Dietary preferences and collagen to collagen prey-predator trophic discrimination factors (<i>Δ</i><sup>13</sup>C, <i>Δ</i><sup>15</sup>N) in late Pleistocene cave hyena
Journal: Quaternary Research
Year: 2025

Abstract The spotted hyena ( Crocuta crocuta ) was an important large carnivore of Pleistocene ecosystems in Africa and Eurasia. Like its modern relatives, this obligate carnivore was adapted to crush and digest bones of its prey and absorb organic matter from bones more efficiently than any other carnivore. This difference in the nutrient resource use between hyenas and most other carnivores led to differences in the isotope flux and variation in the carbon and nitrogen isotopic composition. In