Tracking cats : problems with placing feline carnivores on δ18O, δD isoscapes
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Abstract
Background: Several felids are endangered and threatened by the illegal wildlife trade. Establishing geographic origin of
tissues of endangered species is thus crucial for wildlife crime investigations and effective conservation strategies. As shown
in other species, stable isotope analysis of hydrogen and oxygen in hair (dDh, d18Oh) can be used as a tool for provenance
determination. However, reliably predicting the spatial distribution of dDh and d18Oh requires confirmation from animal
tissues of known origin and a detailed understanding of the isotopic routing of dietary nutrients into felid hair.
Methodology/Findings: We used coupled dDh and d18Oh measurements from the North American bobcat (Lynx rufus) and
puma (Puma concolor) with precipitation-based assignment isoscapes to test the feasibility of isotopic geo-location of
felidae. Hairs of felid and rabbit museum specimens from 75 sites across the United States and Canada were analyzed.
Bobcat and puma lacked a significant correlation between H/O isotopes in hair and local waters, and also exhibited an
isotopic decoupling of d18Oh and dDh. Conversely, strong dD and d18O coupling was found for key prey, eastern cottontail
rabbit (Sylvilagus floridanus; hair) and white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus; collagen, bone phosphate).
Conclusions/Significance: Puma and bobcat hairs do not adhere to expected pattern of H and O isotopic variation
predicted by precipitation isoscapes for North America. Thus, using bulk hair, felids cannot be placed on d18O and dD
isoscapes for use in forensic investigations. The effective application of isotopes to trace the provenance of feline carnivores
is likely compromised by major controls of their diet, physiology and metabolism on hair d18O and dD related to body water
budgets. Controlled feeding experiments, combined with single amino acid isotope analysis of diets and hair, are needed to
reveal mechanisms and physiological traits explaining why felid hair does not follow isotopic patterns demonstrated in
many other taxa.
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PLOS ONE, 6, 9, PLOS, San Francisco, California, US, 2011, https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0024601