scholarly journals New occurrences of fossilized feathers: systematics, taphonomy, and paleoecology of the Santana Formation of the Araripe Basin (Cretaceous), NE, Brazil

2015 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gustavo M. E. M. Prado ◽  
Luiz Eduardo Anelli ◽  
Guilherme Raffaelli Romero
Keyword(s):  
Fossil Record ◽  
Trophic Chain ◽  
Evolutionary Models ◽  
Future Perspectives ◽  
Reducing Conditions ◽  
Time Period ◽  
Crato Member ◽  
Santana Formation ◽  
Diversity Of Life ◽  
New Occurrences

Feathers are the most complex and diversified integuments in vertebrates. Their complexity are provided by the different forms and functions, and they occur both in non-avian and avian-dinosaurs. Despite their rareness, feathers are found throughout the world, and the Santana Formation (comprised by Crato and Romualdo formations) of the Araripe Basin is responsible for the majority of these records in Brazil. Most occurrences is consisted by isolated feathers, where downy-feathers is the recurrent morphotype, two coelurosaurs and one enantiornithe bird. The sedimentary deposition of this unit is consisted by a lacustrine (Crato Fm) and lagoonal (Romualdo Fm) environments, where reducing conditions prevailed, precluding the activity of bottom dwelling organisms that favored the exquisite preservation. Despite the arid and hot conditions during the Cretaceous, life teemed in the adjacency of both paleolakes, however, feathered non-avian dinosaurs were not found yet in the Crato Member. By the great diversity of life that existed in the paleolake surroundings, is possible to recognize, through the fossil record, that a complex and diversified trophic chain was well established during the time period of sedimentation of this unit. When the remains reached the bottom of the paleolakes, the subsequent isolation from the environment allowed their preservation. In this work, three fossilized feathers, consisted of two downy and one contour feather, extracted from the laminated limestone of the Crato Member of the Santana Formation, were described and identified according to morphological and evolutionary models. We also used the terminology commonly applied to extant organisms. Relying on the fossil record of this unit and the adjacencies formations and basins (by autochthonous condition), taxonomic inferences can be made when the lowest hierarchy level is considered, and hence, is possible to propose the plausible taxa that could bear these elements. Taphonomic and paleoecological aspects, such as the preservation of these structures, and the presence of dinosaurs, were also reviewed, as well as the future perspectives about the study of these elements. Despite the virtual low significance, the pragmatical study of fossilized feathers, can help with the understanding of the evolution and paleobiology of dinosaurs, especially on the South Hemisphere.

scholarly journals New occurrences of fossilized feathers: systematics, taphonomy, and paleoecology of the Santana Formation of the Araripe Basin (Cretaceous), NE, Brazil

2015 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gustavo M. E. M. Prado ◽  
Luiz Eduardo Anelli ◽  
Guilherme Raffaelli Romero
Keyword(s):  
Fossil Record ◽  
Trophic Chain ◽  
Evolutionary Models ◽  
Future Perspectives ◽  
Reducing Conditions ◽  
Time Period ◽  
Crato Member ◽  
Santana Formation ◽  
Diversity Of Life ◽  
New Occurrences

Feathers are the most complex and diversified integuments in vertebrates. Their complexity are provided by the different forms and functions, and they occur both in non-avian and avian-dinosaurs. Despite their rareness, feathers are found throughout the world, and the Santana Formation (comprised by Crato and Romualdo formations) of the Araripe Basin is responsible for the majority of these records in Brazil. Most occurrences is consisted by isolated feathers, where downy-feathers is the recurrent morphotype, two coelurosaurs and one enantiornithe bird. The sedimentary deposition of this unit is consisted by a lacustrine (Crato Fm) and lagoonal (Romualdo Fm) environments, where reducing conditions prevailed, precluding the activity of bottom dwelling organisms that favored the exquisite preservation. Despite the arid and hot conditions during the Cretaceous, life teemed in the adjacency of both paleolakes, however, feathered non-avian dinosaurs were not found yet in the Crato Member. By the great diversity of life that existed in the paleolake surroundings, is possible to recognize, through the fossil record, that a complex and diversified trophic chain was well established during the time period of sedimentation of this unit. When the remains reached the bottom of the paleolakes, the subsequent isolation from the environment allowed their preservation. In this work, three fossilized feathers, consisted of two downy and one contour feather, extracted from the laminated limestone of the Crato Member of the Santana Formation, were described and identified according to morphological and evolutionary models. We also used the terminology commonly applied to extant organisms. Relying on the fossil record of this unit and the adjacencies formations and basins (by autochthonous condition), taxonomic inferences can be made when the lowest hierarchy level is considered, and hence, is possible to propose the plausible taxa that could bear these elements. Taphonomic and paleoecological aspects, such as the preservation of these structures, and the presence of dinosaurs, were also reviewed, as well as the future perspectives about the study of these elements. Despite the virtual low significance, the pragmatical study of fossilized feathers, can help with the understanding of the evolution and paleobiology of dinosaurs, especially on the South Hemisphere.

