A wastewater dig uncovered a 3-million-year-old fossil bed with 266 types, using a photo of varied ancient marine life. Credit: Bruce Hayward
Fossils of the world’s earliest recognized flax snails, an extinct sawshark spinal column, and terrific white shark teeth were all uncovered in a stack of sand that had actually been excavated from under the Mangere Wastewater Treatment Plant in 2020.
A paper just recently released in the New Zealand Journal of Geology and Geophysics explains the 266 fossil < period class ="glossaryLink" aria-describedby =(****************************************************** )data-cmtooltip ="<div class=glossaryItemTitle>species</div><div class=glossaryItemBody>A species is a group of living organisms that share a set of common characteristics and are able to breed and produce fertile offspring. The concept of a species is important in biology as it is used to classify and organize the diversity of life. There are different ways to define a species, but the most widely accepted one is the biological species concept, which defines a species as a group of organisms that can interbreed and produce viable offspring in nature. This definition is widely used in evolutionary biology and ecology to identify and classify living organisms.</div>" data-gt-translate-attributes="[{"attribute":"data-cmtooltip", "format":"html"}]" > types as one of the wealthiest and most varied groups of three-million-year-old animals ever discovered inNewZealandAt least 10 formerly unidentified types will be explained and called in future research study.
Fossil gold mine fromAuckland’sMangereWastewaterTreatmentPlant
In 2020, whenAuckland’s(*************************************************************************************** )was excavating 2 substantial vertical shafts for a significant upgrade of the significant pipeline that brings raw sewage for treatment from the main city they dug through an ancient shell bed. Auckland paleontologist Bruce Hayward compared it to “finding gold right on your doorstep.”
Once they were notified of the fossil deposit’s significance, Watercare and their specialists aspired to assist and a substantial load of shelly sand was disposed in a neighboring paddock so that paleontologists might explore it over numerous months. Watercare likewise moneyed 2 paleontology college student, working under the guidance of Auckland Museum managerDr Wilma Blom, to meticulously sort through the load for numerous weeks.
As an outcome, it is approximated that over 300,000 fossils were taken a look at and numerous thousand have actually been returned in the museum as a record of this “once-in-a-lifetime find.”
Fossil Analysis and Environmental Insights
“Detailed identification of the fossils shows that they were deposited between 3 and 3.7 million years ago in a subtidal channel in an early version of the modern Manukau Harbour,” statedDr Hayward. “At that time, sea level was slightly higher than it is today as the world was also several degrees warmer than now. As a result, the fossils include a number of subtropical species, whose relatives today live in the warmer waters around the Kermadec and Norfolk islands. At least ten previously unknown species are present and will be described and named in future work.”
In their clinical paper that appeared today in the New Zealand Journal of Geology and Geophysics, the 5 authors record 266 various fossil types, making it the wealthiest and most varied animals of its age ever discovered in New Zealand.
“What is surprising,” states lead authorDr Hayward “is that the animals consists of fossils that resided in several environments that have actually been united in the ancient marine channel by wave action and strong tidal currents.
It consists of 10 specimens of the renowned NZ flax snail that need to have survived on the nearby land and been cleaned down into the sea by storm overflow. These are without a doubt the earliest recognized flax snails worldwide. Most of the fossils survived on the sea flooring, some in brackish estuaries, others connected to tough rocky coastlines, and still more have actually been brought in from offshore of the exposed west coast at the time.”
“Rare finds have included isolated baleen whale vertebrae, a broken sperm whale tooth, the spine of an extinct sawshark, dental plates of eagle rays, and a number of great white shark teeth.” The work has actually been devoted toDr Alan Beu, New Zealand’s leading molluscan fossil professional, who was dealing with the fossils when he died previously this year.
Reference: “A diverse Late Pliocene fossil fauna and its paleoenvironment at Māngere, Auckland, New Zealand” by Bruce W. Hayward, Thomas F. Stolberger, Nathan Collins, Alan G. Beu and Wilma Blom, 27 August 2023, New Zealand Journal of Geology and Geophysics
DOI: 10.1080/0028830620232243234
