Novel coprolitic records from the Silurian (Přídolí) Wallace Shale of New South Wales

Title
Novel coprolitic records from the Silurian (Přídolí) Wallace Shale of New South Wales
Publication Date
2023
Author(s)
Bicknell, Russell D C
( author )
OrcID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8541-9035
Email: rbickne2@une.edu.au
UNE Id une-id:rbickne2
Patrick M. Smith
Julien Kimmig
Type of document
Journal Article
Language
en
Entity Type
Publication
Publisher
Taylor & Francis
Place of publication
United Kingdom
DOI
10.1080/03115518.2023.2185679
UNE publication id
une:1959.11/69044
Abstract

Evidence of successful predation or scavenging in the fossil record represents important palaeobiological data to more thoroughly understanding extinct ecosystems. Shelly coprolites are particularly useful indications of durophagous predation in deposits, as they can have a higher preservational potential than their producers. Here we present a new shelly coprolite from the Silurian (Přídolí) Wallace Shale of New South Wales, Australia. This specimen contains abundant fragments of the trilobite Denckmannites rutherfordi Sherwin, 1968 that show limited disarticulation across exoskeletal sections. We propose that a pterygotid eurypterid was the most likely producer of this coprolite, although trilobites and fishes are not completely excluded as possible trace-makers. In documenting this specimen, we highlight that the Wallace Shale likely preserves a more complex palaeoecosystem than previously thought and renewed efforts to understand this deposit are needed in light of this new insight.

Link
Citation
Alcheringa: An Australasian Journal of Palaeontology, 47(1), p. 24-30
ISSN
1752-0754
0311-5518
Start page
24
End page
30
Rights
Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International

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