scholarly journals Rebuttal of McFeeters, Ryan and Cullen, 2018, ‘Positional variation in pedal unguals of North American ornithomimids (Dinosauria, Theropoda): A Response to Brownstein (2017)’

2018 ◽  
Vol 6 ◽  
pp. 68-72
Author(s):  
Chase Doran Brownstein
Keyword(s):  
North America ◽  
Early Cretaceous ◽  
North American ◽  
Eastern North America ◽  
Substantial Evidence ◽  
Theropod Dinosaur ◽  
Positional Variation ◽  
Morphological Differences ◽  
Made In

The Arundel Clay of Maryland is among the only Early Cretaceous terrestrial units known from eastern North America. Research on some theropod dinosaur bones from this layer has indicated the presence of two ornithomimosaur taxa in the assemblage. However, a recent paper discussed issues with the definite assignment of any of these unguals to Ornithomimosauria and suggested that morphological differences originally interpreted to be indicative of the presence of two ornithomimosaurs could be explained by positional variation. Here, I show that substantial evidence persists for the presence of two ornithomimosaurs in the Arundel Clay assemblage, even considering the recent description of positional variation in ornithomimosaur pedal unguals. Furthermore, the argument against the confident assignment of these unguals to ornithomimosaurs is shown to be based on oversimplified comparisons that do not take into account the combination of features in the Arundel specimens that allow for their assignment to that clade. Although several small points made in the initial paper describing the Arundel specimens are incorrect or unsubstantiated, the differences between the Maryland unguals are outside the spectrum of positional variation and are indicative of the presence of two ornithomimosaurs in the Arundel Clay assemblage.

New multituberculate mammal from the Early Cretaceous of eastern North America

2013 ◽  
Vol 50 (3) ◽  
pp. 315-323 ◽  
Author(s):  
Richard L. Cifelli ◽  
Cynthia L. Gordon ◽  
Thomas R. Lipka
Keyword(s):  
North America ◽  
Iberian Peninsula ◽  
Early Cretaceous ◽  
North American ◽  
Lower Cretaceous ◽  
Late Jurassic ◽  
Relative Length ◽  
Central Position ◽  
Eastern North America ◽  
The North

Multituberculates, though among the most commonly encountered mammalian fossils of the Mesozoic, are poorly known from the North American Early Cretaceous, with only one taxon named to date. Herein we describe Argillomys marylandensis, gen. et sp. nov., from the Early Cretaceous of Maryland, based on an isolated M2. Argillomys represents the second mammal known from the Arundel Clay facies of the Patuxent Formation (Lower Cretaceous: Aptian). Though distinctive in its combination of characters (e.g., enamel ornamentation consisting of ribs and grooves only, cusp formula 2:4, presence of distinct cusp on anterobuccal ridge, enlargement of second cusp on buccal row, central position of ultimate cusp in lingual row, great relative length), the broader affinities of Argillomys cannot be established because of non-representation of the antemolar dentition. Based on lack of apomorphies commonly seen among Cimolodonta (e.g., three or more cusps present in buccal row, fusion of cusps in lingual row, cusps strongly pyramidal and separated by narrow grooves), we provisionally regard Argillomys as a multituberculate of “plagiaulacidan” grade. Intriguingly, it is comparable in certain respects to some unnamed Paulchoffatiidae, a family otherwise known from the Late Jurassic – Early Cretaceous of the Iberian Peninsula.

Circaea × intermedia in eastern North America with particular reference to Ontario

1977 ◽  
Vol 55 (23) ◽  
pp. 2919-2935 ◽  
Author(s):  
Erich Haber
Keyword(s):  
North America ◽  
North American ◽  
Chromosome Numbers ◽  
Interspecific Hybrid ◽  
Somatic Chromosome ◽  
Parental Species ◽  
Eastern North America ◽  
Chromosome Counts ◽  
Morphological Differences ◽  
Somatic Chromosome Numbers

Circaea × intermedia Ehrh. in North America is an interspecific hybrid between C. alpina L. and C. lutetiana L. subsp. canadensis Aschers. & Magnus. In spite of the morphological differences that exist between the European and North American subspecies of C. lutetiana, hybrids from both continents are morphologically identical. Documentation of the intermediacy of the hybrid taxon is presented based on the evaluation of the means of 22 characters of specimens from an Ontario locality at which all three taxa are found.Diploid chromosome counts of 2n = 22 are reported for Ontario populations of the hybrid and parental species. The presence of irregular, somatic chromosome numbers are also reported for all three taxa.Distribution maps for all three taxa in eastern North America are included. In the case of C. lutetiana subsp. canadensis, the northern range is sharply delimited by the Precambrian–Paleozoic bedrock boundary.A table of character comparisons and a key to the three taxa summarizes the salient characteristics of the hybrid and the parental species in eastern North America.

