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Article Reference Multifaceted analysis reveals diet and kinship of Late Pleistocene ‘Tumat Puppies.’
Distinguishing early domesticates from their wild progenitors presents a significant obstacle for understanding human-mediated effects in the past. The origin of dogs is particularly controversial because potential early dog remains often lack corroborating evidence that can provide secure links between proposed dog remains and human activity. The Tumat Puppies, two permafrost-preserved Late Pleistocene canids, have been hypothesized to have been littermates and early domesticates due to a physical association with putatively butchered mammoth bones. Through a combination of osteometry, stable isotope analysis, plant macrofossil analysis, and genomic and metagenomic analyses, this study exploits the unique properties of the naturally mummified Tumat Puppies to examine their familial relationship and to determine whether dietary information links them to human activities. The multifaceted analysis reveals that the 14,965–14,046 cal yr BP Tumat Puppies were littermates who inhabited a dry and relatively mild environment with heterogeneous vegetation and consumed a diverse diet, including woolly rhinoceros in their final days. However, because there is no evidence of mammoth consumption, these data do not establish a link between the canids and ancient humans.
Located in Library / RBINS Staff Publications 2025
Article Reference The Canis lupus ssp. (Mammalia, Carnivora) of the Baume Traucade (Issirac, Gard, France): A complete skeleton of a “dog-like” individual from the post-LGM.
Completely preserved canid skeletons dating from the Pleistocene are rare finds. Here, we describe such a unique discovery from Baume Traucade, a cave site in the municipality of Issirac in southern France, which presents a rare opportunity to study in detail a series of skeletal elements from the same individual. This canid was likely a female with an estimated body mass of 26 kg and a shoulder height of 62 cm. It has an age of approximately 16.0 to 15.3 cal ka BP. Impact marks on the lumbar vertebrae and ribs, along with circular perforations on one of the scapulae, suggest that this canid was wounded by humans shortly before its death. The Baume Traucade skeleton is compared to a series of reference groups, including fossil and extant wolves, as well as Palaeolithic, prehistoric, and recent dogs. Linear discriminant analysis of its ln-transformed raw craniometric variables assigns this canid to the putative Palaeolithic dog group with a posterior probability of 99.5% and a typicality probability of 49.8%. Linear discriminant analysis of its allometrically size-adjusted craniometric variables assigns it to the same group with a posterior probability of 96.7% and a typicality probability of 75.1%. Furthermore, based on univariate analyses of its mandible and long bones, the Baume Traucade canid also shows the closest affinity with the group of putative Palaeolithic dogs.
Located in Library / RBINS Staff Publications 2025
Article Reference Macrobenthos and morpho-sedimentary recovery dynamics in areas following aggregate extraction cessation
Located in Library / RBINS Staff Publications 2025 OA
Article Reference Monitoring benthic plumes, sediment redeposition and seafloor imprints caused by deep-sea polymetallic nodule mining
Located in Library / RBINS Staff Publications 2025 OA
Article Reference Clay minerals and the stability of organic carbon in suspension along coastal to offshore transects
Located in Library / RBINS Staff Publications 2025 OA
Article Reference Phytoplankton enhances the flocculation of suspended particulate matter in a turbid estuary
Located in Library / RBINS Staff Publications 2026 OA
Article Reference Barcoding and traditional health practitioner perspectives are informative to monitor and conserve frogs and reptiles traded for traditional medicine in urban South Africa
Abstract Previous literature suggests that Indigenous cultural practices, specifically traditional medicine, are commonplace among urban communities contrary to the general conception that such practices are restricted to rural societies. We reviewed previous literature for records of herptiles (frog and reptile species) sold by traditional health practitioners in urban South Africa, then used visual confirmation surveys, DNA barcoding and folk taxonomy to identify the herptile species that were on sale. Additionally, we interviewed 11 IsiZulu and SePedi speaking traditional health practitioners to document details of the collection and pricing of herptile specimens along with the practitioners' views of current conservation measures for traditional medicine markets. The 34 herptile species recorded in previous literature on traditional medicine markets included endangered and non-native species. Spectrophotometry measurements of the DNA we extracted from the tissue of herptiles used in traditional medicine were an unreliable predictor of whether those extractions would be suitable for further experimental work. From our initial set of 111 tissue samples, 81 sequencing reactions were successful and 55 of those sequences had species-level matches to COI reference sequences on the NCBI GenBank and/or BOLD databases. Molecular identification revealed that traditional health practitioners correctly labelled 77% of the samples that we successfully identified with DNA barcoding in this study. Our mixed methodology approach is useful for conservation planning as it updates knowledge of animal use in Indigenous remedies and can accurately identify species of high conservation priority. Furthermore, this study highlights the possibility of collaborative conservation planning with traditional health practitioners.
