scholarly journals The fossil record of the family Benthopectinidae (Echinodermata, Asteroidea), a reappraisal

2021 ◽  
Vol 755 ◽  
pp. 149-190
Author(s):  
Andy S. Gale ◽  
John W.M. Jagt
Keyword(s):  
Late Cretaceous ◽  
Deep Sea ◽  
Fossil Record ◽  
Upper Cretaceous ◽  
Comparative Morphology ◽  
Upper Triassic ◽  
Incertae Sedis ◽  
Lower Oligocene ◽  
The Family

Fossils assigned to the predominantly deep-sea asteroid family Benthopectinidae Verrill, 1894 are described and their affinities reappraised. Detailed comparative morphology of ambulacrals, adambulacrals and marginal ossicles has revealed that only some extinct taxa fall within the morphological range of the modern representatives of the family. These include Jurapecten hessi Gale, 2011, J. infrajurensis sp. nov. (both Jurassic), J. dhondtae sp. nov. (Upper Cretaceous) and Nearchaster spinosus (Blake, 1973) comb. nov. (Lower Oligocene). A new Late Cretaceous genus, Punkaster gen. nov. (P. spinifera gen. et sp. nov. and P. ruegenensis gen. et sp. nov.), appears to be a highly derived benthopectinid. A possible benthopectinid is described from the Upper Triassic (Carnian) of China. Other described records are distantly related to, but convergent in gross morphology with, benthopectinids. Thus, Plesiastropecten hallovensis Peyer, 1944 is here referred to the Jurassic spinulosidan family Plumasteridae Gale, 2011 and Xandarosaster hessi Blake, 1984 is interpreted as Spinulosida Perrier, 1884 incertae sedis. The mid-Cretaceous Alkaidia sumralli Blake & Reid, 1998 is reassigned to the Forcipulatida (Zorocallina). The “fossil benthopectinid” of Spencer & Wright in Moore (1966) is shown to belong to the goniopectinid genus Chrispaulia Gale, 2005, of which two new Cretaceous species are described, C. wrightorum sp. nov. and C. spinosa sp. nov. Finally, we consider Henricia? venturana Durham & Roberts, 1948 to be an indeterminate asteroid.

Parataxonomic classification of ornithoid eggshell fragments from the Oldman Formation (Judith River Group; Upper Cretaceous), southern Alberta

1996 ◽  
Vol 33 (12) ◽  
pp. 1655-1667 ◽  
Author(s):  
Darla K. Zelenitsky ◽  
L. V. Hills ◽  
Philip J. Currie
Keyword(s):  
Late Cretaceous ◽  
Shell Thickness ◽  
Upper Cretaceous ◽  
Theropod Dinosaur ◽  
Surface Sculpture ◽  
External Zone ◽  
Theropod Dinosaurs ◽  
Southern Alberta ◽  
The Family

Examination of a large number of eggshell fragments collected from the Oldman Formation of southern Alberta reveals a greater ootaxonomic diversity than is known from complete eggs or clutches. Three new oogenera and oospecies of the ornithoid-ratite morphotype and one of the ornithoid-prismatic morphotype are established, based on the eggshell fragments. Porituberoolithus warnerensis oogen. et oosp. nov. and Continuoolithus canadensis oogen. et oosp. nov. have a microstructure similar to that of elongatoolithid eggs of theropod dinosaurs. Tristraguloolithus cracioides oogen. et oosp. nov. and Dispersituberoolithus exilis oogen. et oosp. nov. possess an external zone and thus have a microstructure like modern avian eggshell. Tristraguloolithus has a shell thickness, microstructure, and surface sculpture similar to those of recent bird eggshell of the family Cracidae (order Galliformes). Dispersituberoolithus exhibits the primitive or normal eggshell condition of some recent neognathous avian taxa. The ootaxa described indicate a diversity of both avian and theropod dinosaur egg layers within Devil's Coulee and Knight's Ranch, southern Alberta, during the Late Cretaceous.

The Cretaceous and Paleocene pleurotomariid (Gastropoda: Vetigastropoda) fauna of Seymour Island, Antarctica

2009 ◽  
Vol 83 (5) ◽  
pp. 750-766 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. G. Harasewych ◽  
Anton Oleinik ◽  
William Zinsmeister
Keyword(s):  
Species Richness ◽  
New Zealand ◽  
South America ◽  
Late Cretaceous ◽  
Upper Cretaceous ◽  
Southern India ◽  
New Combination ◽  
The Family ◽  
The Status ◽  
Seymour Island

