Abstract
The Chinchilla Local Fauna is a diverse assemblage of both terrestrial and aquatic Pliocene vertebrates from the fluviatile Chinchilla Sand deposits of southeastern Queensland, Australia. It represents one of Australia's few but exceptionally rich Pliocene vertebrate localities, and as such is an important source of paleoecological data concerning Pliocene environmental changes and its effects on ecosystems. Prior inferences about the paleoenvironment of this locality made on the basis of qualitative observations have ranged from grassland to open woodland to wetland. Examination of the carbon and oxygen isotopes in the tooth enamel of marsupials from this site represents a quantitative method for inferring the paleoenvironments and paleoecology of the fossil fauna. Results from Chinchilla show that Protemnodon sp. indet. consumed both C3 and C4 photosynthesis plant types (mean δ13C = −14.5±2.0‰), and therefore probably occupied a mixed vegetation environment. Macropus sp. indet. from Chinchilla also consumed a mixed diet of both C3 and C4 plants, with more of a tendency for C4 plant consumption (mean δ13C = −10.3±2.3‰). Interestingly, their isotopic dietary signature is more consistent with tropical and temperate kangaroo communities than the sub-tropical communities found around Chinchilla today. Other genera sampled in this study include the extinct kangaroo Troposodon sp. indet. and the fossil diprotodontid Euryzygoma dunense each of which appear to have occupied distinct dietary niches. This study suggests that southeastern Queensland hosted a mosaic of tropical forests, wetlands and grasslands during the Pliocene and was much less arid than previously thought.
Highlights
The Chinchilla Local Fauna of southeastern Queensland represents one of the few well-studied and diverse Pliocene vertebrate assemblages in Australia [1,2]
The vertebrate assemblage of the Chinchilla Local Fauna, which is derived from the Chinchilla Sand, is represented by an array of fish, reptiles, birds, marsupials, and rodents [2]
In this study we address the following questions: N What is the geochemical evidence for pervasive Pliocene grasslands within faunal elements derived from the Chinchilla Sand?
Summary
The Chinchilla Local Fauna of southeastern Queensland represents one of the few well-studied and diverse Pliocene vertebrate assemblages in Australia [1,2]. The vertebrate assemblage of the Chinchilla Local Fauna, which is derived from the Chinchilla Sand, is represented by an array of fish, reptiles, birds, marsupials, and rodents [2]. Numerous aquatic and wetland fossil taxa present in the assemblage imply the occurrence of extensive and permanent water bodies [8,9,10,11]. High-crowned molars of macropodids reflect grazing diets, paleohabitat interpretations made on the basis of these marsupials suggest the presence of grasslands [7]; presence of extinct fossil birds that may be related to modern water birds have been used to infer the presence of wetlands [11]. Quantitative and geochemical methods of paleoenvironmental reconstructions commonly give more precise interpretations of past habitats, but until now, have not been applied to any Pliocene locality in Australia
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