RAPID: Renewal. Paleontological Reconnaissance of Threatened, Submerged Primate Fossils in a Flooded Cave

化石记录是重建严重影响或现已灭绝的栖息地和社区的少数几种方法之一，以了解生态系统随着时间的推移发生了什么。最近，在马达加斯加的齐马南佩索采国家公园被洪水淹没的大型洞穴中发现了一个丰富的新化石来源，为过去的生态群落提供了一个“快照”。 这个化石“墓地”包含大量的巨型灭绝狐猴以及与它们共存的其他动物物种的骨骼遗骸。它位于一个只有两种狐猴物种生存的地方，并且在一个今天无法支持几千年前生活在那里的物种财富的栖息地。该项目将建立在2014年进行的调查工作的基础上，从被淹没的洞穴中收集和保存具有代表性的化石样本，并收集洞穴沉积物，以提供该地区详细准确的气候和植被历史。 更广泛的影响包括促进对气候变化、生物多样性和人口生态学的研究（包括灵长类动物）通过由此产生的骨骼收集，通过美国和马达加斯加的多种媒体进行公共科学宣传，培训学生和国际合作。在这个项目中，调查人员将对洞穴进行额外的调查;为几个物种（包括Pachylemur和Megaladapis）中的每一个收集多个骨架;评估种内变异和古代DNA，放射性碳年代测定和稳定碳和氮同位素分析的适用性。此外，还将收集和分析洞穴沉积物，以记录过去几个冰川循环中气候、降水和大气环流的变化，并获得这些地点的日期。这项工作对于试点从化石本身提取信息所需的方法非常重要，例如解释人类机构和气候变化对巨型动物灭绝的相对影响。这些洞穴需要立即关注，因为它们受到人类和天气干扰的保护很差。环境对气候和地质因素很敏感，这些因素可能会迅速损害脆弱的标本或完全摧毁它们。

The fossil record represents one of the few ways that heavily impacted or now-extinct habitats and communities can be reconstructed in order to understand what happened to ecosystems over time. A rich new source of fossils recently has been discovered in large flooded caves in Tsimanampesotse National Park, Madagascar, providing a "snapshot" of a past ecological community. This fossil "graveyard" contains abundant giant extinct lemurs as well as the skeletal remains of other animal species that co-existed with them. It lies in a location in which only two lemur species survive today, and in a habitat that could not today support the wealth of species that lived there just a few thousand years ago. This project will build upon survey work conducted in 2014, with new collection and preservation of a representative sample of fossils from the flooded caves, and collection of speleothems that can provide a detailed and accurate climate and vegetation history of the region. Broader impacts include facilitating research on climate change, biodiversity, and population ecology (including of primates) through the resulting skeletal collection, public science outreach through multiple media both in the US and in Madagascar, training of students, and international collaborations.In this project, the investigators will conduct additional surveys of the caves; collect multiple skeletons for each of several species (including Pachylemur and Megaladapis); and assess intraspecific variation and suitability for ancient DNA, radiocarbon dating, and stable carbon and nitrogen isotope analysis. In addition, speleothems will be collected and analyzed for records of change in climate, precipitation and atmospheric circulation over the past several glacial cycles, and for obtaining dates for the sites. This work will be important for piloting the methods needed to extract information from the fossils themselves, such as interpreting the relative impacts of human agency and climate change on the demise of the megafauna. The caves are in need of immediate attention because they are poorly protected from human and weather disturbances. The environment is sensitive to climatic and geological factors which can rapidly harm fragile specimens or destroy them entirely.