Back كوبروليت Arabic Капраліты Byelorussian Copròlit Catalan Koprolit Czech Koprolit Danish Koprolith German Κοπρόλιθος (γεωλογία) Greek Koprolito Esperanto Coprolito Spanish Koprolito Basque

Coprolite

For fossilized feces in archaeological contexts, see Paleofeces.
A large coprolite of a carnivorous dinosaur found in Harding County, South Dakota, US
A large Miocene coprolite from South Carolina, US
Coprolites found on the Blahnita riverbed, Romania, showing a seed inclusion (right specimen)
A large coprolite from South Carolina, US
Age: White River Oligocene; Location: Northwest Nebraska; Dimensions: Varies (25 mm × 20 mm); Weight: 8-10 g; Features: Many small inclusions and one has a complete toe bone from a small deer called a leptomeryx.

A coprolite (also known as a coprolith) is fossilized feces. Coprolites are classified as trace fossils as opposed to body fossils, as they give evidence for the animal's behaviour (in this case, diet) rather than morphology. The name is derived from the Greek words κόπρος (kopros, meaning "dung") and λίθος (lithos, meaning "stone"). They were first described by William Buckland in 1829. Before this, they were known as "fossil fir cones" and "bezoar stones". They serve a valuable purpose in paleontology because they provide direct evidence of the predation and diet of extinct organisms.[1] Coprolites may range in size from a few millimetres to over 60 centimetres.

Coprolites, distinct from paleofeces, are fossilized animal dung. Like other fossils, coprolites have had much of their original composition replaced by mineral deposits such as silicates and calcium carbonates. Paleofeces, on the other hand, retain much of their original organic composition and can be reconstituted to determine their original chemical properties, though in practice the term coprolite is also used for ancient human fecal material in archaeological contexts.[2][3][4] The study of coprolites in Japan was pioneered by Michiko Chiura.[5][6]

  1. ^ "coprolite". Dictionary.com.
  2. ^ Gilbert MT, Jenkins DL, Götherstrom A, Naveran N, Sanchez JJ, Hofreiter M, et al. (May 2008). "DNA from pre-Clovis human coprolites in Oregon, North America". Science. 320 (5877): 786–9. Bibcode:2008Sci...320..786G. doi:10.1126/science.1154116. PMID 18388261. S2CID 17671309.
  3. ^ Poinar H, Fiedel S, King CE, Devault AM, Bos K, Kuch M, Debruyne R (July 2009). "Comment on "DNA from pre-Clovis human coprolites in Oregon, North America"". Science. 325 (5937): 148, author reply 148. Bibcode:2009Sci...325..148P. doi:10.1126/science.1168182. PMID 19589985.
  4. ^ Goldberg P, Berna F, Macphail RI (July 2009). "Comment on "DNA from pre-Clovis human coprolites in Oregon, North America"". Science. 325 (5937): 148, author reply 148. Bibcode:2009Sci...325R.148G. doi:10.1126/science.1167531. PMID 19589984.
  5. ^ "Bioline International Official Site (site up-dated regularly)". tspace.library.utoronto.ca. Retrieved 2024-10-02.
  6. ^ "030西広貝塚から出土した縄文時代のウンコ（糞石）|市原歴史博物館". www.imuseum.jp (in Japanese). Retrieved 2024-10-02.

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