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{{short description|Geological stratum or deposit containing bones}}
{{Biomineralization sidebar|expanded=other}}
A '''bone bed''' is any [[Geology|geological]] [[stratum]] or [[deposition (geology)|deposit]] that contains [[bones]] of any kind. Inevitably, such deposits are [[Sedimentary rock|sedimentary]] in nature. Not a formal term, it tends to be used more to describe especially dense collections such as [[Lagerstätte]]. It is also applied to [[breccia]]ted and [[Stalagmite|stalagmitic]] deposits on the floor of caves, which frequently contain osseous remains.<ref name=EB1911>{{EB1911|inline=1 |wstitle=Bone Bed |volume=4 |page=203}}</ref>

In a more restricted sense, the term is used to describe certain thin layers of bony fragments, which occur in well-defined geological strata. One of the best-known of these is the [[Ludlow Bone Bed]], which is found at the base of the [[Downton Sandstone]] in the [[Ludlow Group|Upper Ludlow series]]. At [[Ludlow]] ([[England]]) itself, two such beds are actually known, separated by about {{convert|14|ft|m|abbr=on}}. of strata. Although quite thin, the Ludlow Bone Bed can be followed from that town into [[Gloucestershire]], for a distance of {{convert|45|mi|km}}. It is almost completely made up of fragments of [[Spine (zoology)|spines]], [[Tooth|teeth]] and [[Scale (zoology)|scales]] of [[ganoid fish]]. Another well-known bed, formerly known as the Bristol or Lias Bone Bed, exists in the form of several thin layers of [[mica]]ceous [[sandstone]], with the remains of fish and [[saurian]]s, which occur in the Rhaetic Black Paper Shales that lie above the [[Keuper]] [[marl]]s, in the south-west of England. A similar bone bed has been traced on the same [[Horizon (geology)|geological horizon]] in [[Brunswick (region)|Brunswick]], [[Hanover]] ([[Germany]]), in [[Franconia]] and in [[Tübingen]] (Germany).<ref>Johannes Baier: ''Das Tübinger "Rhätolias-Grenzbonebed" ''. - Fossilien 31(1), 26-30, 2014.</ref><ref>Johannes Baier: [http://www.schweizerbart.de/papers/jber_oberrh/detail/93/76633/Der_Geologische_Lehrpfad_am_Kirnberg_Keuper_SW_Deu ''Der Geologische Lehrpfad am Kirnberg (Keuper; SW-Deutschland)'']. - Jber. Mitt. oberrhein. geol. Ver, N. F. 93, 9-26, 2011.</ref> A bone bed has also been observed at the base of the [[Carboniferous]] [[limestone]] series, in certain parts of the south-west of England.<ref name=EB1911/>