Presence of Undeclared Peanut Protein in Chocolate Bars Imported from Europe

2003 ◽  
Vol 66 (10) ◽  
pp. 1932-1934 ◽  
Author(s):  
PETER VADAS ◽  
BORIS PERELMAN
Keyword(s):  
North America ◽  
North American ◽  
Western Europe ◽  
Peanut Protein ◽  
Common Cause ◽  
Low Concentrations ◽  
Peanut Allergens ◽  
Safety And Reliability ◽  
Fatal Anaphylaxis ◽  
Made In

Peanut allergens are both stable and potent and are capable of inducing anaphylactic reactions at low concentrations. Consequently, the consumption of peanuts remains the most common cause of food-induced anaphylactic death. Since accidental exposure to peanuts is a common cause of potentially fatal anaphylaxis in peanut-allergic individuals, we tested for the presence of peanut protein in chocolate bars produced in Europe and North America that did not list peanuts as an ingredient. Ninety-two chocolate bars, of which 32 were manufactured in North America and 60 were imported from Europe, were tested by the Veratox assay. None of the 32 North American chocolate products, including 19 with precautionary labeling, contained detectable peanut protein. In contrast, 30.8% of products from western Europe without precautionary labeling contained detectable levels of peanut protein. Sixty-two percent of products from eastern Europe without precautionary labeling contained detectable peanut protein at levels of up to 245 ppm. The absence of precautionary labeling and the absence of the declaration of “peanut” as an ingredient in chocolate bars made in eastern and central Europe were not found to guarantee that these products were actually free of contaminating peanut protein. In contrast, North American manufacturers have attained a consistent level of safety and reliability for peanut-allergic consumers.

scholarly journals Six new species and reports of Hydnum (Cantharellales) from eastern North America

MycoKeys ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 42 ◽  
pp. 35-72 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rachel A. Swenie ◽  
Timothy J. Baroni ◽  
P. Brandon Matheny
Keyword(s):  
North America ◽  
North American ◽  
Phylogenetic Analyses ◽  
Eastern North America ◽  
Phylogenetic Species ◽  
Additional Species ◽  
Taxonomic Descriptions ◽  
Molecular Phylogenetic ◽  
Herbarium Collections ◽  
Environmental Sequences

Five species of Hydnum have been generally recognized from eastern North America based on morphological recognition: H.albidum, H.albomagnum, H.repandum and varieties, H.rufescens, and H.umbilicatum. Other unique North American species, such as H.caespitosum and H.washingtonianum, are either illegitimately named or considered synonymous with European taxa. Here, seventeen phylogenetic species of Hydnum are detected from eastern North America based on a molecular phylogenetic survey of ITS sequences from herbarium collections and GenBank data, including environmental sequences. Based on current distribution results, sixteen of these species appear endemic to North America. Of these, six species are described as new: H.alboaurantiacum, H.cuspidatum, H.ferruginescens, H.subconnatum, H.subtilior, and H.vagabundum. Geographic range extensions and taxonomic notes are provided for five additional species recently described as new from eastern North America. A new name, H.geminum, is proposed for H.caespitosum Banning ex Peck, non Valenti. Overall, species of Hydnum are best recognized by a combination of morphological and molecular phylogenetic analyses. Taxonomic descriptions are provided for seventeen species, including epitype designations for H.albidum, H.albomagnum, and H.umbilicatum, taxa described more than 100 years ago, and molecular annotation of the isotype of H.washingtonianum. Photographs and a key to eastern North American Hydnum species are presented.

scholarly journals Slender Moonwort, Botrychium lineare (Ophioglossaceae), Rediscovered in Quebec

2009 ◽  
Vol 123 (3) ◽  
pp. 255 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jacques Cayouette ◽  
Donald R. Farrar
Keyword(s):  
North America ◽  
Plant Species ◽  
Morphological Characters ◽  
Ongoing Study ◽  
Eastern North America ◽  
Allozyme Electrophoresis ◽  
Spore Size ◽  
Habitat Features ◽  
Gaspe Peninsula ◽  
Made In

Slender Moonwort (Botrychium lineare), described in 1994, is a very rare fern in eastern North America. It was known in Quebec, Canada, from only two sites in the Gaspé Peninsula but has not been relocated since its discovery at these sites in 1902 and 1942. An ongoing study of B. lineare and its recent discovery in northern Minnesota prompted a re-examination of a 1972 collection made in western Quebec, in Gatineau Park, previously identified under various names, including B. campestre. A recent visit (2008) to the Gatineau Park site disclosed continued presence of similar plants. Based on morphological characters, spore size, genotype (allozyme electrophoresis), and appropriate habitat features, we conclude that the newly discovered plants and those of the 1972 collection are B. lineare. B. lineare appears on the Quebec government list of plant species likely to be designated threatened or vulnerable.

