Bite marks on early Holocene Tursiops truncatus fossils from the North Sea indicate scavenging by rays (Chondrichthyes, Rajidae)

  • H.H. van Netten Utrecht University, Faculty of Geosciences, Budapestlaan 4, P.O. Box 80021, 3508 TA Utrecht, the Netherlands
  • J.W.F. Reumer Utrecht University, Faculty of Geosciences, Budapestlaan 4, P.O. Box 80021, 3508 TA Utrecht, the Netherlands; Natural History Museum Rotterdam, Westzeedijk 345, P.O. Box 23452, 3001 KL Rotterdam, the Netherlands
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/S0016774600000883
Keywords: taphonomy, bite marks, rays, bottlenose dolphin

Abstract

A number of Tursiops truncatus mandibles in the collection of fossil marine mammals in the Rotterdam Natural History Museum have marks consisting of several parallel linear grooves. These marks are also found on four atlas complexes, a scapula and on one vertebra. The hypothesis that they are bite marks and were caused by scavenging rays (Rajidae, Chondrichthyes) was tested with a real-life experiment using different shark and ray species, allowing them to scavenge on cow ribs as proxies for the dolphin bones. The bite marks of these animals were compared with the fossil marks and show that the fossil marks are most likely caused by scavenging rays.

Published
2009-11-01
How to Cite
H.H. van Netten, & J.W.F. Reumer. (2009). Bite marks on early Holocene Tursiops truncatus fossils from the North Sea indicate scavenging by rays (Chondrichthyes, Rajidae). Netherlands Journal of Geosciences, 88, 169 - 175. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0016774600000883
Issue
Volume 88 - 2009
Section
Regular paper
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