Early Triassic microfauna from the Karoo Basin of Southern Africa from coprolites.

DOI

This proposal aims to study 30 specimens of fossilized faeces, known as “coprolites”, from the Early Triassic of South Africa. Coprolites selectively preserve microfossils and soft tissues, addressing specific taphonomic deficiencies in the fossil record1-4. Additionally, coprolites contain exceptional palaeobiological information, providing a unique palaeoecological window on the diet, feeding behaviours, trophic relationships, parasitism, and digestive systems of extinct organisms. Recent, pioneering research using PPCSRmCT allows for non-destructive investigation of the microstructures and microfossils contained within coprolites. By imaging these coprolites, we can gain information on the microfauna and a preliminary view on ecological recovery in the Early Triassic following the catastrophic end-Permian extinction, when 95% of all species on Earth went extinct.

Identifier
DOI https://doi.org/10.15151/ESRF-ES-905032778
Metadata Access https://icatplus.esrf.fr/oaipmh/request?verb=GetRecord&metadataPrefix=oai_datacite&identifier=oai:icatplus.esrf.fr:inv/905032778
Provenance
Creator Lutendo MUKWEVHO ORCID logo; Chandelé MONTGOMERY ORCID logo; Vincent FERNANDEZ ORCID logo; Kathleen DOLLMAN ORCID logo; Wade HARRIS ORCID logo
Publisher ESRF (European Synchrotron Radiation Facility)
Publication Year 2025
Rights CC-BY-4.0; https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
OpenAccess true
Representation
Resource Type Data from large facility measurement; Collection
Discipline Particles, Nuclei and Fields