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Dinosaur bonebed amber from an original swamp forest soil.
- Source :
-
eLife . 11/30/2021, p1-26. 26p. - Publication Year :
- 2021
-
Abstract
- Dinosaur bonebeds with amber content, yet scarce, offer a superior wealth and quality of data on ancient terrestrial ecosystems. However, the preserved palaeodiversity and/or taphonomic characteristics of these exceptional localities had hitherto limited their palaeobiological potential. Here, we describe the amber from the Lower Cretaceous dinosaur bonebed of Ariño (Teruel, Spain) using a multidisciplinary approach. Amber is found in both a root layer with amber strictly in situ and a litter layer mainly composed of aerial pieces unusually rich in bioinclusions, encompassing 11 insect orders, arachnids, and a few plant and vertebrate remains, including a feather. Additional palaeontological data--charophytes, palynomorphs, ostracods--are provided. Ariño arguably represents the most prolific and palaeobiologically diverse locality in which fossiliferous amber and a dinosaur bonebed have been found in association, and the only one known where the vast majority of the palaeontological assemblage suffered no or low-grade pre-burial transport. This has unlocked unprecedentedly complete and reliable palaeoecological data out of two complementary windows of preservation--the bonebed and the amber--from the same site. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
- Subjects :
- *FOREST soils
*AMBER fossils
*DINOSAURS
*SWAMPS
*PALEOECOLOGY
Subjects
Details
- Language :
- English
- ISSN :
- 2050084X
- Database :
- Academic Search Index
- Journal :
- eLife
- Publication Type :
- Academic Journal
- Accession number :
- 153944341
- Full Text :
- https://doi.org/10.7554/eLife.72477