Nicolas Bourgon
Doctoral Student
Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology
Department of Human Evolution
Deutscher Platz 6
04103 Leipzig
Germany
phone: 0049 (0) 341 3550 364
fax: 0049 (0) 341 3550 399
e-mail: nicolas_bourgon@[>>> Please remove the text! <<<]eva.mpg.de
Research Interests
I am a PhD student in the IMPRS program at the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology in the Department of Human Evolution.
I am primarily interested in paleoecological and paleoethological studies using stable isotopes analysis. Through this method, valuable insights can be assessed on past phenomenon and on interactions between humans, animals and their respective environment. My past research projects, carried out at the National Museum of Natural History of Paris within the UMR 7209, focused on such topics on Late Pleistocene fossil-bearing sites in Southeast Asia, notably in Cambodia and Laos.
My doctoral research seeks to explore the use of new, “non-traditional” isotope systems, in Paleolithic food webs. To this end, Ca, Sr and Zn stable isotopes will be investigated as dietary and mobility tracers – the main component studied from such isotopes – thus offering a higher level of food traceability. The use of these non-traditional isotopes in archaeological researches can notably be used in context where collagen is no longer preserved and has already demonstrated its various promising results. Trophic level and more precise diet could thus be accessed for sites and periods where traditional stable isotopes would only offer a limited range of information.
Curriculum Vitae
Education
| 2017 - Present | Ph.D. in Applied and Analytical Paleontology |
| 2015-2017 | Masters in Archaeology: Quaternary and prehistory Muséum National d’Histoire Naturelle (M.N.H.N.), Paris Master “Evolution, Natural heritage and Societies: Quaternary and Prehistory” Speciality: Anatomical and taxonomical diversity of Quaternary zooarchaeology Supervisors: Dr. Élise Dufour and Dr. Anne-Marie Bacon |
| 2011-2014 | B.A. in Archaeology Laval University, Québec International profile, during the 2014 autumn semester in Paris IV, La Sorbonne |
Conference Presentations, Posters, and Abstracts
- Bourgon N., Jaouen K., Bacon A.-M., Dufour É., Demeter F., Antoine P.-O., Boesch Q., Duringer P., Patole-Edoumba É., Ponche J.-L., Shackelford L., Duangthongchit S., Sayavonkhamdy T., Sichanthongtip P., Sihanam D., Souksavatdy V., Hublin J.-J., Tütken T., 2018. Preservation and variation of diet-related zinc isotope in a Late Pleistocene food web: Perspectives on a new dietary tracer. 8th International Symposium on Biomolecular Archaeology ISBA.
- Bourgon N., Jaouen K., Bacon A.-M., Dufour É., Demeter F., Antoine P.-O., Boesch Q., Duringer P., Patole-Edoumba É., Ponche J.-L., Shackelford L., Duangthongchit S., Sayavonkhamdy T., Sichanthongtip P., Sihanam D., Souksavatdy V., Hublin J.-J., Tütken T., 2018. Zinc isotopes as a dietary indicator for archaeology and paleontology: Insights from a Southeast Asian Late Pleistocene food web. 8thAnnual Meeting of the European Society for the study of Human Evolution.
- Bourgon N., Jaouen K., Bacon A.-M., Dufour É., Demeter F., Antoine P.-O., Boesch Q., Duringer P., Patole-Edoumba É., Ponche J.-L., Shackelford L., Duangthongchit S., Sayavonkhamdy T., Sichanthongtip P., Sihanam D., Souksavatdy V., Hublin J.-J., Tütken T., 2018. Zinc isotopes on fossil teeth and their use as dietary tracer: Evidences from a multi-isotopes study. Frontiers in Archaeological Sciences 2.