scholarly journals New occurrences of fossilized feathers: systematics and taphonomy of the Santana Formation of the Araripe Basin (Cretaceous), NE, Brazil

PeerJ ◽  
2016 ◽  
Vol 4 ◽  
pp. e1916 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gustavo M.E.M. Prado ◽  
Luiz Eduardo Anelli ◽  
Setembrino Petri ◽  
Guilherme Raffaeli Romero
Keyword(s):  
Sample Size ◽  
Early Cretaceous ◽  
Fossil Record ◽  
Small Sample Size ◽  
Small Sample ◽  
Exceptional Preservation ◽  
The World ◽  
Crato Member ◽  
Santana Formation ◽  
New Occurrences

Here we describe three fossil feathers from the Early Cretaceous Santana Formation of the Araripe Basin, Brazil. Feathers are the most complex multiform vertebrate integuments; they perform different functions, occurring in both avian and non-avian dinosaurs. Despite their rarity, fossil feathers have been found across the world. Most of the Brazilian feather fossil record comes from the Santana Formation. This formation is composed of two members: Crato (lake) and Romualdo (lagoon); both of which are predominantly reduced deposits, precluding bottom dwelling organisms, resulting in exceptional preservation of the fossils. Despite arid and hot conditions during the Cretaceous, life teemed in the adjacency of this paleolake. Feathered non-avian dinosaurs have not yet been described from the Crato Member, even though there are suggestions of their presence in nearby basins. Our description of the three feathers from the Crato laminated limestone reveals that, despite the small sample size, they can be referred to coelurosaurian theropods. Moreover, based on comparisons with extant feather morphotypes they can be identified as one contour feather and two downy feathers. Despite their rareness and low taxonomic potential, fossilized feathers can offer insights about the paleobiology of its owners and the paleoecology of the Araripe Basin.

Taxonomy, ontogeny and paleoecology of two species ofHarbiniaTSAO, 1959 (Crustacea, Ostracoda) from the Santana Formation, Lower Cretaceous, northeastern Brazil

2012 ◽  
Vol 86 (4) ◽  
pp. 659-668 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lucas Silveira Antonietto ◽  
Silvia Regina Gobbo ◽  
Dermeval Aparecido Do Carmo ◽  
Mário Luiz Assine ◽  
Maria Alice Morgado Castanheira Cordeiro Fernandes ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
New Species ◽  
Fossil Record ◽  
Diversity Index ◽  
Quantitative Information ◽  
Northeastern Brazil ◽  
Energy Environment ◽  
Salinity Levels ◽  
Moderate Energy ◽  
Crato Member ◽  
Santana Formation

The Araripe Basin is the most extensive interior basin in northeastern Brazil, comprising areas of Ceará, Piauí and Pernambuco states. The Santana Formation, attributed to the Aptian–?lower Albian age of the basin, is subdivided into two members, Crato and Romualdo, which bear an abundant fossil record of plant fragments, arthropods and vertebrates, especially 3D-preserved fishes. The present study focuses on the taxonomy, ontogeny and paleoecology of two ostracode species from the Romualdo Member and the top section of the Crato Member (Ipubi layers),Harbinia salitrensis(Krömmelbein and Weber, 1971) emend. andH. altanew species. The ontogenetic series for both species are illustrated, except for the A-8 instar;H. salitrensisis also redescribed. The present work is also the first to produce quantitative information about the paleoecology of the Santana Formation based on ostracode populations. The results obtained from analyses of the population age-structure of both species, in addition to dominance (Simpson) and diversity index (Shannon) values, corroborated previous data on the studied sequence. According to these results, the strata were deposited in a limnic, low-to-moderate energy environment with salinity levels varying from oligohaline to mesohaline. The new data indicate the possibility of these environments also being hypersaline.

