Fossils, artifactsandotherlinesofevidencecanoftenbefewandfarbetween, soyoucanimaginehowhandyitwouldbetohaveananimalthatcollectscluesfromitsenvironmentandstoresthemawayin a nice, convenientspot.
MeettherockhighracksofAfrica, a littleanimalthatscientistslovebecauseitpreservespiecesofthepastinpilesofpoothesefurrylittlemammalsliveinandamongrockcrevices.
A designatedspotthateveryoneinthecolonyusesforgoingtothebathroom.
Theserockytoiletstendtobelocatedinsafe, shelteredareas, so a singlelatrinecanlastquite a while.
Insomecases, ah, latrinemightbeusedbythesamecolonyoverhundredsofgenerations, forming a heapofwastethatcanbeusedforcecenturies.
Theendresultis a midden, ah, multilayeredcollectionoffecalpelletsand a substancecalledHiraseIAM, orthedriedremainsofHiRexurine, whichissomethingthatwasworthgiving a name, too.
Becausehere's thething.
Thehigheraxesaironlytryingtokeeptheircolonyclean.
Buttheyunknowinglycaptureplantandanimalremainsfromtheirnearbyenvironmentandpreservethemin a timecapsule, whichmakesthespoopiles a goldmineforresearchers.
Generallyhigheraxemiddenscontain a lotofplantmaterial, sincethat's whatthelittleguyseat.
Andthoseplantscantellus a lot, especiallyabouttheclimateandgrowingconditionsthatexistedwhentheywereeating.
Like a 2010 studythatlookedatanincreaseinleafyplantsrelativetograssesintwomillionsoverthepast 10,000 yearsorso, thisadjustedtheclimatemayhavebeendryingoutenoughtomakeithardforhireaxestofindlush, tastygrasstoeat.
In a 2011 study, researcherscollectedMIDANdatafromsouthernAfricaspendingalmost 20,000 yearsofhistorythistimelookingforancientPaulinthepollenrevealedchangesthroughtimeinFainBoss, scrubbyvegetationthatmakesup a uniquetypeofplanecosysteminsouthernAfrica.
Thesechangesreflecttheamazingadaptabilityofourspeciesinresponsetochangingconditions, andthisinformationisbroughttousbythelatrine, a legacyofthehigheraxesthatlivedalongsideourancestors.
Africais a continentofparticularimportancetothehistoryofourownandmanyotherspecies.
Andwhiletherearemidinmakingmammalsonothercontinents, it's higheraxesthatprovide a uniqueinsightintoAfrica's past.
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