Exceptionally preserved asphaltic coprolites expand the spatiotemporal range of a North American paleoecological proxy

摘要: As fossilized feces, coprolites represent direct evidence of animal behavior captured in the fossil record. They encapsulate past ecological interactions between a consumer and its prey and, when they contain plant material, can also guide paleoenvironmental reconstructions. Here we describe first from lagerstatte Rancho La Brea (RLB) Los Angeles, California, which confirmed an asphaltic ("tar pit") context globally. Combining multiple lines evidence, including radiocarbon dating, body size reconstructions, stable isotope analysis, scanning electron microscopy, sediment analyses, document hundreds rodent found association with tentatively assign them to woodrat genus Neotoma. Neotoma nests (i.e., middens) their associated inform paleoclimatic reconstructions for arid southwestern US but are not typically preserved coastal areas due environmental physiological characteristics. The serendipitous activity asphalt seep original cellulosic material 50,000 years at RLB, yielding snapshot California during Marine Isotope Stage 3. This discovery augments proxies available already critical locality highlights potential more comprehensive analyses other localities