δ13C and δ18O enamel isotope insights into the paleoecology of MSA foragers from Gotera, southern Ethiopia

Ecological and climatic changes are thought to have driven cultural and cognitive developments including dispersal and vicariance, adaptation and resilience, and symbolism and ornamentation of modern humans within and beyond Africa during the late Pleistocene. However, more refined studies on the regional and local paleoenvironmental and paleoclimatic context of late Pleistocene MSA foragers are hampered by site-based research lacunas. This poster presents the carbon (δ13C) and oxygen (δ18O) stable isotope analysis of mammalian tooth enamels from the Gotera MSA site dating to the MIS3, rich lithics and faunal assemblages. C and O stable isotope analysis of mammalian tooth enamel has become a well-established proxy for the understanding of the paleoecology and environmental contexts of hominins.