Stable Isotopes and Late Quaternary Environments: A Woodrat’s Tale

Corey Shaver
Environmental Systems
University of California, Merced

Abstract:

Earth’s environment has continuously changed throughout geologic history and species have been able to persist, evolve, or at times go extinct in response to those changes. However, while we have a baseline understanding of how climates have fluctuated through time and overall biodiversity responses to those fluctuations, we often lack a detailed understanding of those changes at the local scale. Small mammals are valuable recorders of environmental conditions, tracking changes that are more spatially sensitive than large mammals due, in part, to their small home ranges. This research explores isotopic patterns from small mammals (Neotoma) as potential indicators of late
Quaternary environmental conditions in northern California, by determining δ13C and δ18O values and comparing inferred isotope changes with known climatic, environmental, and ecological change in this region over the last 22 kya.. Overall, our data show that the tooth enamel isotopes from Neotoma track global changes in carbon and oxygen associated with the transition from glacial to interglacial cycles but interpreting our data relative to local scale and temporally dynamic environmental changes is more challenging and could benefit from additional research.

Biography:

Corey obtained her B.S. in Geology from University of Puget Sound in Washington state in
2015. After working a variety of jobs and expanding her diverse skillset, Corey joined Dr. Blois’s research lab in 2020 during the height of a global pandemic. It was here she developed a deep admiration for paleoecology, small mammals, and data analysis (hello R!). Corey also had the privilege of co-teaching a week-long summer course to middle schoolers on California's biodiversity two years in a row, as well as being VP for UC Merced Cops off Campus group.