Dietary palaeoecology of an Early Cretaceous armoured dinosaur (Ornithischia; Nodosauridae) based on floral analysis of stomach contents
Date
2020-06
Authors
Brown, Caleb M.
Greenwood, David
Kalyniuk, Jessica E.
Braman, Dennis R.
Henderson, Donald M.
Greenwood, Cathy L.
Basinger, James F.
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The Royal Society Publishing
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Abstract
The exceptionally well-preserved holotype of the armoured dinosaur Borealopelta markmitchelli (Ornithischia; Nodosauridae) from the Early Cretaceous (Clearwater Formation) of northern Alberta preserves a distinct mass within the abdominal cavity. Fourteen independent criteria (including: co-allochthony, anatomical position, gastroliths) support the interpretation of this mass as ingested stomach contents—a cololite. Palynomorphs in the cololite are a subset of the more diverse external sample. Analysis of the cololite documents well-preserved plant material dominated by leaf tissue (88%), including intact sporangia, leaf cross-sections and cuticle, but also including stems, wood and charcoal. The leaf fraction is dominated (85%) by leptosporangiate ferns (subclass Polypodiidae), with low cycad–cycadophyte (3%) and trace conifer foliage. These data represent the most well-supported and detailed direct evidence of diet in an herbivorous dinosaur. Details of the dietary palaeoecology of this nodosaur are revealed, including: selective feeding on ferns; preferential ingestion of leptosporangiate ferns to the exclusion of Osmundaceae and eusporangiate ferns such as Marattiaceae; and incidental consumption of cycad–cycadophyte and conifer leaves. The presence of significant (6%) charcoal may represent the dietary use of recently burned conifer forest undergoing fern succession, early evidence of a fire succession ecology, as is associated with many modern large herbivores.
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Keywords
Ankylosauria, diet, Cretaceous, cololite, Clearwater Formation, Canada
Citation
Brown CM, Greenwood DR, Kalyniuk JE, Braman DR, Henderson DM, Greenwood CL, Basinger JF. 2020 Dietary palaeoecology of an Early Cretaceous armoured dinosaur (Ornithischia; Nodosauridae) based on floral analysis of stomach contents. R. Soc. Open Sci. 7: 200305. http://dx.doi.org/10.1098/rsos.200305
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DOI
http://dx.doi.org/10.1098/rsos.200305