Carnivore coprolites from the lower Carnian (Upper Triassic) Chañares Formation, northwestern Argentina

Mancuso, Adriana Cecilia; Benavente, Cecilia Andrea; Previtera, Elena; Arcucci, Andrea B.; Irmis, Randall B.

doi:10.1016/j.palaeo.2017.07.032

Cited by 14 publications

(7 citation statements)

References 104 publications

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“…Descriptive terminology follows Hunt & Lucas (2012), whereas the coprolite morphotypes are identified following Thulborn (1991), Hunt (1992), Mancuso et al . (2018) and Rakshit et al . (2019).…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 96%

Bone‐bearing coprolites from the Upper Triassic of India: ichnotaxonomy, probable producers and predator–prey relationships

Rakshit

Ray

2021

Papers in Palaeontology

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Multiple spiral and non‐spiral cylindrical coprolites with profuse bone inclusions were recovered from a metoposaurid‐dominated bonebed in the Upper Triassic Tiki Formation of India. The spiral coprolites are assigned to two new ichnotaxa based on amphipolar and heteropolar micropolar coilings. The non‐spiral coprolites are internally devoid of any spiral structure, mostly cylindrical, except for a few, which are ellipsoidal. All of these coprolites contain randomly scattered inclusions of partly digested and undigested skeletal fragments. Based on external and internal morphology, and the type of inclusions, the probable producers of these coprolites are considered to have been carnivorous and/or piscivorous, and included different types of chondrichthyans, dipnoans and actinopterygians, as well as various semiaquatic and terrestrial tetrapods. A web‐like interconnectedness is evident, which highlights dynamic and highly diverse animal communities inhabiting the terrestrial, semiaquatic and aquatic realms and dissolution of the inter‐realm boundaries in the Upper Triassic Tiki palaeoecosystem.

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Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 96%

Bone‐bearing coprolites from the Upper Triassic of India: ichnotaxonomy, probable producers and predator–prey relationships

Rakshit

Ray

2021

Papers in Palaeontology

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“…The coprolites are identified based on several criteria such as relationship to enclosing sediments, shape, size, external morphology, internal morphology, inclusions, groundmass characteristics, chemical composition and producer's gut anatomy (Thulborn ; Hunt ; Mancuso et al . ).…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 97%

First record of Mesozoic scroll coprolites: classification, characteristics, elemental composition and probable producers

et al. 2018

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Multiple, small, cylindrical scroll coprolites having rounded and tapering ends and pertaining to a new ichnotaxon have been recovered from the Upper Triassic Tiki Formation of India. This is the first record of scroll coprolites from the Mesozoic. Based on cross‐sectional geometry, external surface textures, and internal morphology, these coprolites are subdivided into three morphotypes. The coprolites contain several kinds of undigested food material in the form of ganoid fish scales, teeth, lower jaw and skeletal remains of various osteichthyans, chondrichthyans, archosauriforms and indeterminate reptiles. These inclusions are embedded in the groundmass separated by thin mucosal layers. The groundmass contains abundant gas vesicles, and secondarily‐filled shrinkage cracks. EDS analysis shows that the overall composition of the coprolites reflects Ca, P, C and O, suggesting calcium phosphate mineralogy, though other elements such as Fe, Mn, Al, Si are present in lesser proportions. Based on their similarity with the scrolled faeces of extant euryhaline hammerhead sharks, it is deduced that these coprolites were produced by euryhaline hybodontid sharks. At least two hybodontid taxa, Lonchidion and Pristrisodus, show high prevalence in the Tiki vertebrate fauna, suggesting that these were the possible producers. As the coprolite inclusions contain remains of other aquatic animals, these carnivorous hybodonts constituted the dominant predators of the Tiki aquatic ecosystem.

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“…4.5). The presence of bacteria in extant feces is common, as these organisms inhabit the intestine cavities of living vertebrates promoting the decomposition of organic material prior to evacuation (Thulborn, 1991;Hollocher & Hollocher, 2012;Mancuso et al, 2017;Dentzien-Dias et al, 2017. Similarly, the presence of bacteria in the feces studied here could be related to the calcium-phosphate precipitation in the cell structures that may facilitate the preservation of bacterial structures (Li et al, 2015;Qvarnström et al, 2016).…”

Section: Taphonomymentioning

confidence: 77%

“…In Argentina, coprolites interpreted as made by vertebrates were reported from Triassic and Cenozoic continental deposits (e.g., Hofreiter et al, 2003;Chimento & Rey, 2008;Aceñolaza, 2012;Krause & Piña, 2012;Mancuso et al, 2017). Particularly, the published fossil record of coprolites from Antarctica is scant, being restricted to the Permian Buckley Formation (Retallack & Krull, 1997) in the Transantarctic Mountains, and to the Jurassic Ameghino (=Nordenskjöld) Formation in the Antarctic Peninsula (Doyle & Whitham, 1991, fig.…”

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confidence: 99%

Bromalitos De La Formación Ameghino (=nordenskjöld) Jurasico Superior De La Península Antártica

Martinez¹,

Gouiric-Cavalli

Pérez

et al. 2023

PEAPA

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We present the study of the bromalites retrieved from the Upper Jurassic Ameghino (=Nordenskjöld) Formation at Longing Gap in the Antarctic Peninsula. The material was morphologically and chemically analyzed. We made a qualitative study and a taphonomic analysis of the specimens and tested paleobiological and paleoecological hypotheses. We conclude that the samples analyzed are coprolites and propose a new ichnotaxon, Antarctoscoprus longinensis ichnogen. and ichnosp. nov., characterized by being a small and flat coprolite differing from other ichnogenera by its composition, which consists mainly of actinopterygian remains (e.g., scales, vertebrae, skull bones, and teeth). Antarctoscoprus longinensis includes three morphotypes (i.e., circular, subcircular, and elongated) derived from an elongated three-dimensional original form by compactation. Based on the internal content, we infer the producers of the coprolites were carnivorous predators, putatively an ichthyophagous taxon. Due to the abundance of actinopterygians-mainly aspidorhynchids and ichthyodectids-and the size of the coprolites we propose macropredator fishes as the putative producers. The mainly undisrupted fish carcasses and coprolites allow us to conduct further studies that might lead to a better understanding of the ancient communities living in the Late Jurassic Sea that surrounded Antarctica.

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Carnivore coprolites from the lower Carnian (Upper Triassic) Chañares Formation, northwestern Argentina

Cited by 14 publications

References 104 publications

Bone‐bearing coprolites from the Upper Triassic of India: ichnotaxonomy, probable producers and predator–prey relationships

Bone‐bearing coprolites from the Upper Triassic of India: ichnotaxonomy, probable producers and predator–prey relationships

First record of Mesozoic scroll coprolites: classification, characteristics, elemental composition and probable producers

Bromalitos De La Formación Ameghino (=nordenskjöld) Jurasico Superior De La Península Antártica

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