一种罕见的化石记录.docx

一种罕见的化石记录(A Rare Fossil Record) 一种罕见的化石记录(A Rare Fossil Record) 一种罕见的化石记 录(A Rare Fossil Record) the preservation of embryos and juveniles is a rate occurrenee in the fossil record. the tiny, delicate skeletons are usually scattered by scavengers or destroyed by weathering before they can be fossilized. ichthyosaurs had a higher cha nee of being preserved tha n did terrestrial creatures because, as marine an imals, they ten ded to live in en viro nments less subject to erosi on. still, their fossilizati on required a suite of factors: a slow rate of decay of soft tissues, little scave nging by other an imals, a lack of swift curre nts and waves to jumble and carry away small bon es, and fairly rapid burial. give n these factors, some areas have become a treasury of well-preserved ichthyosaur fossils. the deposits at holzmade n, germa ny, prese nt an interesting case for analysis. the ichthyosaur remains are found in black, bitu minous mar ine shales deposited about 190 millio n years ago. over the years, thousa nds of specime ns of marine reptiles, fish and invertebrates have been recovered from these rocks. the quality of preservation is outstanding, but what is even more impressive is the number of ichthyosaur fossils containing preserved embryos. ichthyosaurs with embryos have been reported from 6 different levels of the shale in a small area around holzmade n, suggest ing that a specific site was used by large numbers of ichthyosaurs repeatedly over time. the embryos are quite adva need in their physical development; their paddles, for example, are already well formed. one specime n is eve n preserved in the birth can al. i n addition, the shale contains the remains of many newborns that are betwee n 20 and 30 in ches long. why are there so many preg nant females and young at holzmaden when they are so rare elsewhere? the quality of preservati on is almost unm atched and quarry operatio ns have been carried out carefully with an awareness of the value of the fo