Taphonomy

History

The origins of taphonomy lie in the development of paleontology during the late 15th century, when Leonardo da Vinci recorded concern that marine fossil deposits found at elevations far from the coast could not be explained by the preponderant theory of biblical deluge. Questions about what agents and mechanisms could explain the mortality, assemblage, and preservation of such fossil deposits formed the basis of taphonomical investigation, as it became recognized that a better understanding of these processes could provide more accurate answers about ancient life and environments. Archeology and forensic science were also challenged by postmortem processes to focus, in archaeology's case, on prehistoric hominid reconstructions, and in forensic sciences, to discern the time and cause of death for legal reasons. The fusion of these aspects with concepts of physical biology and sedimentology occurred in 1940 when the Russian paleontologist Efremov coined taphonomy as “the study of the transition (in all its details) of animal remains from the biosphere into the lithosphere.”

Process and bias

Taphonomic studies are based upon observing the abundance, distribution, and modification attributes of fossils. Data collection starts with the mapping, measuring, and identification of all elements in context with enclosing sedimentology. The taxa present may be identified and any evidence of sexual and age distributions considered, with a view to later calculating the relative abundance and representation of different species.

The spatial relationships and orientation of fossil elements can be critical to the interpretation of paleo-histories. The alignment of elements (or a whole carcass) can demonstrate factors from the time of death or burial such as stream flow direction and rate of deposition. Further information about the taphonomic history may be deduced by combining the spatial data with detailed lithological study. In the case where an accumulation of bones with vertical orientations could derive from a high-energy hydraulic event or be the result of biological factors like trampling around a waterhole, the structure of sedimentary layers surrounding the bones will indicate the correct paleohistory.

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