- Bourgon, N. 4thYoung Natural History Scientists’ Meeting (YNHM). 2017
Archaeological Employment
| 2016-2017 | Assistant archaeologist for Ian Badgley National Capital Commission, Ottawa, Canada Organization, management and excavation of the Archaic to Woodland BiFw-18 archaeological site, Leamy Lake Park, Gatineau, Canada |
Analytical and Technical Training
- Drilling of bulk and sequential samplesfrom tooth enamel for stable isotope analysis
- Sample preparation for δ13C and δ18O analysisof the structural carbonate fraction
- Sample preparation for δ66Zn and 87Sr/86Sr analysis of bulk tooth enamel
- Sample preparation for δ13C and δ15N analysis of bulk bone collagen
- Multi-collector inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (MC-ICP-MS) analysis of δ66Zn and 87Sr/86Sr analysis of bulk tooth enamel
- Zooarchaeological anatomical and taxonomic identification and data analysis: recording of taxonomic, demographic and metrical information, fragmentation patterns and processing modifications, generating mortality profiles
- Statistical Data Analysis using R: descriptive statistics and data visualization, linear and non-linear regression analysis, multivariate statistics
- Stable Isotope Mixing Models using R: SIAR, SIBER, MixSIAR (SIMM) and simmR, offered by PRstatitics,
Instructors: Dr. Andrew Jackson, Dr. Andrew Parnell
Archaeological Science Work
| 2016-2017 | Master's research thesis Sampling, samples preparation and data analysis of δ13C and δ18O stable isotope analysis of tooth enamel,as part of my second year of post-graduate program, within the U.M.R. 7209 of the C.N.R.S. ("Archaeozoology, Archaeobotanics: Societies, Practices and Environments"): “Isotopic analysis of continental large carnivores fauna of the Upper Pleistocene of Laos.” |
| 2015-2016 | Master’s Introductory research thesis Sampling, samples preparation and data analysis of δ13C and δ18O stable isotope analysis of tooth enamel,as part of my first year of post-graduate program, within the U.M.R. 7209 of the C.N.R.S. ("Archaeozoology, Archaeobotany: cultures, human practices and environments"): “Trophic study based on stable isotope analysis of tooth enamel (C & O) on a mammal collection from the Cambodian site of Boh Dambang, in Southeast Asia.” |
| 2011-2014 | Zooarchaeological Work for Professor James Woollett Laval University, Québec, Canada Identification and description of faunal material from Svalbard, Iceland |
Archaeological Field Work
- 2016/2017
At the Archaic to Woodland BiFw-18 site, Leamy Lake Park, Gatineau, Canada
Supervisors: N.C.C. archaeologist Ian Badgley - 2013
At the historic site of Îlot-du-Palais (Colonial to Industrial era periods), Québec, Canada
Supervisors: Professor Réginal Auger and Professor Allison Bain - 2012/2016
At the Magdalenian site of Pincevent, France
Supervisors: Professor Michel Orliac, Dr. Pierre Bodu and Dr. Olivier Bignon
Publications
Articles
McCormack, J., Griffiths, M. L., Kim, S. L., Shimada, K., Karnes, M., Maisch, H., Pederzani, S. C., Bourgon, N., Jaouen, K., Becker, M. A., Jöns, N., Sisma-Ventura, G., Straube, N., Pollerspöck, J., Hublin, J.-J., Eagle, R. A., & Tütken, T. (2022). Trophic position of Otodus megalodon and great white sharks through time revealed by zinc isotopes. Nature Communications, 13: 2980. |
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Demeter, F., Zanolli, C., Westaway, K. E., Joannes-Boyau, R., Duringer, P., Morley, M. W., Welker, F., Rüther, P. L., Skinner, M. M., McColl, H., Gaunitz, C., Vinner, L., Dunn, T. E., Olsen, J. V., Sikora, M., Ponche, J.-L., Suzzoni, E., Frangeul, S., Boesch, Q., Antoine, P.-O., Pan, L., Xing, S., Zhao, J.-X., Bailey, R. M., Boualaphane, S., Sichanthongtip, P., Sihanam, D., Patole-Edoumba, E., Aubaile, F., Crozier, F., Bourgon, N., Zachwieja, A., Luangkhoth, T., Souksavatdy, V., Sayavongkhamdy, T., Cappellini, E., Bacon, A.-M., Hublin, J.-J., Willerslev, E., & Shackelford, L. (2022). A Middle Pleistocene Denisovan molar from the Annamite Chain of northern Laos. Nature Communications, 13(1): 2557.
