Cyanobacteria and seasonal death: A new taphonomic model for the Eocene Messel lake

Koenigswald, Wighart von; Braun, Andreas; Pfeiffer, Thekla

doi:10.1007/bf02990190

Cited by 9 publications

(14 citation statements)

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“…), so the palaeobiological applicability of the toxic effects of cyanobacteria is perhaps warranted in those cases where cyanobacteria were known to be present, as is the case with the Messel ecosystem in Germany (von Koenigswald et al . ). It seems highly likely that the cyanobacteria living in the Torridonian palaeoecosystem were capable of producing microcystins.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 97%

“…Von Koenigswald et al . () were able to determine that seasonal blooms of cyanobacteria were likely to be responsible for mass deaths of turtles and horses as well as birds and bats in the Eocene Messel Lake. It has been established that the microcystin synthetase gene set is primitive (Rantala et al .…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Microcystins have been proposed as contributing to Phanerozoic extinctions (Castle and Rodgers ), and detailed sedimentological and geochemical analyses have linked seasonal production of excess microcystins to mass deaths of animals in Pleistocene (Braun and Pfeiffer ) and Miocene (Koenigswald et al . ) lakes. We hypothesize that the growth and burial of these cyanobacteria in settings which lead to the excess production of microcystins may have promoted the trapping and retention of organic phosphorus into accumulating sediments.…”

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confidence: 99%

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Palaeoecology of a billion‐year‐old non‐marine cyanobacterium from the Torridon Group and Nonesuch Formation

Strother

Wellman

2015

Palaeontology

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A new chroococcalean cyanobacterium is described from approximately 1‐billion‐year‐old non‐marine deposits of the Torridonian Group of Scotland and the Nonesuch Formation of Michigan, USA. Individual cells of the new microfossil, Eohalothece lacustrina gen. et sp. nov., are associated with benthic microbial biofilms, but the majority of samples are recovered in palynological preparations in the form of large, apparently planktonic colonies, similar to extant species of Microcystis. In the Torridonian, Eohalothece is associated with phosphatic nodules, and we have developed a novel hypothesis linking Eohalothece to phosphate deposition in ancient freshwater settings. Extant cyanobacteria can be prolific producers of extracellular microcystins, which are non‐ribosomal polypeptide phosphatase inhibitors. Microcystins may have promoted the retention and concentration of sedimentary organic phosphate prior to mineralization of francolite and nodule formation. This has a further implication that the Torridonian lakes were nitrogen limited as the release of microcystins is enhanced under such conditions today. The abundance and wide distribution of Eohalothece lacustrina attests to the importance of cyanobacteria as oxygen‐producing photoautotrophs in lacustrine ecosystems at the time of the Mesoproterozoic–Neoproterozoic transition.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 97%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

mentioning

confidence: 99%

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Palaeoecology of a billion‐year‐old non‐marine cyanobacterium from the Torridon Group and Nonesuch Formation

Strother

Wellman

2015

Palaeontology

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“…Most of the deer skeletons display the preservation typical of water carcasses, with parallel leg position and recurved neck, as evidenced, for example, from the Eocene site of Messel [42]. This could have happened as follows:…”

Section: Discussion On the Cause Of Deathmentioning

confidence: 99%

What Does the Mass Accumulation of 100 Late Pleistocene Fallow Deer Skeletons (Dama geiselana) and Red Deer Skeletons (Cervus elaphus) from Neumark-Nord Reveal about the Cause of Death?

Pfeiffer-Deml¹

2020

Heritage

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In the open-cast lignite mine of Neumark-Nord (Saxony-Anhalt, Germany, Eemian interglacial period) the richest fossil fallow deer material which has been found so far was collected. About 80 articulated skeletons and partial skeletons of Dama geiselana Pfeiffer, 1998 (Cervidae, Mammalia) and 20 partial skeletons of Cervus elaphus in perfect state of preservation were recovered, together with skeletons of Elephas antiquus, Stephanorhinus kirchbergensis and hemitoechus, Bos primigenius, and Panthera leo spelea. The extraordinary composition of the thanatocoenosis of the deer provided decisive information on the cause of death, which is presented here. The deer show the typical preservation of drowned carcasses; 75% of the deer skeletons belong to strong males, while juveniles and females are rare, and very old individuals are missing in the deer assemblage. Several disasters in different years have led to the mass occurrence of deer. The individual age determination of the juveniles, the stage of antler development, and the level of epiphyseal adhesion are explained here. They show that the majority most probably died in autumn. This information provided the crucial approach to investigate nitrifying toxic cyanobacterial blooms as a cause of death. The biochemical results obtained by absorption spectroscopy and RP-HPLC with UV-detection, published in 2002, showed that pigments, and probably toxins, characteristic of cyanobacteria are preserved in the sediment.

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“…It is archived in the Institute’s Department of Messel Research under the inventory no. SMF-ME-11034 and has been briefly mentioned by several authors [4, 7–10]. We now describe it in detail for the first time and evaluate its paleobiologic and evolutionary significance.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Description of a Well Preserved Fetus of the European Eocene Equoid Eurohippus messelensis

2015

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The early Middle Eocene locality of Grube Messel, near Darmstadt (Germany), is famous for its complete vertebrate skeletons. The degree of preservation of soft tissues, such as body silhouettes, internal organs and gut contents, is frequently remarkable. The present specimen was analyzed for remnants of the reproductive system. Classic anatomy and osteology and high-resolution micro-x-ray were applied to describe the fetus of the European Eocene equoid Eurohippus messelensis. Scanning electronic microscopy (SEM) was used for determination of soft tissue remnants. The fetus is the earliest and best-preserved fossil specimen of its kind. The postcranial fetal skeleton is almost complete and largely articulated, allowing the conclusion that the pregnant mare was in late gestation. The apparent intrauterine position of the fetus is normal for the phase of pregnancy. Death of mare and fetus were probably not related to problems associated with parturition. Soft tissue interpreted as the uteroplacenta and a broad uterine ligament are preserved due to bacterial activity and allow considerations on the evolutionary development of the structures.

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Cyanobacteria and seasonal death: A new taphonomic model for the Eocene Messel lake

Cited by 9 publications

References 0 publications

Palaeoecology of a billion‐year‐old non‐marine cyanobacterium from the Torridon Group and Nonesuch Formation

Palaeoecology of a billion‐year‐old non‐marine cyanobacterium from the Torridon Group and Nonesuch Formation

What Does the Mass Accumulation of 100 Late Pleistocene Fallow Deer Skeletons (Dama geiselana) and Red Deer Skeletons (Cervus elaphus) from Neumark-Nord Reveal about the Cause of Death?

Description of a Well Preserved Fetus of the European Eocene Equoid Eurohippus messelensis

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