Taphonomic controls on dinosaur soft-tissue preservation
Sediment geochemistry and taphonomic controls on dinosaur soft-tissue preservation. Co-workers on this project include: The Marmarth Research Foundation (USA), Yale University (USA), Earth and Ocean Sciences (University of Liverpool), Environmental and Geographical Sciences (Manchester Metropolitan University), School of Chemistry (University of Manchester), the School's Basin Studies and Physics and Chemistry of Minerals and Fluids Research Groups (University of Manchester) and the Faculty of Life Sciences (University of Manchester).
A key objective for this research is to understand the processes that lead to such unique soft-tissue preservation in the fossil record. The fossil remains of large vertebrates that preserve soft-tissues are very rare so there are few analogous studies available for comparison. In previous studies we have found evidence of early diagenesis driven by the presence of fossil anaerobic microbes that are using organic matter as a reducing agent to reduce a variety of oxidizing agents e.g. oxidized iron, sulfate etc. that result in a mineral precipitate infilling the original pore space of the sediment. While these examples are not directly analogous to the main study area in the Hell Creek Formation (they are more similar to conditions present in the Crato and Holzmaden fossil “lagerstatten”), they do demonstrate that further study is required into the spatial and temporal variability of fossil microbes and iron reducing bacteria and their role in the fossilization process.
A great deal of research has been published on fossil “lagerstatten”. Most of this, however, has been concentrated on fossils preserved in marine, lacustrine and marginal marine settings and is not really relevant for the Hell Creek Formation.
Given all the special conditions required for dinosaur preservation it not surprising that dinosaur fossils are rare! Given the existence of rare soft-tissue preservation, however, we have the opportunity to investigate key processes. This research programme is seeking to address how you optimise dinosaur preservation. We are investigating the fundamental ancient geochemical processes that caused the soft parts of this dinosaur to be mineralised and preserve unique fossils.