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Bourgon, N., Jaouen, K., Bacon, A.-M., Dufour, E., McCormack, J., Tran, N.-H., Trost, M., Fiorillo, D., Dunn, T. E., Zanolli, C., Zachwieja, A., Duringer, P., Ponche, J.-L., Boesch, Q., Antoine, P.-O., Westaway, K. E., Joannes-Boyau, R., Suzzoni, E., Frangeul, S., Crozier, F., Aubaile, F., Patole-Edoumba, E., Luangkhoth, T., Souksavatdy, V., Boualaphane, S., Sayavonkhamdy, T., Sichanthongtip, P., Sihanam, D., Demeter, F., Shackelford, L. L., Hublin, J.-J., & Tütken, T. (2021). Trophic ecology of a Late Pleistocene early modern human from tropical Southeast Asia inferred from zinc isotopes. Journal of Human Evolution, 161: 103075. |
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Pederzani, S. C., Britton, K., Aldeias, V., Bourgon, N., Fewlass, H., Lauer, T., McPherron, S. P., Rezek, Z., Sirakov, N., Smith, G. M., Spasov, R., Tran, N.-H., Tsanova, T., & Hublin, J.-J. (2021). Subarctic climate for the earliest Homo sapiens in Europe. Science Advances, 7(39): abi4642. |
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McCormack, J., Szpak, P., Bourgon, N., Richards, M., Hyland, C., Méjean, P., Hublin, J.-J., & Jaouen, K. (2021). Zinc isotopes from archaeological bones provide reliable trophic level information for marine mammals. Communications Biology, 4(1): 683. |
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Bacon, A.-M., Bourgon, N., Welker, F., Cappellini, E., Fiorillo, D., Tombret, O., Thi Mai Huong, N., Anh Tuan, N., Sayavonkhamdy, T., Souksavatdy, V., Sichanthongtip, P., Antoine, P.-O., Duringer, P., Ponche, J.-L., Westaway, K., Joannes-Boyau, R., Boesch, Q., Suzzoni, E., Frangeul, S., Patole-Edoumba, E., Zachwieja, A., Shackelford, L., Demeter, F., Hublin, J.-J., & Dufour, É. (2021). A multi-proxy approach to exploring Homo sapiens’ arrival, environments and adaptations in Southeast Asia. Scientific Reports, 11(1): 21080. |
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McCormack, J., Szpak, P., Bourgon, N., Richards, M., Hyland, C., Méjean, P., Hublin, J.-J., & Jaouen, K. (2021). Erratum: Author Correction: Zinc isotopes from archaeological bones provide reliable trophic level information for marine mammals. Communications Biology, 4(1): 811. |
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Tütken, T., Weber, M., Zohar, I., Helmy, H., Bourgon, N., Lernau, O., Jochum, K. P., & Sisma-Ventura, G. (2020). Strontium and Oxygen Isotope Analyses Reveal Late Cretaceous Shark Teeth in Iron Age Strata in the Southern Levant. Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution, 8. |
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Jaouen, K., Trost, M., Bourgon, N., Colleter, R., Le Cabec, A., Tütken, T., Elias Oliveira, R., Pons, M. L., Méjean, P., Steinbrenner, S., Chmeleff, J., & Strauss, A. (2020). Zinc isotope variations in archeological human teeth (Lapa do Santo, Brazil) reveal dietary transitions in childhood and no contamination from gloves. PLOS ONE, 15(5). |
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Bourgon, N., Jaouen, K., Bacon, A.-M., Jochum, K. P., Dufour, E., Duringer, P., Ponche, J.-L., Joannes-Boyau, R., Boesch, Q., Antoine, P.-O., Hullot, M., Weis, U., Schulz-Kornas, E., Trost, M., Fiorillo, D., Demeter, F., Patole-Edoumba, E., Shackelford, L. L., Dunn, T. E., Zachwieja, A., Duangthongchit, S., Sayavonkhamdy, T., Sichanthongtip, P., Sihanam, D., Souksavatdy, V., Hublin, J.-J., & Tütken, T. (2020). Zinc isotopes in Late Pleistocene fossil teeth from a Southeast Asian cave setting preserve paleodietary information. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 117(9), 4431-4433. |
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Bacon, A.-M., Bourgon, N., Dufour, E., Zanolli, C., Duringer, P., Ponche, J.-L., Antoine, P.-O., Shackelford, L., Huong, N. T. M., Sayavonkhamdy, T., Patole-Edoumba, E., & Demeter, F. (2018). Nam Lot (MIS 5) and Duoi U'Oi (MIS 4) Southeast Asian sites revisited: Zooarchaeological and isotopic evidences. Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology, 512, 132-144. |
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Bacon, A.-M., Duringer, P., Westaway, K., Joannes-Boyau, R., Zhao, J.-x., Bourgon, N., Dufour, E., Pheng, S., Tep, S., Ponche, J.-L., Barnes, L., Blin, A., Patole-Edoumba, E., & Demeter, F. (2018). Testing the savannah corridor hypothesis during MIS2: The Boh Dambang hyena site in southern Cambodia. Quaternary International, 464(Part B), 417-439. |
Open AccessThesis
Bourgon, N. (2022). Zinc isotope systematics in terrestrial food webs: Implications for the trophic ecology of tropical hunter-gatherer of late Pleistocene Southeast Asia. PhD Thesis, Johannes Gutenberg University, Mainz. |