Dental microwear analysis

Dental microwear analysis studies microscopic wear features on tooth surfaces to infer an animal’s recent diet and feeding behavior.

Dental microwear texture analysis: A quantitative method that measures three-dimensional textures on tooth surfaces to characterize microscopic wear. It extends microwear analysis by quantifying surface complexity and texture.
Paleodiet: The diet of an organism inferred from evidence preserved in fossils or archaeological remains. Microwear patterns provide evidence for reconstructing diets of extinct animals.
Dental anatomy: The structure and arrangement of teeth and their supporting tissues. Tooth anatomy determines which surfaces can preserve interpretable wear.
Grit (sediment): Small mineral particles that can enter food and abrade tooth surfaces during chewing. Environmental grit may produce wear patterns that resemble effects of particular foods.
Dental microwear scars: Microscopic scratches, pits, and other surface features produced by contact during chewing. These marks are the direct evidence measured to reconstruct feeding behavior.
Trophic ecology: The study of feeding relationships and energy transfer among organisms in ecosystems. Dietary signals from teeth help place animals within ancient food webs.
Dental abrasion: Tooth wear caused by friction against external particles or substances. Abrasion is one physical process that creates microscopic surface marks.
Dietary reconstruction: The inference of past diets from biological, archaeological, or geological evidence. Microwear provides only one line of evidence and can yield ambiguous dietary signals.
Tooth enamel: The hard, mineralized outer covering of a tooth crown. Most microwear signals are recorded on enamel surfaces.
Functional morphology: The study of how biological form relates to mechanical function. Tooth shape and wear together help explain how animals processed food.

Linked from 7 pages