In sedimentological studies of vertebrate sites, we seek the answers of What kind of environment could the area be where the living creatures could have lived? What processes may have created the valuable bone enrichments at the site? What strata should be search during excavations in the area? The questions can be answered by studying the changes in the particle size, stratification conditions and other sedimentological structures of the sedimentary rocks explored in the area. During the exact sedimentological examination of the site, sedimentary geological sections are taken, which show the temporal changes of the overlapping layers in a vertical section.

Between 1909 and 1915, Ottokár Kadić collected a very rich find containing dinosaur remains from the vicinity of Vălioara (Hátszegi Basin, Romania). These remains cannot currently be used for paleoecological studies in a broader sense, as (probably during the post-World War II period) the fossils from different collection sites were unfortunately mixed. However, by determining the rare earth element composition of the bones, it is possible to separate them according to sites and thus to perform paleoecological studies. During the research work, we visit and document the sites explored by Kadić from a sedimentological point of view, and we also make new collections from them. Geochemical analyzes are then used to determine the rare earth composition of the newly collected bones, which is compared with the remnants from previous collections. The similarities in their geochemical composition allow us to group the collection materials by site, thus enabling a novel paleontological study of the material containing several herbivorous dinosaurs as well as the finds containing the crocodile holotype of Allodaposuchus.

The bioapatite, which recrystallizes during bone fossilization, incorporates rare earth elements from the fluids that come in contact with it, and the rare earth element composition characteristic of a given bone material captures the geochemical conditions prevailing during the burial of the bone. Thus, by examining the trace element composition of fossil bones, it is possible to isolate mixed finds from different environments or ages.

In taphonomical investigations, we seek to gain the most in-depth knowledge possible about the “fate” of the fossil from the period between the death of the animal or plant and the discovery of the remains. At first, we try to explore the processes that contributed to the accumulation of rich Iharkút finds at the Iharkút vertebrate site. The taphonomical investigations include the precise study of the given accumulation environment (eg. lake, riverbed, coastal, etc.), the modeling of fossilization processes and the statistical evaluation of the excavated material. These studies are essential to draw conclusions about the practice and distribution of animal nutrition in the former area, as those customers felt remnants present only a very small detail of the populated fauna and flora of the former area.