A new delphinid record (Odontoceti, Cetacea) from the Early Pliocene of Tuscany (Central Italy): systematics and biostratigraphic considerations

Bianucci, Giovanni; Vaiani, Stefano Claudio; Casati, Simone

doi:10.1127/0077-7749/2009/0018

Cited by 18 publications

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“…The case here described, together with that reported by Cigala Fulgosi (1990), is evidence of trophic interactions among large sharks and delphinids in the Pliocene of Italy, as also supported by the significant fossil record of these vertebrates (see Bianucci, 1996, 1997, 2005; Bianucci et al . 2009 for dolphins; Landini 1977 for sharks).…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 85%

Killing in the Pliocene: shark attack on a dolphin from Italy

Bianucci

Sorce

Storai³

et al. 2010

Palaeontology

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Shark bite marks, including striae, sulci and abrasions, in a well-preserved fossil dolphin skeleton referred to Astadelphis gastaldii (Cetacea, Delphinidae) from Pliocene sediments of Piedmont (northern Italy), are described in detail. The exceptional combination of a fossil dolphin having a significant part of the skeleton preserved and a large number of bite marks on the bones represents one of the few detailed documentations of shark attack in the past. Most bite marks have been referred to a shark about 4 m long with unserrated teeth, belonging to Cosmopolitodus hastalis, on the basis of their shape and their general disposition on the dolphin skeleton. According to our hypothesis, the shark attacked the dolphin with an initial mortal bite to the abdomen from the rear and right, in a similar way as observed for the living white shark when attacking pinnipeds. A second, less strong, bite was given on the dorsal area when the dolphin, mortally injured, probably rolled to the left. The shark probably released the prey, dead or dying, and other sharks or fishes probably scavenged the torn body of the dolphin.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 85%

Killing in the Pliocene: shark attack on a dolphin from Italy

Bianucci

Sorce

Storai³

et al. 2010

Palaeontology

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“…Correlation between sections is also shown as boundaries of planktonic foraminifera biozones (dashed lines), following the scheme of Sprovieri (1992), based on available biostratigraphic studies for each basin (see main text for relevant references; chrono-and magnetostratigraphy modified after Hilgen et al, 2012). Prodelta and open shelf Bossio et al, 1994;Benvenuti et al, 2007;Dominici et al, 2008;Bianucci et al, 2009b;Martini et al, 2016 F6 Claystone Massive grey mudstone and claystone; shells very rare very rare shells of marine molluscs Settling of fine-grained suspended load in low-energy environment Outer shelf and upper slope Bossio et al, 1994;Benvenuti et al, 2007;Dominici et al, 2008;Bianucci et al, 2009b F7a performed an analysis of similarity (ANOSIM). To interpret the outcomes of the quantitative study and the significance of clusters we used species-level autoecologic information available for the most abundant species, based on the distribution of extant forms.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…(Sorbi et al, 2012;Tinelli et al, 2012;Tinelli, 2013). A partial skull of the delphinid Etruridelphis giulii, with right and left dentaries fractured, but nearly complete and with most teeth still in their alveoli (DSi2-1 in Table 2), was recovered southeast of Siena, near Chianciano Terme (SRB) at the top of a mudstone (facies F6) intercalated with turbiditic sandstone beds (Facies F7), topped by a monotonous mudstone interval (upper Zanclean, uppermost part of biozone MPL3: Bianucci et al, 2009b). In the same basin, isolated bones of two undetermined beaked whales and bones of four different specimens attributed to Metaxytherium subapenninum were found in deltaic sandstones, in the middle of a fining-upward succession, at the boundary between biozones MPL3 and MPL4a (Bianucci et al, 2001; WSi2-1-2 and MSi2-1-4 in Table 2), suggesting that findings at the two SRB localities belong to the same MF interval, in the upper part of S2.…”

Section: Synthems S1-s2mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Synthem S4 yielded the highest abundance and species-richness of the Tuscan MM. In the Fine Basin, the locality of Orciano Pisano is represented in Table 2 by 18 records of whales, dolphins (a partial skeleton: Bianucci, 1996;Bianucci et al, 2009b), seals (Berta et al, 2015), tens of other unidentified cetacean elements, hundreds of shark teeth and vertebrae (Fig. 3), sea turtles, large bony fishes, and sea birds hosted in museum collections (Bianucci and Landini, 2005;Marsili, 2007;Cioppi and Dominici, 2011).…”

Section: Synthem S4mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…1996; Bianucci et al, 2009b), at a locality associated with a muddy sandstone interval (facies F4) in synthem S4. An incomplete and articulated mysticete was recovered in a sandstone at San Gimignano, associated with pectinid bivalves ( Fig.…”

