Why is There Such a High Concentration of Vertebrate Remains Within a Bone-bed Along Clapp Creek, Williamsburg County, South Carolina?
Institution: | Wright State University |
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Department: | Earth and Environmental Sciences |
Degree: | MS |
Year: | 2012 |
Keywords: | Geology; Paleontology; Bone-bed; crocodiles; vertebrate remains; estuary; diversity |
Record ID: | 1987115 |
Full text PDF: | http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=wright1346191790 |
A phosphatic bone-bed occurs along Clapp Creek in Kingstree, South Carolina, within the east-central portion of the coastal plain. The location of the research site is within the Chicora Member of the Williamsburg Formation. The paleoenvironment of this site was most likely a complex estuary with microenvironments that included tidal channels, tidal deltas, tidal flats, marshes and subtidal bays. The high diversity and large time span in the bone-bed is explained by the transgressive environment and storm deposits. The phosphate content of the bone-bed is from the calcium phosphate occurring in the coprolites of carnivores and the higher concentration of phosphate present in estuaries. Additionally, the high concentration of coprolites within the bone-bed resulted from the estuary being a feeding and breeding ground for crocodiles.