In the little village of Badia a Settimo (Scandicci), close to Florence (Italy), in an old school facility, a collection of fossils of prime importance is managed by an association of volunteer, amateur palaeontologists: the G.A.M.P.S. (Gruppo AVIS Mineralogia e Paleontologia Scandicci - Mineralogical & Palaeontological AVIS Group of Scandicci). In this collection, several unique or simply very well preserved specimens have been stored and prepared, and some of them were eventually put on public exhibition. Most of the exposed specimens are fossils of vertebrates and invertebrates from the Pliocene marine deposits of Tuscany. Most of the G.A.M.P.S. invertebrate collection is comprised of gastropods, bivalves, brachiopods, echinoids and crabs. These benthic invertebrate fossils, which include some exquisitely preserved specimens, shed light on the diversity of the Pliocene biota of the central Mediterranean Sea. Furthermore, the G.A.M.P.S. exhibition is enriched by a spectacular section devoted to of the marine vertebrates that lived along the coasts of Tuscany during the Pliocene: an almost complete specimen of a balaenopteroid baleen-bearing whale, together which some specimens of Metaxytherium (an extinct species of sea cow), Etruridelphis (an extinct species of dolphins), and a plethora of fshes are admirable at Badia a Settimo. In particular, the G.A.M.P.S. collection of elasmobranch teeth and spines is remarkable: over 30 species of sharks, rays and skates have been found in the Pliocene sediments of Tuscany and are now present at the G.A.M.P.S. palaeontological exhibition. Each of these species tells the visitors a different story about the biological and environmental evolution of the Mediterranean Basin during the last fve million years. The G.A.M.P.S. experience highlights how the continuous collaboration between amateur and professional palaeontologists, in compliance with the laws in force and modern scientifc and museological standards, has the potential to adequately highlight and give value to new palaeontological fnds. The aim of the present work is to present the elasmobranch collection of the G.A.M.P.S. and to discuss the communicative strategies used to present the Pliocene world at the G.A.M.P.S. exhibition at Badia a Settimo.

The Pliocene elasmobranch collection at the Palaeontological Exhibition of G.A.M.P.S. (Badia a Settimo, Tuscany, Italy)

Collareta A.
Ultimo
2018-01-01

Abstract

In the little village of Badia a Settimo (Scandicci), close to Florence (Italy), in an old school facility, a collection of fossils of prime importance is managed by an association of volunteer, amateur palaeontologists: the G.A.M.P.S. (Gruppo AVIS Mineralogia e Paleontologia Scandicci - Mineralogical & Palaeontological AVIS Group of Scandicci). In this collection, several unique or simply very well preserved specimens have been stored and prepared, and some of them were eventually put on public exhibition. Most of the exposed specimens are fossils of vertebrates and invertebrates from the Pliocene marine deposits of Tuscany. Most of the G.A.M.P.S. invertebrate collection is comprised of gastropods, bivalves, brachiopods, echinoids and crabs. These benthic invertebrate fossils, which include some exquisitely preserved specimens, shed light on the diversity of the Pliocene biota of the central Mediterranean Sea. Furthermore, the G.A.M.P.S. exhibition is enriched by a spectacular section devoted to of the marine vertebrates that lived along the coasts of Tuscany during the Pliocene: an almost complete specimen of a balaenopteroid baleen-bearing whale, together which some specimens of Metaxytherium (an extinct species of sea cow), Etruridelphis (an extinct species of dolphins), and a plethora of fshes are admirable at Badia a Settimo. In particular, the G.A.M.P.S. collection of elasmobranch teeth and spines is remarkable: over 30 species of sharks, rays and skates have been found in the Pliocene sediments of Tuscany and are now present at the G.A.M.P.S. palaeontological exhibition. Each of these species tells the visitors a different story about the biological and environmental evolution of the Mediterranean Basin during the last fve million years. The G.A.M.P.S. experience highlights how the continuous collaboration between amateur and professional palaeontologists, in compliance with the laws in force and modern scientifc and museological standards, has the potential to adequately highlight and give value to new palaeontological fnds. The aim of the present work is to present the elasmobranch collection of the G.A.M.P.S. and to discuss the communicative strategies used to present the Pliocene world at the G.A.M.P.S. exhibition at Badia a Settimo.
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Utilizza questo identificativo per citare o creare un link a questo documento: https://hdl.handle.net/11568/959041
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