Paleosol (organic matter and pedogenic carbonates) and paleontological d 13 C records applied to the paleoecology of late PleistoceneeHolocene in Mexico T. Cruz-y-Cruz a, * , V.A. P  erez-Crespo b , K. Pustovoytov c , S. Sedov b , P. Morales-Puente b , R.E. Tovar-Liceaga a , J. Arroyo-Cabrales d , A. Terrazas-Mata e , G. S  anchez-Miranda f a Posgrado en Ciencias de la Tierra, Universidad Nacional Aut onoma de M exico, Ciudad Universitaria, 04510 M exico D.F., Mexico b Instituto de Geología, UNAM, Ciudad Universitaria, 04510 M exico D.F., Mexico c Institute of Soil Science and Land Evaluation, University of Hohenheim, Stuttgart, Germany d Laboratorio de Arqueozoología, Subdirecci on de Laboratorios y Apoyo Acad emico, INAH, Mexico e Instituto de Investigaciones Antropol ogicas, UNAM, Ciudad Universitaria, 04510 M exico D.F., Mexico f Estaci on Regional del Noroeste, Instituto de Geología, UNAM, Hermosillo, Sonora, Mexico article info Article history: Available online 9 April 2016 Keywords: Stable carbon isotopes Paleosols Late Pleistocene Holocene Paleoenvironment Pleistocene megafauna abstract Stable isotopes of carbon (d 13 C) in terrestrial geological materials (paleosol humus and carbonates) as well as fossil bones (collagen and tooth enamel) are established as highly specific records on paleo- environmental characteristics. It was assumed that comparing the results of different types of materials on regional or local scales provides more accurate and reliable reconstructions and even opens new aspects of interpretation. This was tested by the comparison of the data obtained from the late Pleis- tocene paleosols and/or remains of Pleistocene megafauna in various locations in Northwestern Mexico: Sonora (paleosols formed in MIS3, MIS2 and MIS1); Central-Northern Mexico: San Luis Potosi (teeth, corresponding to MIS2 and MIS1); and Central-Southern Mexico: Puebla (paleosols corresponding to MIS3 and MIS2, and teeth associated with these paleosols), and State of Mexico (teeth, corresponding to MIS2). The results of isotopic studies are complemented with other paleoenvironmental proxies. The d 13 C values of paleosols of Sonora is 19.8 to 16.95‰ in organic matter, and shows little difference between paleosols and Holocene soils; d 13 C values of pedogenic carbonates are 6.4 to 4.52‰. In San Luis Potosí, the d 13 C values of paleosol are 12.16‰ in organic matter. In Puebla, they vary from 24.6‰ in paleosols to 15.16‰ in the modern surface soil, pointing to contrasting vegetation change. The d 13 C values in fossils range from 10.7 to 1.2‰ in SLP; of 2.73 and 2.93‰ in Puebla; and 6.5 to 1.3‰ in State of Mexico. The d 13 C values of paleosols and analysis of megafauna in Northwest and Central-Northern Mexico matched each other, indicating mixed C3eC4 vegetation; while for Central-Southern Mexico, paleosols indicated predominance of C3 plants and megafauna indicated mixed C3eC4 composition. In general, the results indicate that in northern Mexico environmental conditions were slightly wetter than at present, while for the central area there was a large change in the environmental conditions of high humidity in MIS3 and MIS2, with a trend to drier climates in MIS1. © 2016 Elsevier Ltd and INQUA. All rights reserved. 1. Introduction In Mexico, Quaternary climatic changes have been docu- mented by several proxies, such as the palynological record, diatoms and foraminifera, geochemical analysis of Ti, Ba, Cd, Sr and Mg in lacustrine sediments, as well as plant and animal re- mains found in packrat middens (Lozano-García et al., 2002, 2005; Nordt, 2003; Caballero et al., 2010). These records pro- vide a regional view of the environment with reliable temporal resolution. The paleoenvironmental studies in lacustrine records in Baja California and Chihuahua (Lozano-García et al., 2002; Metcalfe * Corresponding author. E-mail address: tamczyc@yahoo.com.mx (T. Cruz-y-Cruz). Contents lists available at ScienceDirect Quaternary International journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/quaint http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.quaint.2015.12.093 1040-6182/© 2016 Elsevier Ltd and INQUA. All rights reserved. Quaternary International 418 (2016) 147e164