A mounting body of evidence suggests that changes in energetic conditions like prolonged starvati... more A mounting body of evidence suggests that changes in energetic conditions like prolonged starvation can be monitored using stable isotope ratios of tissues such as bone, muscle, hair, and blood. However, it is unclear if urinary stable isotope ratios reflect a variation in energetic condition, especially if these changes in energetic condition are accompanied by shifts in dietary composition. In a feeding experiment conducted on captive bonobos (Pan paniscus), we monitored urinary δ13C, δ15N, total C (carbon), total N (nitrogen), and C/N ratios and compared these results with glucocorticoid levels under gradually changing energy availability and dietary composition. Measurements of daily collected urine samples over a period of 31 days showed that while shifts in urinary isotope signatures of δ13C and δ15N as well as total C were best explained by changes in energy consumption, urinary total N excretion as well as the C/N ratios matched the variation in dietary composition. Furtherm...
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 2011
In primates, age, sex, and social status can strongly influence access to food resources. InPan, ... more In primates, age, sex, and social status can strongly influence access to food resources. InPan, these criteria are assumed to influence access to vertebrate meat. However, the significance of meat in terms of its role in the nutrition ofPanis still debated. Here we present a study using stable carbon and nitrogen isotope ratios in hair samples from habituated, wild bonobos (Pan paniscus) to explore these issues. Over a period of 5 mo hair samples were collected from fresh bonobo nests at LuiKotale, Democratic Republic of Congo. Hair samples were assigned to known individuals and were of sufficient length to allow the evaluation of isotopic variation over several months. Samples of plant foods and sympatric fauna were also analyzed. The δ13C and δ15N results of the bonobo hair were remarkably homogeneous over time and for the group as a whole. There are no differences in diet between the sexes. Within the group of males, however, there was a positive correlation between dominance st...
The first appearance of the Neolithic Linearbandkeramik (LBK) in Central Germany occurred during ... more The first appearance of the Neolithic Linearbandkeramik (LBK) in Central Germany occurred during the 6th millennium BC. However, though LBK sites are abundant in the German loess areas, there are only a few studies that reconstruct the diet of these first farmers using biochemical methods. Here we present the largest study undertaken to date on LBK material using stable isotope
A mounting body of evidence suggests that changes in energetic conditions like prolonged starvati... more A mounting body of evidence suggests that changes in energetic conditions like prolonged starvation can be monitored using stable isotope ratios of tissues such as bone, muscle, hair, and blood. However, it is unclear if urinary stable isotope ratios reflect a variation in energetic condition, especially if these changes in energetic condition are accompanied by shifts in dietary composition. In a feeding experiment conducted on captive bonobos (Pan paniscus), we monitored urinary δ13C, δ15N, total C (carbon), total N (nitrogen), and C/N ratios and compared these results with glucocorticoid levels under gradually changing energy availability and dietary composition. Measurements of daily collected urine samples over a period of 31 days showed that while shifts in urinary isotope signatures of δ13C and δ15N as well as total C were best explained by changes in energy consumption, urinary total N excretion as well as the C/N ratios matched the variation in dietary composition. Furtherm...
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 2011
In primates, age, sex, and social status can strongly influence access to food resources. InPan, ... more In primates, age, sex, and social status can strongly influence access to food resources. InPan, these criteria are assumed to influence access to vertebrate meat. However, the significance of meat in terms of its role in the nutrition ofPanis still debated. Here we present a study using stable carbon and nitrogen isotope ratios in hair samples from habituated, wild bonobos (Pan paniscus) to explore these issues. Over a period of 5 mo hair samples were collected from fresh bonobo nests at LuiKotale, Democratic Republic of Congo. Hair samples were assigned to known individuals and were of sufficient length to allow the evaluation of isotopic variation over several months. Samples of plant foods and sympatric fauna were also analyzed. The δ13C and δ15N results of the bonobo hair were remarkably homogeneous over time and for the group as a whole. There are no differences in diet between the sexes. Within the group of males, however, there was a positive correlation between dominance st...
The first appearance of the Neolithic Linearbandkeramik (LBK) in Central Germany occurred during ... more The first appearance of the Neolithic Linearbandkeramik (LBK) in Central Germany occurred during the 6th millennium BC. However, though LBK sites are abundant in the German loess areas, there are only a few studies that reconstruct the diet of these first farmers using biochemical methods. Here we present the largest study undertaken to date on LBK material using stable isotope
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Papers by Vicky M. Oelze