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Miocene Phytolith And Diatom Dataset From 10.3myo Diatomite Formation, Fernley, Nevada, Usa, Jacopo Niccolò Cerasoni, Megan C. O'Toole, Richa Patel, Yoel E. Stuart

Biology: Faculty Publications and Other Works

Phytoliths are opal silica particles formed within plant tissues. Diatoms are aquatic, single-celled photosynthetic algae with silica skeletons. Phytolith and diatom morphotypes vary depending on local environmental and climatic conditions and because their silicate structures preserve well, the study of phytolith and diatom morphotypes can be used to better understand paleoclimatic and paleoenvironmental dynamics and changes. This article presents original data from an 820cm-deep stratigraphy excavated at the Hazen diatomite deposits, a high-elevation desert paleolake in the Fernley District, Northern Nevada, USA. The site has been studied for an assemblage of fossilized threespine stickleback, Gasterosteus doryssus, that reveal adaptive …