Investigating Mazon Creek fossil plants using computed tomography and microphotography
More than 20,000 siderite concretions from the Mazon Creek area of northern Illinois, United States are housed in the paleobotanical collections of the Field Museum. A large proportion contain fossil plants of Middle Pennsylvanian age that often have excellent three-dimensional morphology and someti...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Frontiers Media S.A.
2023-07-01
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| Series: | Frontiers in Earth Science |
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| Online Access: | https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/feart.2023.1200976/full |
| _version_ | 1827900897570586624 |
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| author | Fabiany Herrera Carol L. Hotton Carol L. Hotton Selena Y. Smith Paula A. Lopera April I. Neander Jack Wittry Yuke Zheng Yuke Zheng Yuke Zheng Philipp R. Heck Philipp R. Heck Philipp R. Heck Peter R. Crane Peter R. Crane Michael P. D’Antonio |
| author_facet | Fabiany Herrera Carol L. Hotton Carol L. Hotton Selena Y. Smith Paula A. Lopera April I. Neander Jack Wittry Yuke Zheng Yuke Zheng Yuke Zheng Philipp R. Heck Philipp R. Heck Philipp R. Heck Peter R. Crane Peter R. Crane Michael P. D’Antonio |
| author_sort | Fabiany Herrera |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | More than 20,000 siderite concretions from the Mazon Creek area of northern Illinois, United States are housed in the paleobotanical collections of the Field Museum. A large proportion contain fossil plants of Middle Pennsylvanian age that often have excellent three-dimensional morphology and sometimes anatomical detail. Approximately eighty plant taxa have been recognized from the Mazon Creek Lagerstätte, but few have been studied in detail, and in some cases the systematic affinities of these fossils need reevaluation. The three-dimensional (3D) preservation of Mazon Creek fossil plants makes them ideal candidates for study using x-ray micro-computed tomography (μCT), and here we apply these techniques to more accurately reconstruct the morphology of specimens of Tetraphyllostrobus Gao et Zodrow and Crossotheca Zeiller. The mineralogical composition of the fossil plant preservation was studied using elemental maps and Raman spectroscopy. In-situ spores were studied with differential interference contrast, Airyscan confocal super-resolution microscopy, and scanning electron microscopy, which reveal different features of the spores with different degrees of clarity. Our analyses show that μCT can provide excellent detail on the three-dimensional structure of Mazon Creek plant fossils, with the nature of associated mineralization sometimes enhancing and sometimes obscuring critical information. Results provide guidance for selecting and prioritizing fossil plant specimens preserved in siderite concretions for future research. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-12T23:38:54Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-936d9c5c5b734321874a1c53b8d7e9d4 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2296-6463 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-12T23:38:54Z |
| publishDate | 2023-07-01 |
| publisher | Frontiers Media S.A. |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Frontiers in Earth Science |
| spelling | doaj.art-936d9c5c5b734321874a1c53b8d7e9d42023-07-15T03:05:19ZengFrontiers Media S.A.Frontiers in Earth Science2296-64632023-07-011110.3389/feart.2023.12009761200976Investigating Mazon Creek fossil plants using computed tomography and microphotographyFabiany Herrera0Carol L. Hotton1Carol L. Hotton2Selena Y. Smith3Paula A. Lopera4April I. Neander5Jack Wittry6Yuke Zheng7Yuke Zheng8Yuke Zheng9Philipp R. Heck10Philipp R. Heck11Philipp R. Heck12Peter R. Crane13Peter R. Crane14Michael P. D’Antonio15Earth Sciences, Negaunee Integrative Research Center, Field Museum of Natural History, Chicago, IL, United StatesNational Center for Biotechnology Information, National Library of Medicine, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, United StatesDepartment of Paleobiology, National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC, United StatesDepartment of Earth and Environmental Sciences and Museum of Paleontology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, United