Section: Synthem S4mentioning

confidence: 99%

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Pliocene stratigraphic paleobiology in Tuscany and the fossil record of marine megafauna

Dominici

Danise

Benvenuti

2018

Earth-Science Reviews

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Tuscany has a rich Pliocene record of marine megafauna (MM), including mysticetes, odontocetes, sirenians and seals among the mammals, and six orders of sharks among the elasmobranchs. This is reviewed with respect to paleogeography and sequence-stratigraphy in six different basins. Conditions at the ancient seafloor are explored by means of sedimentary facies analysis, taphonomy and multivariate techniques applied to a large quantitative dataset of benthic molluscs. MM is rare or absent in most basins during the Zanclean, except in one basin, and most abundant in Piacenzian deposits in all six basins. MM occurs preferentially in fine-grained, shelfal highstand-deposits of small-scale depositional sequences, or at condensed horizons of the maximum flooding interval. It is rare in shallow marine paleonvironments and nearly absent in bathyal paleosettings. Paleogeographic and paleoecological evidence and a comparison with modern patterns of marine upwelling suggest that a wedge of nutrient-rich waters sustained in the offshore during the Pliocene a high biomass of primary producers and a community of apex consumers and mesopredators, similarly to the modern northwestern Mediterranean Sea, with a species-richness higher than the modern and a more complex trophic structure. The highest MM diversity coincides with the mid-Piacenzian warm period, suggesting that facies control does not obscure a link between climate and diversity. We underline however that not all marine environments were suitable for marine mammal preservation. Buoyant carcasses were preferentially dismembered and destroyed in high-energy shallow waters, with the possible exception of delta front deposits, where sudden sediment input occasionally buried pristine carcasses. We hypothesise that carcasses sunken on the seafloor below the shelf break underwent destruction through the activity of a whale-fall biota of modern type, specialised in the consumption of decomposing tissues, both soft and mineralised. A taphonomic window was left between storm wave base and the shelf break. Here water pressure is high enough to prevent the formation of decomposing gases and the resurfacing of carcasses, while the lack of a specialised whale-fall biota slows down bone degradation with respect to deeper settings. Sedimentation rate was high enough to cover skeletal material before its complete destruction. An estimate of paleobathymetries based on multivariate techniques suggests that the preferential depth for the inclusion of MM in the fossil record was 30-300 m. The results are compared with major Mesozoic and Cenozoic MM records worldwide. Available evidence suggests that the late Neogene radiation of large whales, true ecosystem engineers, and their size increase, triggered the radiation of a bone-eating fauna that hampered, and hampers, MM preservation in the deep sea. Stratigraphic paleobiology and an ecosystem-level approach deliver useful insights to the nature of the fossil record.

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Polyphase extensional basins: interplay between tectonics and sedimentation in the Neogene Siena-Radicofani Basin (Northern Apennines, Italy)

Martini

Ambrosetti

Brogi

et al. 2021

Int J Earth Sci (Geol Rundsch)

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Rift-basins are the shallow effects of lithosphere-scale extensional processes often producing polyphase faulting. Their sedimentary evolution depends on the mutual interplay between tectonics, climate, and eustasy. Estimating the role of each factor is generally a challenging issue. This paper is focused on the tectono-sedimentary evolution of the Neogene Siena-Radicofani Basin, a polyphase structural depression located in the inner Northern Apennines. Since Miocene, this basin developed after prolonged extensional tectonics, first as a bowl-shaped structural depression, later reorganized into a half-graben structure due to the activation of high-angle normal faults in the Zanclean. At that time the basin contained coeval continental and marine settings controlled by the normal faulting that caused the development of local coarse-grained depositional systems. These were investigated to: (i) discriminate between the influences of tectonics and climate on sedimentation patterns, and (ii) provide detailed time constraints on fault activity. The analysed successions were deposited in an interval between 5.08 and 4.52 Ma, when a climate-induced highstand phase occurred throughout the Mediterranean. However, evidence of local relative sea-level drops is registered in the sedimentary record, often associated with increased accommodation space and sediment supply. Such base-level fluctuations are not connected to climate changes, suggesting that the faults generally control sedimentation along the basin margins.

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A new delphinid record (Odontoceti, Cetacea) from the Early Pliocene of Tuscany (Central Italy): systematics and biostratigraphic considerations

Cited by 18 publications

References 0 publications

Killing in the Pliocene: shark attack on a dolphin from Italy

Killing in the Pliocene: shark attack on a dolphin from Italy

Pliocene stratigraphic paleobiology in Tuscany and the fossil record of marine megafauna

Polyphase extensional basins: interplay between tectonics and sedimentation in the Neogene Siena-Radicofani Basin (Northern Apennines, Italy)

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