EVIDENCE OF BACTERIAL DECAY AND EARLY DIAGENESIS IN A PARTIALLY-ARTICULATED TETRAPOD FROM THE TRIASSIC CHAÑARES FORMATION

MANCUSO, ADRIANA CECILIA; PREVITERA, MARÍA ELENA; BENAVENTE, CECILIA ANDREA; HERNANDEZ DEL PINO, SANTIAGO

PALAIOS

SEPM-SOC SEDIMENTARY GEOLOGY

Lugar: Lawrence; Año: 2017 vol. 32 p. 367 - 381

0883-1351

The vertebrate faunaof the Early Carnian Chañares Formation of Argentina is characterized by thewell-preserved small and medium-sized archosauriforms and therapsids. Here wereport the first fully-articulated large non-mammalian therapsid from thisformation that was found preserved in the floodplain facies. Taphonomicanalysis of this specimen reveals details of the mode of death, exposure topredation and/or scavenging, subsequent subaerial decay, and final entombment. Thespecimen also allowed documentation of the conditions that promoted earlydiagenesis, and fossilization of the remains, both inside and outside of anenvelope of calcareous concretions. Moreover, the study led to the recognitionof both pre- and post-burial soft tissue decomposition.