Early Cretaceous lepidosaur (sphenodontian?) burrows
Abstract Scarce fossil tetrapod burrows have been recorded in Cretaceous rocks, which is probably linked to the dominant equable climates that existed for most of this period. The occurrence of Cretaceous tetrapod burrows from Patagonia (Chubut Province, Argentina) dated between 118 and 115 million...
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Nature Portfolio
2023-06-01
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| Series: | Scientific Reports |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-023-37385-6 |
| _version_ | 1797795693239205888 |
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| author | Ricardo Melchor Mariano Perez Pablo Villegas Nahuel Espinoza Aldo Umazano M. Cristina Cardonatto |
| author_facet | Ricardo Melchor Mariano Perez Pablo Villegas Nahuel Espinoza Aldo Umazano M. Cristina Cardonatto |
| author_sort | Ricardo Melchor |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract Scarce fossil tetrapod burrows have been recorded in Cretaceous rocks, which is probably linked to the dominant equable climates that existed for most of this period. The occurrence of Cretaceous tetrapod burrows from Patagonia (Chubut Province, Argentina) dated between 118 and 115 million years ago, gives insights into their paleoecology and paleoenvironment. The rocks containing the tetrapod burrows are of pyroclastic origin and represent eolian dunes and ash-fall deposits, some reworked by fluvial currents and others showing soil development. Fossil burrow casts preserved in a paleosol are composed by a ramp with a slightly curved or straight path in plan-view and lacking bifurcation, a rounded termination with no enlargement, showing a reniform cross-section, and are assigned to the ichnospecies Reniformichnus katikatii. The strongly flattened cross-sectional shape of the burrow casts and comparison with modern lizard burrows suggest that the producers were lepidosaurs (body mass = 50–323 g). Among Cretaceous fossorial lepidosaurs from Patagonia, the best candidate is an eilenodontine sphenodontian. Sphenodontians burrowed in the fossil soils where also arthropods, earthworms and shrubby plants thrived. The rare occurrence of tetrapod burrows in Cretaceous rocks is linked to stressing conditions related to frequent arrival of volcanic ash and a semiarid seasonal climate. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-13T03:22:54Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-19f02062ddde497080d44de38cf4343b |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2045-2322 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-13T03:22:54Z |
| publishDate | 2023-06-01 |
| publisher | Nature Portfolio |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Scientific Reports |
| spelling | doaj.art-19f02062ddde497080d44de38cf4343b2023-06-25T11:13:56ZengNature PortfolioScientific Reports2045-23222023-06-0113111310.1038/s41598-023-37385-6Early Cretaceous lepidosaur (sphenodontian?) burrowsRicardo Melchor0Mariano Perez1Pablo Villegas2Nahuel Espinoza3Aldo Umazano4M. Cristina Cardonatto5Instituto de Ciencias de la Tierra y Ambientales de La Pampa (Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas-Universidad Nacional de La Pampa)Departamento de Geología, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad Nacional de La PampaInstituto de Ciencias de la Tierra y Ambientales de La Pampa (Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas-Universidad Nacional de La Pampa)Instituto de Ciencias de la Tierra y Ambientales de La Pampa (Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas-Universidad Nacional de La Pampa)Instituto de Ciencias de la Tierra y Ambientales de La Pampa (Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas-Universidad Nacional de La Pampa)Departamento de Geología, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad Nacional de La PampaAbstract Scarce fossil tetrapod burrows have been recorded in Cretaceous rocks, which is probably linked to the dominant equable climates that existed for most of this period. The occurrence of Cretaceous tetrapod burrows from Patagonia (Chubut Province, Argentina) dated between 118 and 115 million years ago, gives insights into their paleoecology and paleoenvironment. The rocks containing the tetrapod burrows are of pyroclastic origin and represent eolian dunes and ash-fall deposits, some reworked by fluvial currents and others showing soil development. Fossil burrow casts preserved in a paleosol are composed by a ramp with a slightly curved or straight path in plan-view and lacking bifurcation, a rounded termination with no enlargement, showing a reniform cross-section, and are assigned to the ichnospecies Reniformichnus katikatii. The strongly flattened cross-sectional shape of the burrow casts and comparison with modern lizard burrows suggest that the producers were lepidosaurs (body mass = 50–323 g). Among Cretaceous fossorial lepidosaurs from Patagonia, the best candidate is an eilenodontine sphenodontian. Sphenodontians burrowed in the fossil soils where also arthropods, earthworms and shrubby plants thrived. The rare occurrence of tetrapod burrows in Cretaceous rocks is linked to stressing conditions related to frequent arrival of volcanic ash and a semiarid seasonal climate.https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-023-37385-6 |
| spellingShingle | Ricardo Melchor Mariano Perez Pablo Villegas Nahuel Espinoza Aldo Umazano M. Cristina Cardonatto Early Cretaceous lepidosaur (sphenodontian?) burrows Scientific Reports |
| title | Early Cretaceous lepidosaur (sphenodontian?) burrows |
| title_full | Early Cretaceous lepidosaur (sphenodontian?) burrows |
| title_fullStr | Early Cretaceous lepidosaur (sphenodontian?) burrows |
| title_full_unstemmed | Early Cretaceous lepidosaur (sphenodontian?) burrows |
| title_short | Early Cretaceous lepidosaur (sphenodontian?) burrows |
| title_sort | early cretaceous lepidosaur sphenodontian burrows |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-023-37385-6 |
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