Skeletal modification by microorganisms and their environments

Abstract

Microstructural post mortem changes to skeletal tissues by microorganisms are driven by several factors including the death history of an animal, its decomposition trajectory, and the depositing environment itself. The study we describe here brings together material from recent and fossil contexts that are depositionally distinct from a terrestrial-marine transitionary shoreline environment. We compare these changes with those of marine environments previously identified in the Mary Rose material, and those of continental waters (lakes) previously identified in the Cerro de la Garita (Concud) site, and we document this against bacterially related changes observed from terrestrial contexts. A new microstructural change identified in material from terrestrial sites is also described relating to rootlet damage. By considering microstructural change in skeletal tissues, it is maybe possible to ascribe environmental context, or, to better understand the complexity of material presented by transitionary environments.

Keywords:

• Microtunnelling
• terrestrial vs. aquatic environments
• aquatic microorganisms
• terrestrial bacteria
• fossil

Acknowledgements

We are especially grateful to Norah Moloney for comments, suggestions and editing the paper, to anonymous reviewers and the editor of Historical Biology for comments on the manuscript and suggestions that have greatly improved the final version. Our thanks to Laura Tormo, Marta Furió, Alberto Jorge and Cristina Paradela of the Laboratory of Non-Destructive Techniques of the MNCN for their professional and excellent work in the preparation of the material.YFJ thanks to J-P. Brugal and C.Denys for their invitation to the 4th ICAZ-TWG congress in Paris, September, 2016.