Bacterial Residues in Coprolite of Herbivorous Dinosaurs: Role of Bacteria in Mineralization of Feces

Hollocher, Thomas C.; Chin, Karen; Hollocher, Kurt; Kruge, Michael A.

doi:10.1669/0883-1351(2001)016<0547:bricoh>2.0.co;2

Cited by 58 publications

(31 citation statements)

References 60 publications

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“…The fact that the more durable, phosphatic fecal remains of carnivores are more readily fossilized than the feces of herbivores is due to the hard fragments consumed (like the bones and teeth of their prey which consist in part of some rock forming minerals), which accelerated bacterial mineralization (Edwards, 1973;Hollocher et al, 2001;Chin, 2007). However, some researchers have found that fecal remains of herbivores can undergo a similar mode of preservation (Hollocher et al, 2001;Prasad et al, 2005). As previously described, CPP 409 and MP 230 have morphology, compactness, and high degrees of fecal mass hardness consistent with the fecal remains from an herbivore.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Fossilized excreta associated to dinosaurs in Brazil

Souto

Fernandes

2015

Journal of South American Earth Sciences

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Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Fossilized excreta associated to dinosaurs in Brazil

Souto

Fernandes

2015

Journal of South American Earth Sciences

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“…However, it seems likely that the excrement masses were covered by microbial mats which are common in the sediments (Piñeiro et al, 2012b), essentially as suggested by Hu et al (2010). The role of bacteria in the fossilization of feces has already been discussed by some authors (Chin and Kirkland, 1998;Hollocher et al, 2001;Hollocher and Hollocher, 2012;Bajdek et al, 2016;Qvarnström et al, 2016).…”

Section: Taphonomic Effects Of the Environmental Conditions Under Whimentioning

confidence: 90%

The Feeding Habits of Mesosauridae

Silva

Ferigolo

Bajdek³

et al. 2017

Front. Earth Sci.

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Mesosauridae comprises the oldest known aquatic amniotes which lived in Gondwana during the Early Permian. Previous work in the Uruguayan mesosaur-bearing Mangrullo Formation suggested that mesosaurids lived in an inland water body, inferred as moderately hypersaline, with exceptional preservational conditions that justified describing these strata as a Fossil-Lagerstätte. Exquisitely preserved articulated mesosaur skeletons, including gastric content and associated coprolites, from the Brazilian Iratí Formation in the State of Goiás (central-western Brazil) indicate excellent conditions of preservation, extending the Konservat-Lagerstätte designation to both units in the Paraná Basin. The near-absence of more resistant fossil remains, like actinopterygian and temnospondyl bones, demonstrates the faunistic poverty of the mesosaur-bearing "salty sea." Our studies of the alimentary habits of mesosaurids through the use of stereoscopic microscopy, light and electronic microscopy, and X-ray diffractometry suggest that the diet of mesosaurids was predominantly composed of pygocephalomorph crustaceans (possibly not exceeding 20 mm in length). However, the presence of bones and bone fragments of small mesosaurs in the gastric content, cololites, coprolites, and possible regurgitalites may also indicate cannibalistic and/or scavenging habits. Cannibalism is relatively common among vertebrates, particularly during conditions of environmental stress, like food shortage. Likewise, the apparent abundance of pygocephalomorph crustacean fossils in the Iratí and Mangrullo Formations, outside and within the studied gastric, cololite, and coprolite contents, might have to do with environmental stress possibly caused by volcanic activity, in particular ash spread into the basin during the Early Permian. In this context, casual necrophagy on the dead bodies of small mesosaurs and large pygocephalomorphs might have been an alternative alimentary behavior adopted for survival in mesosaurs.

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“…More recently, Hollocher et al (2001) observed organic remnants of bacterial colonies in coprolites produced by large herbivorous dinosaurs from the Cretaceous Two Medicine Formation of north-western Montana, and hypothesised that such colonies play a role in the initiation of faecal mineralisation. Toporski et al (2002) studied the fossilised soft tissues of a tadpole and an associated coprolite from the organic-rich, volcaniclastic, lacustrine Enspel sediments (Upper Oligocene, Germany).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%