Located in Library / RBINS Staff Publications 2025
Article Reference François Roffiaen's terrestrial and freshwater gastropod types in the collection of the Royal Belgian Institute of Natural Sciences
Jean François Xavier Roffiaen (1820–1898) was a Belgian landscape painter with a profound interest in malacology. A founding member of the Société malacologique de Belgique, Roffiaen contributed several publications on molluscs. Among such studies, his 1868 paper on Swiss terrestrial and freshwater gastropods introduced 14 new taxa (species and varieties) belonging to the Clausiliidae, Discidae, Helicidae, Lymnaeidae, Valvatidae, and Viviparidae. However, Roffiaen’s malacological contributions largely faded from recognition, primarily due to the unknown whereabouts of his type material. This study revisits his work by identifying and analysing specimens from the Royal Belgian Institute of Natural Sciences (RBINS). Of the 14 taxa described by Roffiaen, type specimens for nine (including the two full species) have been recovered, enabling a reassessment of their taxonomic status as synonyms of better-known and widespread species. The serendipitous finding of these type specimens reaffirms the importance of maintaining museum collections, and the implementation of digitization programs to uncover/recover such “lost” information, enabling it to be made available to the scientific community at large.
Located in Library / RBINS Staff Publications 2025
Article Reference Game Theoretical Analysis of Geosystem Service Management: A Systematic Literature Review
Located in Library / RBINS Staff Publications 2026
Article Reference Breeding probability, survival, and causes of mortality in translocated Black Grouse (Lyrurus tetrix) in the Hautes Fagnes, Belgium
The mortality process is a key factor in avian population dynamics and conservation strategies like translocation. Understanding mortality drivers, particularly in translocated individuals, is essential for Grouse conservation. Black Grouse (Lyrurus tetrix) populations have strongly declined across Western and Central Europe. We studied five reinforcement campaigns of the last Belgian population in the Hautes Fagnes, using wild individuals translocated from Sweden. Between 2018 and 2024, we monitored 65 released individuals and investigated 44 deaths. Predation accounted for 88.7%, maybe 93.2%, of all recorded deaths, largely attributable to mammalian predators (72.8%), whereas 15.9% of death were caused by raptors. However, in 36.4% of mammalian predation cases, we could not determine ante-mortem nor post-mortem injuries due to insufficient traces. Other causes of mortality were rare, with fence collisions accounting for 4.5%, and no evidence of disease-related deaths. Mortality causes and cumulative mortality risks were independent of sex. Survival analysis showed high mortality in the first two months (26.7% per month), followed by a lower but ongoing rate (7.5% per month). During the first year, overall survival was 24.6%. Survival varied greatly from year to year, ranging from 100 to 30% after 60 days post-release. Breeding probability was also assessed. Around 50% of first-year females are expected initiate incubation if not predated, though the observed rate dropped to 23.9% with predation. Among these, 33.3% of nests are lost, potentially predated, and half of the mothers were lost during chick dependence. In contrast, females tracked into their second year experienced no predation nor their eggs, though the small sample size warrants caution in interpretation. The data collected show that increasing predator control, particularly in the first two months post-release but also beyond, is essential to enhance the restoration success of this Black Grouse population by improving survival, nesting success, and chick recruitment rate.
Located in Library / RBINS Staff Publications 2026