USING STATISTICS TO CHARACTERIZE FOSSIL-LAGERSTäTTEN

Konservat-Lagerstätten deposits are found throughout much of the geologic record and preserve fossils with exceptional detail and completeness. These deposits provide a snapshot into past life, which help reconstruct past ecosystems and environments.

Our goal is to statistically analyze Konservat-Lagerstätten in an unbiased way to identify similarities and differences between the various deposits, which will clarify taphonomic trends responsible for the exquisite fossilization. The parameters used in this study include: geologic age and locality of the deposit, minerals preserving the different tissues, the sediments encasing the fossil, if soft tissues were preserved, they type of Lagerstätten (obrution/stagnation), and paleoredox conditions in the sediments. The data were predominantly collected through an extensive literature search and analyzed using SPSS.

To date, we have identified over 190 Konservat-Lagerstätten. They range in age from the Paleoproterozoic Gunflint Chert in Canada to the Holocene Auriol deposit in France. These deposits are found on every continent and preserve a diversity of fauna and flora. Of the Konservat-Lagerstätten identified, only 84 of the deposits had sufficient information for this analysis, due in part to language barriers as well as a lack of general information present in taphonomic studies.

Here we present frequency data and cluster analyses of different Konservat-Lagerstätten and identify taphonomic changes and trends through geologic time. We identify possible driving factors responsible for these trends including the configuration of the continents, the emergence of land plants, and other climatic controls. Additionally we focus on the types of data required to enable further characterization and comparison of these deposits.