Leptomaria antipodensis and Leptomaria hickmanae are described from the Upper Cretaceous [Maastrichtian] Lopez de Bertodano Formation, Seymour Island, and represent the first Mesozoic records of the family Pleurotomariidae from Antarctica. Leptomaria stillwelli, L. seymourensis, Conotomaria sobralensis and C. bayeri, from the Paleocene [Danian], Sobral Formation, Seymour Island, are described as new. Leptomaria larseniana (Wilckens, 1911) new combination, also from the Sobral Formation, is redescribed based on better-preserved material. The limited diversity of the pleurotomariid fauna of Seymour Island is more similar to that of the Late Cretaceous faunas of Australia and New Zealand in terms of the number of genera and species, than to the older, more diverse faunas of South America, southern India, or northwestern Madagascar, supporting the status of the Weddelian Province as a distinct biogeographic unit. The increase in the species richness of this fauna during the Danian may be due to the final fragmentation of Gondwana during this period.

scholarly journals Epiphyllous fungi from the Oligocene shallowmarine deposits of the Krabbedalen Formation, Kap Brewster, central East Greenland

2013 ◽  
Vol 53 (2) ◽  
pp. 165-179 ◽  
Author(s):  
Grzegorz Worobiec ◽  
Elżbieta Worobiec
Keyword(s):  
The Arctic ◽  
Warm Climate ◽  
Shallow Marine ◽  
East Greenland ◽  
Marine Deposits ◽  
Incertae Sedis ◽  
Lower Oligocene ◽  
Plant Remains ◽  
The Family

ABSTRACT Fructifications of epiphyllous fungi were encountered during palynological investigation of the Lower Oligocene shallow-marine deposits of the Krabbedalen Formation at the Savoia Halvø, Kap Brewster, central East Greenland. Six fossil taxa from the family Microthyriaceae (Phragmothyrites kangukensis Kalgutkar, Phragmothyrites sp., Plochmopeltinites sp., Trichothyrites cf. ostiolatus (Cookson) Kalgutkar & Jansonius, Trichothyrites sp. 1, and Trichothyrites sp. 2) and one incertae sedis fungal remain are reported. Fungal remains from the Krabbedalen Formation represent the youngest, Oligocene occurrence of the epiphyllous fungi in the Palaeogene of the Arctic. The presence of epiphyllous, microthyriaceous fungi in low quantities and in low taxonomical diversity points to a humid and not necessarily warm climate, which is corroborated by data obtained from the analysis of microscopic plant remains.

scholarly journals Brittle stars looking like starfish: the first fossil record of the Astrophiuridae and a remarkable case of convergent evolution

PeerJ ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 7 ◽  
pp. e8008
Author(s):  
Ben Thuy ◽  
Andy Gale ◽  
Lea Numberger-Thuy
Keyword(s):  
Fossil Record ◽  
Upper Cretaceous ◽  
New Genus ◽  
Parallel Evolution ◽  
Molecular Evidence ◽  
New Genus And Species ◽  
Brittle Stars ◽  
Remarkable Case ◽  
The Family ◽  
A New Species

The genus Astrophiura, which ranks among the most extraordinary of modern brittle stars, is the type genus of the recently resurrected family Astrophiuridae within the order Ophiurida. On account of its absurdly enlarged and strongly modified lateral arm plates, Astrophiura bears a closer resemblance to a pentagonal starfish than to a typical ophiuroid. Although molecular evidence suggests an ancient origin of the Astrophiuridae, dating back at least to the Early Jurassic, not a single fossil astrophiurid has been reported so far. Here, we describe dissociated lateral arm plates from the Campanian of Cringleford near Norwich, UK, and the Maastrichtian of Rügen, Germany (both Upper Cretaceous) with unambiguous astrophiurid affinities and assign these to a new species, Astrophiura markbeneckei. This represents the first fossil record of the family. In addition, the Rügen material included lateral arm plates that superficially resemble those of A. markbeneckei sp. nov. but differ in having spine articulations that are typical of the ophionereidoid family Amphilimnidae. We assign these plates to a new genus and species, Astrosombra rammsteinensis, an extinct amphilimnid with morphological modifications similar to those of Astrophiura, and thus representing a remarkable case of parallel evolution amongst brittle stars looking like starfish.

scholarly journals PRELIMINARY REPORT ON THE LACUSTRINE STRATA OF THE SANFRANCISCANA BASIN IN NORTHERN MINAS GERAIS, BRAZIL

2020 ◽  
pp. 1-10
Author(s):  
Jonathas S. Bittencourt ◽  
Pedro L. C. R. Vieira ◽  
Raphael M. Horta ◽  
André G. Vasconcelos ◽  
Natália C. A. Brandão ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Late Cretaceous ◽  
Fossil Record ◽  
Preliminary Report ◽  
Upper Cretaceous ◽  
Minas Gerais ◽  
Fish Scales ◽  
The North ◽  
Younger Age ◽  
First Time ◽  
Pelitic Rocks

