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Article: Exceptional preservation requires fast biodegradation: thylacocephalan specimens from La Voulte‐sur‐Rhône (Callovian, Jurassic, France)

Palaeontology - Vol. 63 Part 3 - Cover Image
Publication: Palaeontology
Volume: 63
Part: 3
Publication Date: May 2020
Page(s): 395 413
Author(s): Clément Jauvion, Sylvain Bernard, Pierre Gueriau, Cristian Mocuta, Sylvain Pont, Karim Benzerara, and Sylvain Charbonnier
Addition Information

How to Cite

JAUVION, C., BERNARD, S., GUERIAU, P., MOCUTA, C., PONT, S., BENZERARA, K., CHARBONNIER, S. 2020. . Palaeontology, 63, 3, 395-413. DOI: /doi/10.1111/pala.12456

Author Information

  • Clément Jauvion - Muséum national d'Histoire naturelle Sorbonne Université CNRS UMR 7590 IRD Institut de Minéralogie, de Physique des Matériaux et de Cosmochimie, IMPMC Paris France
  • Clément Jauvion - Muséum national d'Histoire naturelle Sorbonne Université CNRS UMR 7207 CR2P, Centre de Recherche en Paléontologie – Paris 8 rue Buffon Paris 75005 France
  • Sylvain Bernard - Muséum national d'Histoire naturelle Sorbonne Université CNRS UMR 7590 IRD Institut de Minéralogie, de Physique des Matériaux et de Cosmochimie, IMPMC Paris France
  • Pierre Gueriau - IPANEMA CNRS Ministère de la Culture, UVSQ, USR3461 Université Paris–Saclay Gif‐sur‐Yvette F‐91192 France
  • Pierre Gueriau - Synchrotron SOLEIL BP 48 Saint‐Aubin Gif‐sur‐Yvette F‐91192 France
  • Cristian Mocuta - Synchrotron SOLEIL BP 48 Saint‐Aubin Gif‐sur‐Yvette F‐91192 France
  • Sylvain Pont - Muséum national d'Histoire naturelle Sorbonne Université CNRS UMR 7590 IRD Institut de Minéralogie, de Physique des Matériaux et de Cosmochimie, IMPMC Paris France
  • Karim Benzerara - Muséum national d'Histoire naturelle Sorbonne Université CNRS UMR 7590 IRD Institut de Minéralogie, de Physique des Matériaux et de Cosmochimie, IMPMC Paris France
  • Sylvain Charbonnier - Muséum national d'Histoire naturelle Sorbonne Université CNRS UMR 7207 CR2P, Centre de Recherche en Paléontologie – Paris 8 rue Buffon Paris 75005 France

Publication History

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    Abstract

    Konservat‐Lagerstätten are seen as snapshots of past biodiversity for a given location and time. However, processes leading to the exceptional morphological preservation of fossils in these deposits remain incompletely understood. This results in a deficient assessment of taphonomic biases and limits the robustness/relevance of palaeobiological reconstructions. Here, we report the mineralogical characterization of crustacean fossils preserved within carbonate‐rich concretions from the Jurassic Konservat‐Lagerstätte of La Voulte‐sur‐Rhône (Ardèche, France). The combination of SEM‐EDS, TEM, synchrotron‐based XRF, XRD and XANES allows the mineralogical phases composing these fossils (i.e. fluorapatite, Fe‐sulfides (pyrite, pyrrhotite) and Mg‐calcite) and the surrounding matrix (i.e. Mg‐calcite, clays and detrital silicates) to be identified. Fluorapatite and pyrite (and pyrrhotite) precipitated during decay under anoxic conditions, replacing delicate organic structures and preserving anatomical details. These mineral structures were subsequently consolidated by a Mg‐calcite cement. Of note, histologically similar tissues were replaced by the same mineral phases, confirming that fossilization (in La Voulte) occurred rapidly enough to be influenced by tissue composition. Altogether, the present study shows that exceptional preservation requires fast biodegradation, thereby confirming recent experimental evidence.

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