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Article Reference Dietary reconstruction of Spy I using dental microwear texture analysis
Spy I from the Meuse River Basin of Belgium is among the most recent Neandertals. This adult lived at the terminus of Marine Isotope Stage (MIS) 3 in cold steppe environments at the northern edge of the habitable zone for Neandertals where plants were relatively scarce. The dietary proclivities of Spy I are reconstructed using dental microwear texture analysis and compared to 33 Neandertals from western Eurasia, MIS 5 to MIS 3. Spy I has an elevated enamel surface complexity suggesting the consumption of course dietary items such as wild seeds, acorns, nuts, and underground storage organs laden with particles of grit. Unlike the young and old individuals from Hortus with low values for anisotropy, Spy I is closest to the adults from this site suggesting a common pattern of masticatory behavior typified this life cycle stage. Like many other Neandertals, Spy I probably consumed plant foods at appreciable levels, some of which were hard and brittle or poorly processed.
Located in Library / RBINS Staff Publications 2019
Article Reference Differential response of ants to nutrient addition in a tropical Brown Food Web
Located in Library / RBINS Staff Publications
Article Reference DIGIT-KEY: an aid towards uniform 2D+ and 3D digitisation techniques within natural history collections
Natural History institutes hold an immense number of specimens and artefacts. For years these collections were not accessible online, remaining inaccessible to researchers from far away and hidden from the general public. Large digitisation projects and cross-institutional agreements aim to bring their collections into the digital era, such as the SYNTHESYS+ project and the Distributed System of Scientific Collections (DiSSCo) Research Infrastructure. As specimens are 3D physical objects with different characteristics many techniques are available to 3D digitise them. For inexperienced users this can be quite overwhelming. Which techniques are already well tested in other institutions and are suitable for a specific specimen or collection? To investigate this, we have set up a dichotomous identification key for digitisation techniques: DIGIT-KEY, (https://digit.naturalheritage.be/digit-key). For each technique, examples used in SYNTHESYS+ Institutions are visualised and training manuals provided. All information can be easily updated and representatives can be contacted if necessary to request more information about a certain technique. This key can be helpful to achieve comparable results across institutions when digitising collections on demand in future DiSSCo research initiatives coordinated through the European Loans and Visits System (ELViS) for Virtual and Transnational Access. A correction has been published: Brecko J., Mathys A., Chatzinikolaou E., Keklikoglou K., Blettery J., Green L., Musson A., Paton A., Phillips S., Bastir M., Wiltschke K., Rainer H., Kroh A., Haston E. & Semal P. 2025. DIGIT-KEY: an aid towards uniform 2D+ and 3D digitisation techniques within natural history collections — Corrigendum. European Journal of Taxonomy 981: 306–307. https://doi.org/10.5852/ejt.2025.981.2841
Located in Library / RBINS Staff Publications 2025
Article Reference Digitalisation des collections de Spy à l'aide de la plateforme MARS (Multimedia Archaeological Research System).
24. Semal P., Convent D., Wannijn L. & Cauwe N., 2005. Digitalisation des collections de Spy à l'aide de la plateforme MARS (Multimedia Archaeological Research System). .
Located in Library / RBINS Staff Publications
Inproceedings Reference Digitization of Belgian Neanderthals Cultural Heritage Preservation and Scientific Exploitation.
Located in Library / RBINS Staff Publications
Article Reference Dinoflagellate cyst events and depositional history of the Paleocene/Eocene boundary interval in the southern North Sea Basin
Located in Library / RBINS Staff Publications
Inproceedings Reference Disabled individuals in a Belgian medieval Cistercian monastic community: a palaeopathological perspective.
Throughout human history, disabilities and impairments have been an inherent aspect of societies, deeply influenced by cultural contexts and by the diverse forms they manifest. Some of the physical and/or mental impairments leave skeletal traces detectable by palaeopathologists. This study presents notable cases of important disorders, such as disproportionate dwarfism, bilateral calcaneus varus (clubfoot) with evidence of crutch use and cerebral palsy. All these pathological individuals were buried in the Cistercian Abbey of the Dunes in Koksijde (Belgium), which was most active between the 12th and 15th centuries. Their grave locations are diverse, ranging from the cloister to the lay brother cemetery. There was no detected difference in their funerary treatment, except one “adapted” burial caused by a physical deformity resulting from cerebral palsy. Most of the identified pathologies are profoundly disabling, with many being congenital and detectable either at birth or during early childhood. Yet all cases presented in this study reached adulthood, with some even surviving into advanced age (over 60 years), suggesting that they received care and support from a young age. Possible health challenge encountered, as well as the nature of the assistance received will be discussed. The prevalence of disabilities within this monastic community raises questions about the social consequences of visible congenital anomalies. Were these individuals placed in a religious institution due to their disabilities, or did they choose monastic life for other reasons, as it might have offered opportunities to develop talents that did not rely on physical abilities? Interestingly, historical texts provide no specific mention of disabled individuals within the context of this abbey, making it challenging to determine whether they were fully integrated into the monastic community or were laypersons and/or benefactors.
Located in Library / RBINS Staff Publications 2025
Article Reference Discovery of a new duiker species (Bovidae: Cephalophinae) from the Dahomey Gap, West Africa
Among the two most widely distributed duiker species, Philantomba monticola (Thunberg, 1789) and Philantomba maxwelli (C.H. Smith, 1827), the latter shows geographic variation in pelage color and body size. This issue was not investigated in detail so far, especially in the eastern region of its distribution area, notably due to the lack of material from the Dahomey Gap. We undertook a species-level revision of Philantomba in West Africa, notably including a series of specimens collected in Togo, Benin and Nigeria. Using morphological measurements (craniometry) and genetic data (two mitochondrial and three nuclear markers), we describe a new duiker species occurring in the Dahomey Gap (Togo, Benin) and the Niger delta, Philantomba walteri sp. nov. This discovery highlights the importance of the Dahomey Gap for the evolutionary history of the West African forest faunas. It also has conservation implications given that the new species is one of the main targets of the local bushmeat trade.
Located in Library / RBINS Staff Publications
Article Reference Discovery of a new inland population of Amara strenua Zimmerman, 1832 at Heverlee, central Belgium (Coleoptera: Carabidae)
Located in Library / RBINS Staff Publications 2022
Article Reference Discovery of Recent thecideide brachiopods (Order: Thecideida, Family: Thecideidae) in Sulawesi, Indonesian Archipelago, with implications for reproduction and shell size in the genus Ospreyella
Located in Library / RBINS Staff Publications