Environmental Factors Affecting Feather Taphonomy

SIMPLE SUMMARY: This study seeks to test the effect of burial/exposure, sediment type, the addition of feather-degrading microbes, and the addition of minerals on feather preservation, and for the first time, compares these states in ambient vs. elevated CO(2) atmospheres to test the effect of CO(2) on degradation and/or preservation under various depositional settings. ABSTRACT: The exceptional preservation of feathers in the fossil record has led to a better understanding of both phylogeny and evolution. Here we address factors that may have contributed to the preservation of feathers in ancient organisms using experimental taphonomy. We show that the atmospheres of the Mesozoic, known to be elevated in both CO(2) and with temperatures above present levels, may have contributed to the preservation of these soft tissues by facilitating rapid precipitation of hydroxy- or carbonate hydroxyapatite, thus outpacing natural degradative processes. Data also support that that microbial degradation was enhanced in elevated CO(2), but mineral deposition was also enhanced, contributing to preservation by stabilizing the organic components of feathers.