Why otoliths?

Otoliths are commonly found in sediments

Fish otoliths reach the seafloor with the decomposing fish carcass or in the feces of their predators, where they quickly enter the surficial sediments. Biotic and abiotic factors contribute to the taphonomic alteration of the otoliths in these death assemblages (Agiadi et al. 2022). Once they are buried deeper into the sediment, these factors become less important and diagenesis transforms them into fossils.