StatesSmithsonian Tropical Research Institute, Panama, PanamaDepartment of Organismal Biology and Anatomy, The University Chicago, Chicago, IL, United StatesGantz Family Collections Center, Field Museum of Natural History, Chicago, IL, United StatesEarth Sciences, Negaunee Integrative Research Center, Field Museum of Natural History, Chicago, IL, United StatesRobert A. Pritzker Center for Meteoritics and Polar Studies, Negaunee Integrative Research Center, Field Museum of Natural History, Chicago, IL, United StatesDepartment of the Geophysical Sciences, The University of Chicago, Chicago, IL, United StatesEarth Sciences, Negaunee Integrative Research Center, Field Museum of Natural History, Chicago, IL, United StatesRobert A. Pritzker Center for Meteoritics and Polar Studies, Negaunee Integrative Research Center, Field Museum of Natural History, Chicago, IL, United StatesDepartment of the Geophysical Sciences, The University of Chicago, Chicago, IL, United States0Yale School of Environment, Yale University, New Haven, CT, United States1Oak Spring Garden Foundation, Upperville, VA, United StatesEarth Sciences, Negaunee Integrative Research Center, Field Museum of Natural History, Chicago, IL, United StatesMore than 20,000 siderite concretions from the Mazon Creek area of northern Illinois, United States are housed in the paleobotanical collections of the Field Museum. A large proportion contain fossil plants of Middle Pennsylvanian age that often have excellent three-dimensional morphology and sometimes anatomical detail. Approximately eighty plant taxa have been recognized from the Mazon Creek Lagerstätte, but few have been studied in detail, and in some cases the systematic affinities of these fossils need reevaluation. The three-dimensional (3D) preservation of Mazon Creek fossil plants makes them ideal candidates for study using x-ray micro-computed tomography (μCT), and here we apply these techniques to more accurately reconstruct the morphology of specimens of Tetraphyllostrobus Gao et Zodrow and Crossotheca Zeiller. The mineralogical composition of the fossil plant preservation was studied using elemental maps and Raman spectroscopy. In-situ spores were studied with differential interference contrast, Airyscan confocal super-resolution microscopy, and scanning electron microscopy, which reveal different features of the spores with different degrees of clarity. Our analyses show that μCT can provide excellent detail on the three-dimensional structure of Mazon Creek plant fossils, with the nature of associated mineralization sometimes enhancing and sometimes obscuring critical information. Results provide guidance for selecting and prioritizing fossil plant specimens preserved in siderite concretions for future research.https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/feart.2023.1200976/fullPaleozoicTetraphyllostrobusCrossothecamicro-computed tomographyMeshLabdifferential interference contrast |
| spellingShingle | Fabiany Herrera Carol L. Hotton Carol L. Hotton Selena Y. Smith Paula A. Lopera April I. Neander Jack Wittry Yuke Zheng Yuke Zheng Yuke Zheng Philipp R. Heck Philipp R. Heck Philipp R. Heck Peter R. Crane Peter R. Crane Michael P. D’Antonio Investigating Mazon Creek fossil plants using computed tomography and microphotography Frontiers in Earth Science Paleozoic Tetraphyllostrobus Crossotheca micro-computed tomography MeshLab differential interference contrast |
| title | Investigating Mazon Creek fossil plants using computed tomography and microphotography |
| title_full | Investigating Mazon Creek fossil plants using computed tomography and microphotography |
| title_fullStr | Investigating Mazon Creek fossil plants using computed tomography and microphotography |
| title_full_unstemmed | Investigating Mazon Creek fossil plants using computed tomography and microphotography |
| title_short | Investigating Mazon Creek fossil plants using computed tomography and microphotography |
| title_sort | investigating mazon creek fossil plants using computed tomography and microphotography |
| topic | Paleozoic Tetraphyllostrobus Crossotheca micro-computed tomography MeshLab differential interference contrast |
| url | https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/feart.2023.1200976/full |
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