Bone beds are also recorded in [[North America]], [[South America]], [[Mongolia]] and [[China]]. Terrestrial bonebed examples are: the Triassic ''[[Metoposaurus]]'' bone bed from [[Portugal]],<ref>Brusatte, S. L., Butler R. J., Mateus O., & Steyer S. J. (2015). A new species of Metoposaurus from the Late Triassic of Portugal and comments on the systematics and biogeography of metoposaurid temnospondyls. Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology, e912988., 2015</ref> the ''[[Mapusaurus]]'' bone bed at Cañadón del Gato, in [[Argentina]],<ref>{{Cite web|last=LALLANILLA|first=MARC|date=April 17, 2006|title=Huge Meat-Eating Dinosaur Discovered|url=https://abcnews.go.com/Technology/story?id=1851725|url-status=live|access-date=January 16, 2022|website=ABC News|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060419192013/http://abcnews.go.com:80/Technology/story?id=1851725 |archive-date=2006-04-19 }}</ref> the ''[[Allosaurus]]''-dominated [[Cleveland-Lloyd Dinosaur Quarry]] of [[Utah]],<ref>{{Cite web|last=Switek|first=Brian
|title=The Making of an Allosaurus Graveyard|url=https://blogs.scientificamerican.com/laelaps/the-making-of-an-allosaurus-graveyard/|access-date=2022-01-16|website=Scientific American Blog Network|language=en}}</ref> the [[Dinosaur National Monument]] on the boundary of Utah and [[Colorado]],<ref>{{Cite web|title=Dinosaur National Monument - the remaining portion dinosaur bone bed {{!}} U.S. Geological Survey|url=https://www.usgs.gov/media/images/dinosaur-national-monument-remaining-portion-dinosaur-bone-bed|access-date=2022-01-16|website=www.usgs.gov}}</ref> an ''[[Albertosaurus]]'' bonebed from [[Alberta]],<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Eberth|first1=David A.|last2=Currie|first2=Philip J.|date=September 2010|title=Stratigraphy, sedimentology, and taphonomy of the Albertosaurus bonebed (upper Horseshoe Canyon Formation; Maastrichtian), southern Alberta, CanadaThis article is one of a series of papers published in this Special Issue on the theme Albertosaurus.|journal=Canadian Journal of Earth Sciences|volume=47|issue=9|pages=1119–1143|doi=10.1139/e10-045|issn=0008-4077}}</ref> a ''[[Daspletosaurus]]'' bone bed from [[Montana]], the [[Cenozoic]] [[John Day Fossil Beds National Monument|John Day Fossil Beds]] of [[Oregon]],<ref>{{Cite book|last=Paleontology|first=Fremd, Theodore J. Society of Vertebrate|title=Guidebook: SVP Field Symposium 2010 John Day Basin Field Conference|oclc=809956619}}</ref> a ''[[Triceratops]]'' bonebed from Montana,<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Matthews |first1=Joshua |last2=Brusatte |first2=Stephen |last3=Williams |first3=Scott |last4=Henderson |first4=Michael |title=The First Triceratops Bonebed and Its Implications for Gregarious Behavior |journal=Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology |date=March 12, 2009 |volume=29 |issue=1 |pages=286–290 |doi=10.1080/02724634.2009.10010382 |jstor=20491089 |bibcode=2009JVPal..29..286M |s2cid=196608646 }}</ref> a ''[[Centrosaurus]]'' bonebed in Alberta,<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=RYAN|first1=M. J.|last2=RUSSELL|first2=A. P.|last3=EBERTH|first3=D. A.|last4=CURRIE|first4=P. J.|date=2001-10-01|title=The Taphonomy of a Centrosaurus (Ornithischia: Certopsidae) Bone Bed from the Dinosaur Park Formation (Upper Campanian), Alberta, Canada, with Comments on Cranial Ontogeny|journal=PALAIOS|volume=16|issue=5|pages=482–506|doi=10.1669/0883-1351(2001)016<0482:ttoaco>2.0.co;2|bibcode=2001Palai..16..482R|s2cid=130116586 |issn=0883-1351}}</ref> a ''[[Styracosaurus]]'' bone bed in Alberta,<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Ryan|first1=Michael J.|last2=Holmes|first2=Robert|last3=Russell|first3=A. P.|date=2007-12-12|title=A revision of the late campanian centrosaurine ceratopsid genusStyracosaurusfrom the Western Interior of North America|journal=Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology|volume=27|issue=4|pages=944–962|doi=10.1671/0272-4634(2007)27[944:arotlc]2.0.co;2|s2cid=86218327 |issn=0272-4634}}</ref> an ''[[Edmontosaurus annectens]]'' bone bed in [[Wyoming]],<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Snyder|first1=Keith|last2=McLain|first2=Matthew|last3=Wood|first3=Jared|last4=Chadwick|first4=Arthur|date=2020-05-21|title=Over 13,000 elements from a single bonebed help elucidate disarticulation and transport of an Edmontosaurus thanatocoenosis|journal=PLOS ONE|volume=15|issue=5|article-number=e0233182|doi=10.1371/journal.pone.0233182|pmid=32437394|pmc=7241792|bibcode=2020PLoSO..1533182S|issn=1932-6203|doi-access=free}}</ref> an ''[[Edmontosaurus regalis]]'' bone bed in Alberta,<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Burns|first1=Michael E.|last2=Coy|first2=Clive|last3=Arbour|first3=Victoria M.|last4=Currie|first4=Philip J.|last5=Koppelhus|first5=Eva B.|date=November 2014|title=The Danek Edmontosaurus Bonebed: new insights on the systematics, biogeography, and palaeoecology of Late Cretaceous dinosaur communities|journal=Canadian Journal of Earth Sciences|volume=51|issue=11|pages=v–vii|doi=10.1139/cjes-2014-0217|bibcode=2014CaJES..51D...5B|issn=0008-4077|doi-access=free}}</ref> a ''[[Gryposaurus]]'' bone bed in the [[Oldman Formation]],<ref>{{Cite book|author=Scott, Evan E.|title=The first monodominant hadrosaur bonebed from the Oldman Formation (Campanian) of Alberta|oclc=929643085}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Scott|first1=Evan E.|last2=Ryan|first2=Michael J.|last3=Evans|first3=David C.|title=Agryposaurussp. Bonebed from the Oldman Formation (Campanian) of Alberta with Implications for Juvenile Social Structures|date=2016|journal=Geological Society of America Abstracts with Programs|publisher=Geological Society of America|doi=10.1130/abs/2016nc-275480}}</ref> a ''[[Pachyrhinosaurus]]'' bone bed in the [[Wapiti Formation]],<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Fanti|first1=Federico|last2=Currie|first2=Philip J.|last3=Burns|first3=Michael E.|date=April 2015|title=Taphonomy, age, and paleoecological implication of a new Pachyrhinosaurus (Dinosauria: Ceratopsidae) bonebed from the Upper Cretaceous (Campanian) Wapiti Formation of Alberta, Canada|journal=Canadian Journal of Earth Sciences|volume=52|issue=4|pages=250–260|doi=10.1139/cjes-2014-0197|bibcode=2015CaJES..52..250F|issn=0008-4077}}</ref> and the [[Nemegt Basin]] in the [[Gobi Desert]] region of Mongolia, specifically the ''[[Saurolophus]]'' bone bed known as the Dragon's Tomb.<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Fanti|first1=F.|last2=Bell|first2=P.R.|last3=Currie|first3=P.J.|last4=Tsogtbaatar|first4=K.|date=April 2018|title=The Nemegt Basin — One of the best field laboratories for interpreting Late Cretaceous terrestrial ecosystems|journal=Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology|volume=494|pages=1–4|doi=10.1016/j.palaeo.2017.07.014|bibcode=2018PPP...494....1F|issn=0031-0182}}</ref> [[Bentiaba]], [[Angola]], is an example of a marine bonebed<ref>Strganac, C., Jacobs L., Polcyn M., Mateus O., Myers T., Araújo R., Fergunson K. M., Gonçalves A. O., Morais M. L., Schulp A. S., da Tavares T. S., & Salminen J. (2014). Geological Setting and Paleoecology of the Upper Cretaceous Bench 19 Marine Vertebrate Bonebed at Bentiaba, Angola. Netherlands Journal of Geosciences. 1-16.</ref> with numerous mosasaurs and plesiosaurs. Another example of a marine bonebed is the Sharktooth Hill Bonebed located in the [[Temblor Formation]] in California.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Fossil bone bed helps reconstruct life along California's ancient coastline|url=https://phys.org/news/2009-06-fossil-bone-bed-reconstruct-life.html|access-date=2022-01-23|website=phys.org|language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=06.08.2009 - Bone bed tells of life along California's ancient coastline|url=https://www.berkeley.edu/news/media/releases/2009/06/08_sharktooth.shtml|access-date=2022-01-23|website=www.berkeley.edu}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal|last=Velez-Juarbe|first=Jorge|date=2018-07-04|title=New data on the early odobenid Neotherium mirum Kellogg, 1931, and other pinniped remains from the Sharktooth Hill Bonebed, California|journal=Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology|volume=38|issue=4|pages=(1)–(14)|doi=10.1080/02724634.2018.1481080|s2cid=91544891|issn=0272-4634}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal|author1-link=Nicholas Pyenson|last1=Pyenson|first1=Nicholas D.|last2=Irmis|first2=Randall B.|last3=Lipps|first3=Jere H.|last4=Barnes|first4=Lawrence G.|last5=Mitchell|first5=Edward D.|last6=McLeod|first6=Samuel A.|date=June 2009|title=Origin of a widespread marine bonebed deposited during the middle Miocene Climatic Optimum|journal=Geology|volume=37|issue=6|pages=519–522|doi=10.1130/g25509a.1|bibcode=2009Geo....37..519P|issn=1943-2682}}</ref>

