Isotopic paleoecology of mid-sized carnivorans

In paleoecology of mammalian carnivores the major attention is given to large species, like brown bear, wolf and lynx. This is due to strong impact on ecosystems they cause as apex predators, but also high rate of extinction in contact with anthropogenic factors. Large carnivorans are viewed by human as a source of fear and physical threat. The psychology also plays an important role, as large carnivorans were always perceived as dangerous and strong, awakening fear but also adoration. For this reason, they became the subject of special interests, and human fears were the reason for their persecution throughout Europe. The situation is different in case of smaller carnivorans, such as foxes, wildcats, badgers or martens. Although they outnumber the large predators by the quantity of species and ecological diversity, only little attention has been given to their role in past ecosystems, and the history of their adaptation to the environment changed by man, despite their large geographical spread and commonness in fossil material, including the geological record of Postglacial in Poland.

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Isotopic paleoecology of mid-sized carnivorans