Fossilized feces, termed coprolites, provide unique information on digestive systems, diets, and ... more Fossilized feces, termed coprolites, provide unique information on digestive systems, diets, and ecosystems of extinct animals, and are potentially useful for palynology, biostratigraphy and preservation of animal and plant remains. Despite this broad utility, scientific enquiry into coprolites has been relatively sparse. We carried out a systematic investigation into 23 significant South African fossil collections of the Evolutionary Studies Institute (ESI), University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, in search of coprolites. This study spanned a temporal range from the Permian to the recent Cenozoic returning approximately 790 known coprolites in the collections. Of these, only four assemblages have appeared in six coprolite‐specific publications. Others have been mentioned to some extent in publications focused on fauna, palynology or simply mentioned that coprolites were present. Clearly, the coprolite collections at the ESI are understudied and require attention with the int...
Equus Cave, in Quaternary tufa near Taung in the semiarid woodland of the southern Kalahari, yiel... more Equus Cave, in Quaternary tufa near Taung in the semiarid woodland of the southern Kalahari, yielded 2.5 m of sediment in which a rich assemblage of bones and coprolites was preserved. The fossils were accumulated mainly by hyenas during the late Pleistocene and Holocene. Pollen from coprolites reflects diet as well as vegetation over relatively large areas visited by hyenas, while pollen from sediments represents more local sources. The pollen sequence derived from coprolites and sediments demonstrates how the vegetation evolved from open grassland with small shrubs and occasional trees during the late Pleistocene, to open savanna with more small shurbs, then, during the last 7500 yr, to modern savanna. Temperatures were not more than 4°C cooler and it was slightly moister than today during the late Pleistocene phase; it became gradually warmer but relatively dry before optimal temperature and moisture conditions developed around 7500 yr B.P. Climatic conditions slightly less favorable for woodland occurred during part of the late Holocene.
Review of Palaeobotany and Palynology, Nov 1, 2006
Abstract A previous report of pollen of Mutisieae (Asteraceae) from marine sediments off the sout... more Abstract A previous report of pollen of Mutisieae (Asteraceae) from marine sediments off the southern Namibian west coast is re-assessed and planktic foraminifera data are presented that support an Eocene age for the fossil specimens. The pollen grains in the marine sediments could be the oldest record for the family. An Eocene age for Mutisieae-like forms confirms that this group is basal in the Asteraceae and that the family originated in the Gondwanan region of southern Africa and South America. The prominence of this pollen type in the Palaeogene may relate to the early development of subtropical aridity in the region.
Fossilized feces, termed coprolites, provide unique information on digestive systems, diets, and ... more Fossilized feces, termed coprolites, provide unique information on digestive systems, diets, and ecosystems of extinct animals, and are potentially useful for palynology, biostratigraphy and preservation of animal and plant remains. Despite this broad utility, scientific enquiry into coprolites has been relatively sparse. We carried out a systematic investigation into 23 significant South African fossil collections of the Evolutionary Studies Institute (ESI), University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, in search of coprolites. This study spanned a temporal range from the Permian to the recent Cenozoic returning approximately 790 known coprolites in the collections. Of these, only four assemblages have appeared in six coprolite‐specific publications. Others have been mentioned to some extent in publications focused on fauna, palynology or simply mentioned that coprolites were present. Clearly, the coprolite collections at the ESI are understudied and require attention with the int...
Equus Cave, in Quaternary tufa near Taung in the semiarid woodland of the southern Kalahari, yiel... more Equus Cave, in Quaternary tufa near Taung in the semiarid woodland of the southern Kalahari, yielded 2.5 m of sediment in which a rich assemblage of bones and coprolites was preserved. The fossils were accumulated mainly by hyenas during the late Pleistocene and Holocene. Pollen from coprolites reflects diet as well as vegetation over relatively large areas visited by hyenas, while pollen from sediments represents more local sources. The pollen sequence derived from coprolites and sediments demonstrates how the vegetation evolved from open grassland with small shrubs and occasional trees during the late Pleistocene, to open savanna with more small shurbs, then, during the last 7500 yr, to modern savanna. Temperatures were not more than 4°C cooler and it was slightly moister than today during the late Pleistocene phase; it became gradually warmer but relatively dry before optimal temperature and moisture conditions developed around 7500 yr B.P. Climatic conditions slightly less favorable for woodland occurred during part of the late Holocene.
Review of Palaeobotany and Palynology, Nov 1, 2006
Abstract A previous report of pollen of Mutisieae (Asteraceae) from marine sediments off the sout... more Abstract A previous report of pollen of Mutisieae (Asteraceae) from marine sediments off the southern Namibian west coast is re-assessed and planktic foraminifera data are presented that support an Eocene age for the fossil specimens. The pollen grains in the marine sediments could be the oldest record for the family. An Eocene age for Mutisieae-like forms confirms that this group is basal in the Asteraceae and that the family originated in the Gondwanan region of southern Africa and South America. The prominence of this pollen type in the Palaeogene may relate to the early development of subtropical aridity in the region.
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