ACTUALISTIC TAPHONOMY ON VERTEBRATES: INSIGHTS FROM TAPHIOS

Over the past few decades, actualistic taphonomic research has experienced significant global growth, serving as a valuable tool for analyzing vertebrate accumulations. This progress has led to the development of a large body of modern reference data, which is crucial for interpreting the fossil record. However, the application of these findings to fossils often overlooks differences linked to considered taxonomic groups and environmental conditions specific to the study areas. In this context, the research group TAPHIOS (Taphonomic Investigations On Skeletons), has been conducting both observations in natural contexts and controlled laboratory experiments in Argentina aimed at improving our understanding of the agents and processes that affect vertebrate remains in different environments both before and after burial, providing an integrated view of taphonomic histories. The studies performed involves predation and scavenger activity, disarticulation, dispersion, weathering, abrasion, trampling, soil corrosion, bacteria and insect activity, and roots growth, among other taphonomic processes. The group employs traditional taphonomic methodologies alongside advanced techniques such as thin sections, scanning electron microscopy, X-rays diffractometry, geochemistry, computed tomography, and stable isotopes. More recently, TAPHIOS has started to expand its research through international collaborations, facilitating cross-regional comparisons of taphonomic alterations in different environmental and climatic contexts. This comparative perspective is essential not only for refining hypotheses about the origin and modification of archeological and paleontological assemblages, but also for providing relevant interpretative frameworks in forensic science. These investigations highlight the need to carefully evaluate the specific characteristics of samples and their associated context before applying interpretative models developed for other regions.