We report new data on the geology and the fossil record of the Sanfranciscana Basin in sites to the north of the traditionally explored localities within Minas Gerais. The strata in the new explored area are formed by distinct lithologies, encompassing pelitic rocks with caliche levels and metric bodies of cross-bedded sandstone towards the top, similar to the fluviolacustrine beds of the Areado Group in the southern portions of the basin. Also similar to other regions of the São Francisco Craton, the deposits of the Sanfranciscana Basin studied herein lie discordantly to the rocks of the Bambuí Basin. We preliminarily report neopterygian fish scales, little informative archosaurian bones and an association of the ostracods Ilyocypris- Fossocytheridea. This ostracod association is registered for the first time in the Cretaceous of the Sanfranciscana Basin. The ostracods have been collected from the lacustrine, vertebrate-bearing rocks cropping out in Lagoa dos Patos and Coração de Jesus. The cytherideid Fossocytheridea assigns a minimal Aptian age to its bearing rocks. Its association with Ilyocypris was also reported in Upper Cretaceous oligohaline paleoenvironments in Brazil and Argentina, indicating similar depositional conditions to the strata reported in this paper. The putative affinities of the specimens of the Sanfranciscana Basin with F. ventrotuberculata, and their association with Ilyocypris, raise the hypothesis of a younger age for some levels of that basin in northern Minas Gerais, perhaps ranging into the Late Cretaceous. Keywords: Ostracoda, Archosauria, Areado Group, Cretaceous, Gondwana

scholarly journals New species of deep-sea Antipatharians from the North Pacific (Cnidaria: Anthozoa: Antipatharia), Part 2

Zootaxa ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 4999 (5) ◽  
pp. 401-422
Author(s):  
DENNIS M. OPRESKO ◽  
TINA N. MOLODTSOVA
Keyword(s):  
New Species ◽  
North Pacific ◽  
Deep Sea ◽  
Type Material ◽  
Poor Condition ◽  
Incertae Sedis ◽  
The North ◽  
The Poor ◽  
The Family ◽  
The North Pacific

Five new species of deep-sea antipatharian corals are described from the North Pacific primarily collected off the coast of Alaska and on adjacent seamounts. All the species are referred to the family Schizopathidae. Described as new are: Alternatipathes mirabilis, Bathypathes ptiloides, Bathypathes tiburonae, Bathypathes alaskensis, and Parantipathes pluma. Illustrations of the type material of Bathypathes patula, B. patula var. plenispina and B. tenuis are provided for comparative proposes. Bathypathes patula var. plenispina is here recognized as a species distinct from B. patula, and B. tenuis is considered incertae sedis due to the poor condition of the type material.

Review of the fossil record of Bolitophilidae, with description of new taxa and discussion of position of Mangas Kovalev (Diptera: Sciaroidea)

Zootaxa ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 4567 (3) ◽  
pp. 546 ◽  
Author(s):  
DALE E. GREENWALT ◽  
VLADIMIR A. BLAGODEROV
Keyword(s):  
New Species ◽  
New Taxa ◽  
Lower Cretaceous ◽  
Fossil Record ◽  
Type Specimen ◽  
Marked Contrast ◽  
Incertae Sedis ◽  
Extant Genus ◽  
The Family ◽  
Two New Species

The dipteran family Bolitophilidae, with the single extant genus Bolitophila, is a small family of mycophagous flies. In marked contrast to related families such as Sciaridae and Mycetophilidae, the family has a poor fossil record with no definite species assigned to the genus. In addition, the position of the extinct Cretaceous subfamily Mangasinae Kovalev, 1986 (described in Bolitophillidae) has been controversial and it has been suggested that species in this clade may belong to other sciaroid families. This situation is made worse by misplacement of the type specimen. We herein describe two new species of Bolitophila, Bolitophila warreni sp. nov. from the 46-million-year-old Kishenehn Formation in Montana, USA and Bolitophila rohdendorfi sp. nov. from Baltic amber. Bolitophila pulveris Lewis, 1969 is reassigned to Sciaroidea incertae sedis. The subfamily Mangasinae is reviewed and its position within the Bolitophilidae confirmed. Two new species of Mangas, M. kovalevi sp. nov. and M. brevisubcosta sp. nov., both from the Lower Cretaceous of Khasurty in Western Transbaikalia, are described. 

scholarly journals Fossil Genera in Elateridae (Insecta, Coleoptera): A Triassic Origin and Jurassic Diversification

Insects ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 11 (6) ◽  
pp. 394 ◽  
Author(s):  
Robin Kundrata ◽  
Gabriela Packova ◽  
Johana Hoffmannova
Keyword(s):  
Fossil Record ◽  
Type Species ◽  
Evolutionary History ◽  
Incertae Sedis ◽  
Number Of Species ◽  
The Family ◽  
History Of ◽  
Age Range ◽  
Insect Fossils

