Bioerosion traces on titanosaurian sauropod bones from the Upper Cretaceous Marília Formation of Brazil. Issue 3 (3rd July 2018) - Paes Neto, Voltaire Dutra
Abstract : Paes Neto, V.D., Francischini, H., Martinelli, A.G., Marinho, T.S., Ribeiro, L.C.B., Soares, M.B. & Schultz, C.L. May.2018. Bioerosion traces on titanosaurian sauropod bones from the Upper Cretaceous Marília Formation of Brazil. Alcheringa XXX, X–X. ISSN 0311-5518. Bone bioerosions provide an important taphonomic record on fossils from continental deposits dating back to the late Paleozoic. The morphological diversity of bone bioerosions is especially high in vertebrate remains from the Late Cretaceous. Here we describe four morphotypes of bioeroson preserved on titanosaur dinosaur bones collected from the Maastrichtian Marília Formation of Brazil. These traces differ from previously described ichnotaxa, and include branching furrows and surface removal resembling insect bioerosions, channels with semicircular cross-sections consistent with either root etchings or insects, and bite traces left by vertebrates. Taphonomic sequencing shows that time-averaging was an important aspect in the genesis of the Marília Formation taphocoenosis and demonstrates that traces left on bones are significant tools for reconstructing Late Cretaceous ecosystems. Voltaire Dutra Paes Neto [ voltairearts@gmail.com ] and Heitor Francischini [ heitorfrancischini@hotmail.com ] Programa de Pós-Graduação em Geociências (PPGGEO), Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul (UFRGS), Av. Bento Gonçalves 9500, Agronomia, 91540-000, Porto Alegre, RS, Brazil; Agustín Guillermo Martinelli* [ agustin_martinelli@yahoo.com.ar ], Marina Bento Soares [ marina-soares@ufrgs.br ] and Cesar Leandro Schultz [ cesar.schultz@ufrgs.br ] Instituto de Geociências (IGeo), Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul (UFRGS), Av. Bento Gonçalves 9500, Agronomia, 91540-000, Porto Alegre, RS, Brazil; Thiago da Silva Marinho† [ thiago.marinho@uftm.edu.br ] Centro de Pesquisas Paleontológicas 'Llewelyn Ivor Price' (CPPLIP), Complexo Cultural e Científico Peirópolis (CCCP), Universidade Federal do Triângulo Mineiro (UFTM), R. Estanislau Collenghi 194, 38039-755, Peirópolis, Uberaba, MG, Brazil; Luiz Carlos Borges Ribeiro [ lcbrmg@gmail.com ] Centro de Pesquisas Paleontológicas 'Llewelyn Ivor Price' (CPPLIP), Complexo Cultural e Científico Peirópolis (CCCP), Universidade Federal do Triângulo Mineiro (UFTM), R. Estanislau Collenghi 194, 38039-755, Peirópolis, Uberaba, MG, Brazil. *Also affiliated with: Centro de Pesquisas Paleontológicas 'Llewelyn Ivor Price' (CPPLIP), Complexo Cultural e Científico Peirópolis (CCCP), Universidade Federal do Triângulo Mineiro (UFTM), R. Estanislau Collenghi 194, 38039-755, Peirópolis, Uberaba, MG, Brazil. †Also affiliated with: Instituto de Ciências Exatas, Naturais e Educação (ICENE), Universidade Federal do Triângulo Mineiro (UFTM), Av. Randolfo Borges Jr. 1400, Univerdecidade, 38064-200, Uberaba, MG, Brazil.