaternary IDXQDIURP'RQ¶V*RRVHEHUU\3LWLQWKH%ODFN+LOOVRI6RXWK Dakota provides the first continuous late Pleistocene through late Holocene paleobiological record for the North American Northern Great Plains. A paleoecological history of the Black Hills was constructed using the small mammal remains from this cave. In addition, twelve radiocarbon dates were taken from dental elements of specific taxa to identify non-analog associations. A cOXVWHUDQDO\VLVRIVDPSOHVLQGLFDWHWKDW'RQ¶V*RRVHEHUU\3LWFRQWDLQVD fauna that is representative of a cold moist environment in the late Pleistocene, which then transitions into a drier and more open late Holocene environment. This over-all trend was accomplished through episodic changes from closed to open forest, and not a linear change from cold to warm. This finding is consistent with other climate records. Despite careful excavation proceduresPL[LQJLQWKH'RQ¶V*RRVHEHUU\3LW is extensive, as evidenced by the twelve radiocarbon dates. More radiocarbon dates on individual taxa may reveal a non-analog fauna in the future. Plotting dated specimens in a chronology, however, revealed that organisms followed an individualistic response to climate change. This pattern is also consistent with the cluster analysis. To examine large scale patterns in small mammal community structure, 203 fossil faunas from 183 locations east of the Rocky Mountains in North America were compared using non-metric multidimensional scaling. These faunas ranged in age from the last Full Glacial to the late Holocene. Late Glacial faunas were more diverse than late Holocene faunas. Glacial sites were also more taxonomically similar along an East-West gradient. This finding suggests that this gradient steepened during the transition into the Holocene. Heterogeneous environments during the last glacial could produce such patterns, and are also consistent with the presence of late Pleistocene non-analog faunas. These results indicate that North America not only experienced extinctions of organisms at the end of the last glacial, but that some late Pleistocene habitats were also wiped from the modern landscape. These findings provide relevant details about how future climate change may affect patterns in terrestrial biodiversity. iii TABLE OF CONTENTS LIST OF TABLES ................................................................................................................... vi LIST OF FIGURES ................................................................................................................ vii CHAPTER 1 ............................................................................................................................. 1 'RQ¶V*RRVHEHUU\3LWDQG1RQ-Analog Faunas........................................................................ 1 Introduction .........................................................................................................................................1 Background Information .....................................................................................................................2 Study Area ..........................................................................................................................................3 Research Objectives ............................................................................................................................5 Methods ..............................................................................................................................................6 Excavation and Field Preparation Methods ....................................................................................6 Specimen Identification ..................................................................................................................7 Analytical Methods: Cluster Analysis ............................................................................................8 Analytical Methods: Age-Depth Analysis ......................................................................................8 Results .................................................................................................................................................9 Cluster Analysis ..............................................................................................................................9 Age-Depth Analysis ......................................................................................................................13 Discussion .........................................................................................................................................17 Paleoecology of the Black Hills: Evidence supporting species tracking of habitats ....................17 Paleoecology of the Black Hills: Evidence for ecological stress ..................................................20 The Fidelity of Non-$QDORJ)DXQDVLQ'RQ¶V*RRVHEHUU\3LW .....................................................23 Conclusions .......................................................................................................................................24 CHAPTER 2 ........................................................................................................................... 26 Changes in Broad Scale Community Structure Since the Latest Pleistocene ......................... 26 Introduction .......................................................................................................................................26 Methods ............................................................................................................................................28 Data Selection and Manipulation ..................................................................................................31 Analytical Methods: Non-Metric Multidimensional Scaling (NMDS).........................................33 Results ...............................................................................................................................................37 Discussion .........................................................................................................................................41 Comparing Glacial and Late Holocene Biodiversity ....................................................................41 Heterogeneous Habitat Hypothesis ...............................................................................................45 Northern Taxa and Non-Analog Components ..............................................................................46 iv Decreased Heterogeneity and the Megafauna Extinction .............................................................49 Conclusions .......................................................................................................................................52 APPENDIX A. Elaboration on specimen idenification methods......................................................53 APPENDIX B&RPSOHWH'RQ¶V*RRVHEHUU\3LW)DXQD .................................................................64 APPENDIX C'RQ¶V*RRVHEHUU\3LW6WUDWLJUDSK\ .......................................................................68 APPENDIX D. Small Species NMDS Data Set ...............................................................................74 APPENDIX E. Small Genera NMDS Data Set ................................................................................99 APPENDIX F. All Species NMDS Data Set. .................................................................................109 APPENDIX G. All Genera NMDS Data Set ..................................................................................150 APPENDIX H. Site Identifications .................................................................................................171 REFERENCES ...............................................................................................................................176 v LIST OF TABLES Table 1. Tabulated radiocarbon dates. Dates were obtained through accelerator mass spectroscopy analysis of purified collagen from teeth. ........................................................... 15 Table 2. Stratigraphic context of ecological groups. The results from Figure 4 dot plot are given with analysis units returned to their stratigraphic context. Analysis units are given by the level and unit number. Analysis units are coded by generalized characteristics of the habitat groups defined in Figure 4. ........................................................................................
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