The effects of repeated wet-dry cycles as a component of bone weathering

Pokines, James T.; Faillace, Katie E.; Berger, Jacqueline; Pirtle, Danea; Sharpe, Megan; Curtis, A H; Lombardi, Kimberly R; Admans, James

doi:10.1016/j.jasrep.2017.11.025

Cited by 16 publications

(17 citation statements)

References 60 publications

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“…The KAM-1 assemblage is unique in having more complete long bones, which may reflect the more resilient bones of the larger animals preserved at the site ( Hippopotamus , Syncerus ). Bone fragmentation may have also been promoted by the physiochemical stresses associated with repeated temperature and moisture fluctuations, which are known to accelerate bone degradation and weathering (Behrensmeyer, 1978; Haynes, 1988; Pokines et al, 2018), and it has been argued that the poor preservation of fossil assemblages within the South African interior is the result of bone deposition within river, lake, and spring margins (Hutson, 2018). Dense, highly mineralised fossils, such as fossil teeth, have been found to be disproportionately affected by drastic temperature fluctuations, leading to their underrepresentation in some fossil assemblages (Conard et al, 2008).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A taxonomic and taphonomic study of Pleistocene fossil deposits from the western Nefud Desert, Saudi Arabia

et al. 2020

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Over the past decade, a growing interest has developed on the archaeology, palaeontology, and palaeoenvironments of the Arabian Peninsula. It is now clear that hominins repeatedly dispersed into Arabia, notably during pluvial interglacial periods when much of the peninsula was characterised by a semiarid grassland environment. During the intervening glacial phases, however, grasslands were replaced with arid and hyperarid deserts. These millennial-scale climatic fluctuations have subjected bones and fossils to a dramatic suite of environmental conditions, affecting their fossilisation and preservation. Yet, as relatively few palaeontological assemblages have been reported from the Pleistocene of Arabia, our understanding of the preservational pathways that skeletal elements can take in these types of environments is lacking. Here, we report the first widespread taxonomic and taphonomic assessment of Arabian fossil deposits. Novel fossil fauna are described and overall the fauna are consistent with a well-watered semiarid grassland environment. Likewise, the taphonomic results suggest that bones were deposited under more humid conditions than present in the region today. However, fossils often exhibit significant attrition, obscuring and fragmenting most finds. These are likely tied to wind abrasion, insolation, and salt weathering following fossilisation and exhumation, processes particularly prevalent in desert environments.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A taxonomic and taphonomic study of Pleistocene fossil deposits from the western Nefud Desert, Saudi Arabia

et al. 2020

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“…Bone weathering rates may also be slowed through limited summer rainfall, and reduced wet-dry cycles (shrinkage-expansion) that damage bone, particularly on well-drained Dryas terraces (Behrensmeyer, 1978;U.S. Fish Wildlife Service, 2015;Pokines et al, 2018). Under such conditions, it is perhaps unsurprising that antlers are well-preserved for extended durations, including maintaining original bone texture for decades.…”

Section: Expanding Ecological Timeseriesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Historical Landscape Use of Migratory Caribou: New Insights From Old Antlers

