Taphonomy and palaeobiology of early Middle Triassic coprolites from the Luoping biota, southwest China: Implications for reconstruction of fossil food webs

Abstract

General rightsThis document is made available in accordance with publisher policies. Please cite only the published version using the reference above. AbstractAbundant exceptionally preserved coprolites are documented from the Luoping biota (Anisian, Middle Triassic) of Yunnan Province, southwest China. These coprolites can be categorized into four morphological types: 1) bead to ribbon-shaped, 2) short to long rod-shaped, 3) flattened, disk-like, and 4) segmented faeces. Detailed multi-disciplinary studies reveal that coprolite type 1 was likely produced by an invertebrate animal, while coprolite types 2 to 4 could be faeces generated by carnivorous fishes or marine reptiles, perhaps from different taxonomic groups. When compared with coprolites reported from the Lower Triassic, the Luoping forms indicate more complicated predation-prey food web networks, suggesting the emergence of complex trophic ecosystems in the Anisian, marking the full biotic recovery following the Permian-Triassic Mass Extinction.

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

“…; Luo et al . ). Unequivocal attribution of coprolites to a specific producer is difficult, though there are multiple approaches involving examination of morphology, inclusions, geochemical composition and associated body fossils that may result in the deduction of the coprolite‐producing animal (Northwood ; Bajdek et al .…”

Early Middle Triassic trace fossils from the Luoping Biota, southwestern China: Evidence of recovery from mass extinction

“…3E), in which abundant well-preserved vertebrate and invertebrate fossils have been discovered, respectively ( Fig. 2; Bai et al, 2011;Benton et al, 2013;Zhang et al, 2014;Luo et al, 2017). Several ash layers also occur intercalated in the marly carbonate mudstones of Unit B (Fig.…”

“…They provide an extraordinary window into the behaviours of trace-making organisms from a stabilized, fully recovered shallow marine ecosystem after the PTME. Although some exceptionally preserved examples of coprolites and paddle imprints of nothosaurs from the Luoping Biota sites have been recently studied (Hu et al, 2011;Zhang et al, 2014;Luo et al, 2017), most of the burrowing traces remain unstudied.…”

Gondolelloid multielement conodont apparatus (Nicoraella) from the Middle Triassic of Yunnan Province, southwestern China

“…Member II is about 580 m thick, and is composed of nodular limestones, silty limestones, micritic limestones, and bands of dolomite (Zhang et al, 2009). The Guanling Formation has attracted attention because of the discovery of the Luoping Biota in Member II, a rich and diverse assemblage of exceptionally preserved marine invertebrates and vertebrates, including marine reptiles, fishes, and lightly sclerotized arthropods, associated with bivalves, gastropods, belemnoids, ammonoids, echinoderms, brachiopods, foraminifers, ostracods, conodonts and trace fossils (Feldmann et al, 2012;Huang et al, 2013;Luo et al, 2017aLuo et al, , 2017bLiu et al, 2017;Wen et al, 2012;. As such, the Luoping Biota has been interpreted to record the rebuilding of shallow marine ecosystems following the end-Permian mass extinction, some 10 Myr earlier than previously anticipated (Benton et al, 2013;Liu et al, 2014;Zhang et al, 2008).…”