Insect fossils bear important information about the evolutionary history of the group. The fossil record of Elateridae, a large cosmopolitan beetle family, has been greatly understudied and the available data are often replete with ambiguity and uncertainty. The research of Elateridae evolution cannot be done without solid genus-group name concepts. In this study we provide an updated comprehensive summary of the fossil genera in Elateridae, including their systematic placement and information on the type species, gender, number of species, age range, and relevant bibliography. We list seven valid fossil genera in Agrypninae, one in Cardiophorinae, two in Dendrometrinae, five in Elaterinae, two in Negastriinae, one in Omalisinae, one in Pityobiinae, and 36 in Protagrypninae. Additional 19 genera are tentatively classified as Elateridae incertae sedis, and their placements are discussed. Further, we move genera Babuskaya Martins-Neto & Gallego, 2009, Cardiosyne Martins-Neto & Gallego, 2006, Fengningia Hong, 1984 and Gemelina Martins-Neto & Gallego, 2006 from Elateridae to Coleoptera incertae sedis. We also discuss the genera previously placed in Elateridae, which are currently not included in the family. The data on the fossil generic diversity suggest that Elateridae originated in the Triassic and rapidly diversified and became comparatively abundant through the Jurassic. We call for further research on the fossil Elateridae from various deposits in order to increase our knowledge on the origin, evolution, and palaeodiversity of the group.

scholarly journals A new sphenodontian (Lepidosauria: Rhynchocephalia) from the Late Triassic of Argentina and the early origin of the herbivore opisthodontians

2013 ◽  
Vol 280 (1772) ◽  
pp. 20132057 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ricardo N. Martínez ◽  
Cecilia Apaldetti ◽  
Carina E. Colombi ◽  
Angel Praderio ◽  
Eliana Fernandez ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Phylogenetic Analysis ◽  
South America ◽  
Late Cretaceous ◽  
Fossil Record ◽  
Late Jurassic ◽  
Upper Triassic ◽  
Late Triassic ◽  
Northwestern Argentina ◽  
Successful Group ◽  
Early Origin

Sphenodontians were a successful group of rhynchocephalian reptiles that dominated the fossil record of Lepidosauria during the Triassic and Jurassic. Although evidence of extinction is seen at the end of the Laurasian Early Cretaceous, they appeared to remain numerically abundant in South America until the end of the period. Most of the known Late Cretaceous record in South America is composed of opisthodontians, the herbivorous branch of Sphenodontia, whose oldest members were until recently reported to be from the Kimmeridgian–Tithonian (Late Jurassic). Here, we report a new sphenodontian, Sphenotitan leyesi gen. et sp. nov., collected from the Upper Triassic Quebrada del Barro Formation of northwestern Argentina. Phylogenetic analysis identifies Sphenotitan as a basal member of Opisthodontia, extending the known record of opisthodontians and the origin of herbivory in this group by 50 Myr.

Fossil crabs (Crustacea: Decapoda) from the Late Cretaceous cárdenas Formation, east-central Mexico

1995 ◽  
Vol 69 (2) ◽  
pp. 340-350 ◽  
Author(s):  
Francisco J. Vega ◽  
Rodney M. Feldmann ◽  
Francisco Sour-Tovar
Keyword(s):  
Late Cretaceous ◽  
Fossil Record ◽  
New Genus ◽  
Gulf Coast ◽  
Central Mexico ◽  
New Genus And Species ◽  
East Central ◽  
The Family ◽  
Marine Lagoon ◽  
First Time

Twenty-four nearly complete carapace samples were collected at three different localities of the Maastrichtian (Late Cretaceous) Cárdenas Formation in San Luis Potosí, east-central Mexico. The material has been assigned to five families: the Callianassidae, Dakoticancridae, Carcineretidae, ?Majidae, and Retroplumidae. Two genera of callianassid shrimp are described, Cheramus for the first time in the fossil record. Dakoticancer australis Rathbun is reported as the most abundant crustacean element; one new genus and species of carcineretid crab, Branchiocarcinus cornatus, is erected, and a single, fragmentary specimen is questionably referred to the Majidae. The three localities reflect paleoenvironmental differences, exhibited by different lithologies, within marginal marine, lagoon environments. The record of dakoticancrid crabs in the Cardenas Formation extends the paleobiogeographic range of the family and the genus Dakoticancer. Carcineretid crabs, although not abundant, seem to have been a persistent element of crustacean assemblages in clastic environments during the Late Cretaceous of the ancestral Gulf Coast of Mexico.

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