Fossil bonebeds don't always consist of one single species, but rather many species of organisms. There are several of the bonebeds known throughout North America. Two of the best examples include the Mixson's Bone Bed of Florida, whose geological settings preserved the remains of [[Amebelodon|''Ambelodon'']], ''[[Aepycamelus]]'', and ''[[Cormohipparion]]'',<ref>{{Cite web|date=2017-03-27|title=Mixson's Bone Bed|url=https://www.floridamuseum.ufl.edu/florida-vertebrate-fossils/sites/mixsons-bone-bed/|access-date=2022-01-23|website=Florida Museum|language=en-US}}</ref> and the [[Agate Fossil Beds National Monument|Agate Fossil Beds]] in [[Nebraska]] which has the fossils of abundant creatures such as ''[[Menoceras]]'', ''[[Stenomylus]]'', and ''[[Daphoenodon]]''.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Loomis|first=F. B.|date=1911-01-01|title=The camels of the Harrison beds, with three new species|journal=American Journal of Science|volume=s4-31|issue=181|pages=65–70|doi=10.2475/ajs.s4-31.181.65|bibcode=1911AmJS...31...65L|issn=0002-9599}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|last=Tweet|first=Justin|date=2015-12-27|title=Equatorial Minnesota: North American camels: not the run-of-the-mill Christmas camels|url=https://equatorialminnesota.blogspot.com/2015/12/north-american-camels-not-run-of-mill.html|access-date=2022-01-23|website=Equatorial Minnesota}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal|last=Hunt|first=Robert|title=Extinct Carnivores Entombed in 20 Million Year Old Dens, Agate Fossil Beds National Monument, Nebraska|date=1984|journal=The George Wright Forum|volume=4|issue=1|pages=29–39|jstor=43597031|issn=0732-4715}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Hunt|first1=Robert M.|last2=Xiang-Xu|first2=Xue|last3=Kaufman|first3=Joshua|date=1983|title=Miocene Burrows of Extinct Bear Dogs: Indication of Early Denning Behavior of Large Mammalian Carnivores|journal=Science|volume=221|issue=4608|pages=364–366|doi=10.1126/science.221.4608.364|jstor=1691735|pmid=17798890|bibcode=1983Sci...221..364H|s2cid=46512625|issn=0036-8075}}</ref>

==References==
{{Reflist}}

[[Category:Fossils]]

Bone bed - Revision history

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