From Alejandra Rojas (PhD, Assistant Professor) Universidad de la República, Uruguay: Greetings from Uruguay! Here you find me shovel in hand while sampling a shelly death assemblage from the beach “El Caracol” (“The Snail”). I collect samples in different beaches from the Río de la Plata Estuary and the Atlantic Uruguayan coasts. I am interested in comparing the molluscan species and the taphonomic signatures recorded in different kinds of environmental and depositional settings. Data obtained in terms of molluscan diversity and preservational modes of the death assemblages will be correlated to intrinsic and extrinsic factors (i.e. salinity gradient, rocky and sandy substrate, etc.). This information is expected to provide important clues for the paleoecological and paleoenvironmental interpretation of the fossil counterparts found in the same study area. Photo taken by Martín Ubilla.the area.
Postcard from the Field: Alejandra Rojas, Uruguay
