Dental microwear textural analyses to track feeding ecology of reindeer: a comparison of two contrasting populations in Norway

作者：Bignon lau Olivier^*; Catz Natacha; Berlioz Emilie; Veiberg Vebjorn; Strand Olav; Merceron Gildas

来源：Mammal Research, 2017, 62(1): 111-120.

DOI：10.1007/s13364-016-0304-y

• Dental microwear textural analyses
• Diet
• Reindeer (Rangifer tarandus)
• Norway

Using dental microwear textural analysis, we aim to explore variations in feeding habits within and between wild reindeer populations (Rangifer tarandus) in Norway. Specimens from the two wild reindeer areas of Knutsho and Hardangervidda were hunted between late August and the end of September 2014, and found to share very similar topological and ecological characteristics (continental alpine tundra). Despite the homogenisation of plant resources at the end of the snow-free period, dental microwear textural analysis on cheek teeth indicates differences in feeding behaviors between the two populations, in that reindeer from Knutsho might display a more "grazing" signal than the ones from Hardangervidda. Such differences in dental microwear textures reflect the differences in feeding habits that could be linked with differences in population density of reindeer. The Knutsho reindeer density is lower than at Hardangervidda, where primary food resources like grasses, sedges, and lichens are less abundant. Analyses also show the differences in gender for the population of Knutsho, but more studies are necessary for the clearest interpretation of data. Our results emphasize the need to explore local variations at a monthly time frame in order to better assess the versatility of dental microwear textures before applying this kind of analysis to either extant or extinct multi-population scales.

• 出版日期2017-1