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Tracing the Source of the Elephant And Hippopotamus Ivory from ...

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composition <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> rock. Thus geologists use Sr ratios to date geological formations by<br />

<strong>the</strong> proportion <strong>of</strong> 87 Rb that has decayed. The higher <strong>the</strong> initial Rb/Sr ratios and <strong>the</strong> older<br />

<strong>the</strong> rock, <strong>the</strong> higher <strong>the</strong> 87 Sr/ 86 Sr ratio (van der Merwe et al. 1990: 746; Price et al. 1998:<br />

407; 2000: 906; 2002: 118; Vogel et al. 1990: 747; Koch et al. 1995: 1340-3). This ratio<br />

value will be virtually similar in <strong>the</strong> rock, groundwater, soil, plants and animals <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong><br />

region, due to <strong>the</strong> fact that <strong>the</strong> relative mass differences between 87 Sr and 86 Sr are small<br />

and <strong>the</strong>refore no isotopic fractionation takes place (some exceptions are discussed<br />

below). The strontium in <strong>the</strong> soil is absorbed by <strong>the</strong> water and <strong>the</strong>n up into <strong>the</strong> food<br />

chain, where it is <strong>the</strong>n deposited in <strong>the</strong> hard tissues (such as bone and ivory) in animals<br />

(Ericson 1985: 503; Koch et al. 1995: 1340-3; Price et al. 1998: 407; 2000: 906; 2002:<br />

118, 121). 86 Sr, on <strong>the</strong> o<strong>the</strong>r hand, is a stable isotope (Koch et al. 1995: 1340-3). 88 Sr is<br />

<strong>the</strong> most abundant strontium isotope in nature (c. 82.53%) whereas 87 Sr makes up 7.04%,<br />

86 Sr 9.87%, and 84 Sr 0.56% <strong>of</strong> all strontium. As a result, <strong>the</strong> total global ratio <strong>of</strong> 87 Sr/ 86 Sr<br />

is approximately 0.71327 (7.04/9.87) (Price et al. 1998; 2000; 2002).<br />

Research on strontium levels across <strong>the</strong> globe have already discovered some<br />

generalizations regarding strontium levels. Sr ratios usually range between 0.700 to<br />

0.750 across <strong>the</strong> globe. Overall, animals in areas with old granitic crust have high Sr<br />

isotope ratios (>0.715), whereas in areas with young volcanic, basaltic, or marine<br />

sediments <strong>the</strong> animals will have low values (Koch et al. 1995: 1340-3; van der Merwe et<br />

al. 1990: 746). Young volcanic soils, such as those found in <strong>the</strong> Rift Valley, have ratios<br />

similar to <strong>the</strong> value <strong>of</strong> ocean water: 0.70906. In fact <strong>the</strong> strontium budget <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> ocean<br />

remains remarkably homogeneous due to <strong>the</strong> long residence <strong>of</strong> Sr in a rapidly mixing<br />

environment (Stein et al. 2000: 2039). In a study by Price et al. (1998: 407) <strong>the</strong> granitic<br />

85

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