Telephinaand Other Trilobites from the Pratt Ferry Beds, Ordovician of Alabama, U.S.A.

2014 ◽  
Vol 88 (3) ◽  
pp. 545-555 ◽  
Author(s):  
Frederick C. Shaw
Keyword(s):  
North America ◽  
North American ◽  
Original Description ◽  
Eastern North America ◽  
Zone Boundary ◽  
Middle Ordovician ◽  
Conodont Zone ◽  
Stratigraphic Range ◽  
Single Locality

The Pratt Ferry beds are a three meter thick bioclastic carbonate unit containing thePygodus serrus–P. anserinusconodont zone boundary and lying just below theNemagraptus gracilisgraptolite zone at a single locality in Alabama.TelephinaMarek at Pratt Ferry and other eastern North American localities is represented by at least six species. These are judged widespread and in part conspecific with Scandinavian or Asian forms of similar age. Most of the fifteen Appalachian telephinid species proposed by Ulrich (1930) are reviewed and some synonymized.BevanopsisCooper is present, extending its stratigraphic range viaB. buttsi(Cooper). The original description ofCeraurinella buttsiCooper is augmented. Other recorded but poorly represented genera includeAmpyxina,Arthrorhachis,Calyptaulax,Hibbertia,Lonchodomas,Mesotaphraspis,Porterfieldia, andSphaerexochus. The entire faunule represents a mixture of ‘inshore’ and ‘offshore’ or planktonic faunal elements rarely seen elsewhere in the latest Middle Ordovician (Darriwilian) of eastern North America.

North American biogeography and taxonomy of Cryptolithus (Trilobita, Ordovician)

1994 ◽  
Vol 68 (4) ◽  
pp. 808-823 ◽  
Author(s):  
Frederick C. Shaw ◽  
Pierre J. Lespérance
Keyword(s):  
North America ◽  
North American ◽  
Type Species ◽  
Time Span ◽  
Eastern North America ◽  
Evolutionary Mechanisms ◽  
Variable Character

Museum and field restudy of Cryptolithus from all known geographic and stratigraphic occurrences in eastern North America shows that the principal variable character in this genus is the number of fringe pit arcs. Because this character varies within populations and even single individuals, it cannot be used to distinguish the earlier, typologically defined species of the genus. Instead, a neotype is designated here for the type species, Cryptolithus tessellatus Green, 1832, and morph designations are used for all pit arc variants. Over the time span considered, the species increased the number of pit arcs, but the ecological and evolutionary mechanisms responsible cannot be identified with certainty.

North American Devonian Carydiidae (Bivalvia): systematics, phylogeny, and implications in early diversification of the class

1986 ◽  
Vol 60 (2) ◽  
pp. 302-326 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. Bowman Bailey
Keyword(s):  
North America ◽  
Diagnostic Criteria ◽  
North American ◽  
The Other ◽  
Eastern North America ◽  
Higher Taxa ◽  
Early Diversification ◽  
European Family

Although past authors have regarded the Carydiidae as a European family, six species of Carydium are reported here from the Devonian of eastern North America. Two of these belong to a single morphocline common in the Hamilton shales; another (Carydium clarkei) is new. Due to lack of well preserved hinges most of these species were earlier placed in Nucula because serrations or striations on dental elements were mistaken for a taxodont dentition.New data require modification of carydiid phylogenies of earlier authors. 1) Two independent pre-Devonian derivations from Lyrodesma are inferred. 2) Noradonta shergoldi, a carydiid-like lyrodesmatid from the Ordovician of Australia, is recognized as an important phyletic link between the Carydiidae and the Lyrodesmatidae. 3) The previous view of three distinct lineages within Carydium is not supported. Anamorphic data suggest as few as two main lineages and show two of the hinge types to be homeomorphic grades appearing separately or within one or the other of the main lineages.Though too young to be directly involved in the early diversification of the Bivalvia, the actinodont, subheterodont, and pseudotaxodont hinge morphologies of Carydium supply models for the origin of heterodont and taxodont hinges. Anamorphic and other evidence suggests that both are iterative types, and fundamental differences between them may be few. Hence, their preeminence as diagnostic criteria among higher taxa is diminished.

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