Strontium-calcium ratios (Sr/Ca) of Australopithecus robustus and associated fauna from Swartkrans

Abstract

Strontium-calcium ratios (Sr/Ca) are normally reduced at higher trophic levels in foodwebs, due to discrimination against strontium in favour of calcium by animals. This phenomenon has not generally been applied to the study of fossil foodwebs and the diets of early hominids because of diagenetic changes which obscure or obliterate biological Sr/Ca. The examination of compartments of fossil apatite having differing solubility, however, is a promising method for independently measuring biological and diagenetic Sr/Ca. In this study, Sr/Ca in Member I fossils from the site of Swartkrans were examined using a solubility profile procedure. Sr/Ca relationships observed among Swartkrans fauna match those seen in modern African foodwebs, suggesting that biological Sr/Ca accounts for the observed variation. When specimens of the fossil hominid Australopithecus robustus were examined, Sr/Ca values were inconsistent with that of a root, rhizome or seed-eating herbivore, suggesting that the diet of this species was more diverse than previously believed, and almost certainly included the consumption of animal foods.