et al. 2021

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Accumulations of shed caribou antlers (Rangifer tarandus) are valuable resources for expanding the temporal scope with which we evaluate seasonal landscape use of herds. Female caribou shed their antlers within days of giving birth, thus marking calving ground locations. Antler geochemistry (87Sr/86Sr) reflects the isotopic signature of regions used during antler growth, thereby providing data on a second component of seasonal landscape use. Here, we evaluate shed caribou antlers from the Coastal Plain of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, Alaska. The Central and Eastern regions of the Coastal Plain are calving grounds for the Porcupine Caribou Herd, while the Western Coastal Plain supports calving by the Central Arctic Herd. We found that antler 87Sr/86Sr from the Central and Eastern Coastal Plain were isotopically indistinguishable, while antler 87Sr/86Sr from the Western Coastal Plain was significantly smaller. For each region, we compared isotopic data for “recent” antlers, which overlap the bulk of standardized state and federal caribou monitoring (early 1980s and younger), with “historical” antlers shed in years predating these records (from the 1300s to the 1970s). For Porcupine Herd females calving in the Arctic Refuge, comparisons of antler 87Sr/86Sr through time indicate that summer ranges have been consistent since at least the 1960s. However, changes between historical and recent antler 87Sr/86Sr for the Central Arctic Herd indicate a shift in summer landscape use after the late 1970s. The timing of this shift is coincident with multiple factors including increased infrastructural development in their range related to hydrocarbon extraction. Accumulations of shed caribou antlers and their isotope geochemistry extend modern datasets by decades to centuries and provide valuable baseline data for evaluating potential anthropogenic and other influences on caribou migration and landscape use.

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“…18 ) causes us to appeal to a more universal process. Pokines et al (2018) demonstrated experimentally using deer bones that pervasive fracturing of even robust elements can be achieved by simple cyclic wetting and drying independent of any other destructive factors, apparently as a result of volume changes in the cortex. Field observations of flamingo bones undergoing repeated wet-dry cycling and salt crystallization at the surface drove similar conclusions ( Prassack, 2011 ).…”

Section: Taphonomic Analysismentioning

confidence: 99%

Geology and taphonomy of a unique tyrannosaurid bonebed from the upper Campanian Kaiparowits Formation of southern Utah: implications for tyrannosaurid gregariousness

Titus

Knoll

Sertich

et al. 2021

PeerJ

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Tyrannosaurids are hypothesized to be gregarious, possibly parasocial carnivores engaging in cooperative hunting and extended parental care. A tyrannosaurid (cf. Teratophoneus curriei) bonebed in the late Campanian age Kaiparowits Formation of southern Utah, nicknamed the Rainbows and Unicorns Quarry (RUQ), provides the first opportunity to investigate possible tyrannosaurid gregariousness in a taxon unique to southern Laramidia. Analyses of the site’s sedimentology, fauna, flora, stable isotopes, rare earth elements (REE), charcoal content and taphonomy suggest a complex history starting with the deaths and transport of tyrannosaurids into a peri-fluvial, low-energy lacustrine setting. Isotopic and REE analyses of the fossil material yields a relatively homogeneous signature indicating the assemblage was derived from the same source and represents a fauna living in a single ecospace. Subsequent drying of the lake and fluctuating water tables simultaneously overprinted the bones with pedogenic carbonate and structurally weakened them through wet-dry cycling. Abundant charcoal recovered from the primary bone layer indicate a low temperature fire played a role in the site history, possibly triggering an avulsion that exhumed and reburied skeletal material on the margin of a new channel with minimal transport. Possible causes of mortality and concentration of the tyrannosaurids include cyanobacterial toxicosis, fire, and flooding, the latter being the preferred hypothesis. Comparisons of the RUQ site with other North American tyrannosaur bonebeds (Dry Island-Alberta; Daspletosaurus horneri-Montana) suggest all formed through similar processes. Combined with ichnological evidence, these tyrannosaur mass-burial sites could be part of an emerging pattern throughout Laramidia reflecting innate tyrannosaurid behavior such as habitual gregariousness.

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The effects of repeated wet-dry cycles as a component of bone weathering

Cited by 16 publications

References 60 publications

A taxonomic and taphonomic study of Pleistocene fossil deposits from the western Nefud Desert, Saudi Arabia

A taxonomic and taphonomic study of Pleistocene fossil deposits from the western Nefud Desert, Saudi Arabia

Historical Landscape Use of Migratory Caribou: New Insights From Old Antlers

Geology and taphonomy of a unique tyrannosaurid bonebed from the upper Campanian Kaiparowits Formation of southern Utah: implications for tyrannosaurid gregariousness

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