Life, death and preservation of vertebrates in desert environments: an integrative taphonomic approach to the Cruzeiro do Oeste bonebeds (Bauru Basin, Paraná)

• Grant number: 24/03599-5
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Post-Doctoral
• Start date: May 01, 2024
• Status: Discontinued
• Field of knowledge: Biological Sciences - Zoology - Paleozoology
• Principal Investigator: Max Cardoso Langer
• Grantee: Fellipe Pereira Muniz
• Host Institution: Faculdade de Filosofia, Ciências e Letras de Ribeirão Preto (FFCLRP). Universidade de São Paulo (USP). Ribeirão Preto , SP, Brazil
• Associated research grant: 20/07997-4 - Dinosaur diversity and associated faunas in the Cretaceous of South America, AP.TEM
• Associated scholarship(s): 24/22536-4 - Apatite U-Pb dating of Cretaceous vertebrate fossils from Bauru Basin, Brazil: insights into geochronology and fossildiagenesis, BE.EP.PD

Abstract

The Cruzeiro do Oeste bonebeds (state of Paraná, Brazil) represent anomalous preservation events in desert conditions during the Brazilian Cretaceous. The deposits stand out worldwide for the abundance of fossils and the quality of preservation of some specimens, which have so far allowed the description of fauna containing pterosaurs, dinosaurs and lepidosaurs. However, there are still large gaps regarding the aspects that allowed the fossilization of these organisms. The present project aims to analyze the preservation processes involved in the genesis of the aforementioned bonebeds through an integrative taphonomic approach. (AU)