A fossil mysticete was discovered along the southwestern coast of Spain, occurring in a block detached from the Neogene deposits exposed along a coastal cliff at the locality of Conil de la Frontera (Cádiz, Spain). These deposits range from Pliocene to Pleistocene in age and include shallow-marine, mixed carbonate–siliciclastic sediments, with the whale being found in occurrence of a stratigraphic unconformity marked by Thalassinoides burrows. 87Sr/86Sr analyses on oyster shells associated with the skeleton suggest an Early Pliocene age, in agreement with the age of the lowermost unit cropping out at the study site. The studied cetacean specimen consists of an articulated, almost complete balaenopteroid skeleton exposed in the field dorsal side up; being contained in an upside-down block, however, it is preserved in ventral disposition. Bones exhibit a low degree of preservation of the cortical bone tissue, which locally features shark bite marks and Osedax traces as well as abundant encrustations of barnacles and ostreids. Two shark teeth were also found near the skeleton. Bones have preserved their main histological features, even though they locally exhibit microcracks, dissolution, substitution by Fe oxides, and microborings. Sediment particles and late diagenetic cements fill the medullary cavities. We propose that the whale carcass experienced refloating before sinking to the seafloor and that the skeleton was probably exposed on the seafloor for some time before being eventually buried.

Bosio, G., Bajo-Campos, I., Collareta, A., Ros-Montoya, S., de la Torre, D., Coletti, G., et al. (2024). Taphonomy of a Mysticete Whale from the Lower Pliocene of the Coast of Cádiz (Spain). JOURNAL OF MARINE SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING, 12(1) [10.3390/jmse12010017].

Taphonomy of a Mysticete Whale from the Lower Pliocene of the Coast of Cádiz (Spain)

Bosio G.
Primo
;
Coletti G.;
2024

Abstract

A fossil mysticete was discovered along the southwestern coast of Spain, occurring in a block detached from the Neogene deposits exposed along a coastal cliff at the locality of Conil de la Frontera (Cádiz, Spain). These deposits range from Pliocene to Pleistocene in age and include shallow-marine, mixed carbonate–siliciclastic sediments, with the whale being found in occurrence of a stratigraphic unconformity marked by Thalassinoides burrows. 87Sr/86Sr analyses on oyster shells associated with the skeleton suggest an Early Pliocene age, in agreement with the age of the lowermost unit cropping out at the study site. The studied cetacean specimen consists of an articulated, almost complete balaenopteroid skeleton exposed in the field dorsal side up; being contained in an upside-down block, however, it is preserved in ventral disposition. Bones exhibit a low degree of preservation of the cortical bone tissue, which locally features shark bite marks and Osedax traces as well as abundant encrustations of barnacles and ostreids. Two shark teeth were also found near the skeleton. Bones have preserved their main histological features, even though they locally exhibit microcracks, dissolution, substitution by Fe oxides, and microborings. Sediment particles and late diagenetic cements fill the medullary cavities. We propose that the whale carcass experienced refloating before sinking to the seafloor and that the skeleton was probably exposed on the seafloor for some time before being eventually buried.
Articolo in rivista - Articolo scientifico
Balaenopteroidea; bioencrustation; biostratinomy; bones; cetacean; fossil diagenesis; fossil traces; fossilization; Osedax; whale-fall;
English
20-dic-2023
2024
12
1
17
open
Bosio, G., Bajo-Campos, I., Collareta, A., Ros-Montoya, S., de la Torre, D., Coletti, G., et al. (2024). Taphonomy of a Mysticete Whale from the Lower Pliocene of the Coast of Cádiz (Spain). JOURNAL OF MARINE SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING, 12(1) [10.3390/jmse12010017].
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Utilizza questo identificativo per citare o creare un link a questo documento: https://hdl.handle.net/10281/478839
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