Post-mortem enamel surface texture alteration during taphonomic processes-do experimental approaches reflect natural phenomena?

ABSTRACT: Experimental approaches are often used to better understand the mechanisms behind and consequences of post-mortem alteration on proxies for diet reconstruction. Dental microwear texture analysis (DMTA) is such a dietary proxy, using dental wear features in extant and extinct taxa to reconstruct feeding behaviour and mechanical food properties. In fossil specimens especially, DMTA can be biased by post-mortem alteration caused by mechanical or chemical alteration of the enamel surface. Here we performed three different dental surface alteration experiments to assess the effect of common taphonomic processes by simplifying them: (1) tumbling in sediment suspension to simulate fluvial transport, (2) sandblasting to simulate mechanical erosion due to aeolian sediment transport, (3) acid etchin

SUBMITTER: Weber K 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8763041 | biostudies-literature | 2022

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature