[Rockhounds] "Uncharted territory": soft tissue of ancient animal found entombed in volcanic rock near Rome

[Kreigh Tomaszewski]

Analysis of a 30,000-year-old vulture fossil unearthed in Central Italy has
revealed for the first time that volcanic rock can preserve microscopic
details in feathers.

Discovered near Rome in 1889 by a local landowner, the specimen was
considered remarkable even then for its extraordinary three-dimensional
preservation, with intricate features such as eyelids and wing feathers
still visible. But new research has now uncovered even more astonishing
detail: microscopic feather pigment structures, held in time by volcanic
minerals.

The findings, published in the journal *Geology
<https://pubs.geoscienceworld.org/gsa/geology/article/doi/10.1130/G52971.1/653118/Fossil-feathers-from-the-Colli-Albani-volcanic>*,
reveal that the feathers of this prehistoric bird have been preserved in a
mineral called zeolite – a phenomenon never before documented in fossils
<https://www.discoverwildlife.com/animal-facts/fossils-guide>.

"Fossil feathers are usually preserved in ancient mudrocks laid down in
lakes or lagoons," says lead author Dr Valentina Rossi from the University
College Cork (UCC), Ireland.

"The fossil vulture
<https://www.discoverwildlife.com/animal-facts/birds/facts-about-vultures> is
preserved in ash deposits, which is extremely unusual. When analysing the
fossil vulture plumage, we found ourselves in uncharted territory. These
feathers are nothing like what we usually see in other fossils”.

https://www.discoverwildlife.com/prehistoric-life/volcanic-vulture-fossil-italy