2002/02/01 by George M. Staff, G. M. STAFF, W. R. CALLENDER +14 · 1 citation
Arts and Humanities · Earth and Planetary Sciences · #Archaeology and ancient environmental studies #Geology and Paleoclimatology Research #Maritime and Coastal Archaeology
paper · doi:10.1669/0883-1351(2002)017<0066:ttaafs>2.0.co;2
openalex publication_date 2002/02/01 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/30
Other| February 01, 2002 Taphonomic Trends Along a Forereef Slope: Lee Stocking Island, Bahamas. II. Time GEORGE M. STAFF; GEORGE M. STAFF 1Austin Community College, NRG Campus, Geology Department 11928 Stonehollow Drive, Austin, TX 78758 Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar W. RUSSELL CALLENDER; W. RUSSELL CALLENDER 2National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Oceanic and Atmospheric Research, Office of Scientific Support, 1315 East-West Highway, Silver Spring, MD 20910 Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar ERIC N. POWELL; ERIC N. POWELL 3Haskin Shellfish Research Laboratory, Rutgers University, 6959 Miller Ave., Port Norris, NJ 08349 Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar KARLA M. PARSONS-HUBBARD; KARLA M. PARSONS-HUBBARD 4Department of Geology, Oberlin College, Oberlin, OH 44074 Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar CARLTON E. BRETT; CARLTON E. BRETT 5Department of Geology, University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati, OH 45221 Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar SALLY E. WALKER; SALLY E. WALKER 6Department of Geology, University of Georgia, Athens, GA 30602 Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar DONNA D. CARLSON; DONNA D. CARLSON 7Department of Geology, University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati, OH 45221 Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar SUZANNE WHITE; SUZANNE WHITE 8Department of Geology, University of Georgia, Athens, GA 30602 Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar ANNE RAYMOND; ANNE RAYMOND 9Department of Geology and Geophysics, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX 77843 Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar ELIZABETH A. HEISE ELIZABETH A. HEISE 10Department of Geology and Geophysics, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX 77843 Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar PALAIOS (2002) 17 (1): 66–83. https://doi.org/10.1669/0883-1351(2002)017<0066:TTAAFS>2.0.CO;2 Article history accepted: 21 Jun 2001 first online: 03 Mar 2017 Cite View This Citation Add to Citation Manager Share Icon Share Facebook Twitter LinkedIn MailTo Tools Icon Tools Get Permissions Search Site Citation GEORGE M. STAFF, W. RUSSELL CALLENDER, ERIC N. POWELL, KARLA M. PARSONS-HUBBARD, CARLTON E. BRETT, SALLY E. WALKER, DONNA D. CARLSON, SUZANNE WHITE, ANNE RAYMOND, ELIZABETH A. HEISE; Taphonomic Trends Along a Forereef Slope: Lee Stocking Island, Bahamas. II. Time. PALAIOS 2002;; 17 (1): 66–83. doi: https://doi.org/10.1669/0883-1351(2002)017<0066:TTAAFS>2.0.CO;2 Download citation file: Ris (Zotero) Refmanager EasyBib Bookends Mendeley Papers EndNote RefWorks BibTex toolbar search Search Dropdown Menu toolbar search search input Search input auto suggest filter your search All ContentBy SocietyPALAIOS Search Advanced Search Abstract The Shelf and Slope Experimental Taphonomy Initiative (SSETI) Program was established to measure taphonomic rates in a range of continental shelf and slope environments over a long period of time. For this report, mollusk shells were deployed for one and two years at seven different environments of deposition (EODs) along two onshore-offshore transects off Lee Stocking Island in the Bahamas. The experimental sites were located: in sand channels on the platform top (15 m) and the platform edge (33 m); on ledges down the wall (70–88 m); on the upper (183 m) and lower (210–226 m) talus slope below the wall; and on the crest (256–264 m) and in the trough (259–267 m) of large sand dunes. Shell condition was assessed using a range of taphonomic attributes including dissolution, abrasion, edge alteration, discoloration, and changes in shell weight.After two years, taphonomic alteration was not particularly intense in any EOD. No species was particularly susceptible or resistant to taphonomic alteration. Taphonomic processes were unexpectedly complex. Effects of location, transect, water depth, and degree of exposure all had significant effects. On average, shells deployed in shallow sites were altered significantly from the controls more frequently than shells deployed at deeper sites. However, the number of significant interaction terms between time and the other main effects indicates a complex interaction between taphonomic processes and the local environment that, over the short term, defies any attempt at delineating taphofacies over a broader spatial area than a single deployment site. Some locations attained the same taphonomic signature in different ways making discrimination of taphonomic rules difficult. For example, deeper-water sites and shallow sites where burial rates were high yielded similar taphonomic signatures because shells were in the aphotic zone in both cases, and this limited the rate and range of taphonomic interactions. Taphonomic processes were strongly nonlinear in time for all taphonomic attributes in all species and all EODs. Nonlinear taphonomic rates hinder the interpretation of single-point-in-time studies in understanding the taphonomic process and buttress a commitment to long-term experiments. 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