scholarly journals First ichnological evidence of a swimming tetrapod in the Crato Member of Santana Formation (Araripe Basin, Northeastern Brazil)

2010 ◽  
Vol 13 (3) ◽  
pp. 257-260 ◽  
Author(s):  
Paula Dentzien-Dias ◽  
Ana Emilia Figueiredo ◽  
Felipe Pinheiro ◽  
Cesar Schultz
Keyword(s):  
Northeastern Brazil ◽  
Crato Member ◽  
Santana Formation

A new passalid fossil (Insecta: Coleoptera) from the Santana Formation (Crato member, Lower Cretaceous), Araripe Basin, NE Brazil: Paleoecological and paleobiogeographic implications

2021 ◽  
Vol 118 ◽  
pp. 104664
Author(s):  
Márcia Fernandes Aquino dos Santos ◽  
Ingrid Mattos ◽  
José Ricardo M. Mermudes ◽  
Sandro Marcelo Scheffler ◽  
Pedro Reyes-Castillo
Keyword(s):  
Lower Cretaceous ◽  
Crato Member ◽  
Santana Formation

scholarly journals Interpreting ecology and physiology of fossil decapod crustaceans

2003 ◽  
Vol 72 (2-3) ◽  
pp. 111-117 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rodney M. Feldmann
Keyword(s):  
Fossil Record ◽  
Behavioral Responses ◽  
Behavioral Characteristics ◽  
Tissue Preservation ◽  
Aquatic Habitats ◽  
Decapod Crustaceans ◽  
Life Styles ◽  
Morphological Variants ◽  
Diversity Of Life ◽  
Vast Range

Decapods are the most diverse and complex group of crustaceans, adapted for life in all parts of the marine environment, many aquatic habitats, and some terrestrial niches. With this diversity of life styles, a vast range of morphotypes of decapods has evolved, exploiting almost every imaginable variation in morphology of the complex exoskeleton that characterizes them. Many of the morphological variants are a response to exploiting a particular niche in which the organisms live or an adaptation to particular behavioral characteristics. Assessing the significance of morphological variation in the fossil record is challenging because of the taphonomic overprint that results in loss of soft tissue, preservation of partial remains of hard parts, and vastly reduced numbers of preserved individuals as contrasted to the once-living population. The purpose of the present paper is to identify aspects of morphology that may be useful in interpreting the behavioral responses of the organism to its environment, with primary emphasis on morphological features of the exoskeleton that are not expressed on all individuals but that occur at low, and unpredictable, frequencies.

The Orthoptera (Ensifera) from the Santana formation (Early Cretaceous, Northeast Brazil): A statistical and paleoecological approach, with description of new taxa

Zootaxa ◽  
2009 ◽  
Vol 2080 (1) ◽  
pp. 21-37 ◽  
Author(s):  
RAFAEL GIOIA MARTINS-NETO ◽  
LARA VAZ TASSI
Keyword(s):  
New Taxa ◽  
Early Cretaceous ◽  
Statistical Approach ◽  
Northeast Brazil ◽  
Crato Member ◽  
Santana Formation

This paper on the Araripe orthopterofauna reviews the Cearagryllus-like Grylloidea (Orthoptera: Ensifera) from the laminated limestone of the uppermost part of the Crato Member, lowest unit of the Santana Formation (Early Cretaceous), Araripe Basin, near Santana do Cariri and Nova Olinda municipalities (Ceará State, Northeast Brazil). The following new taxa are proposed: Notocearagryllus arturandradai n. sp., Cryptocearagryllus revelatus n. gen. et n. comb., Allocearagryllus leipnitzi n. gen et n. comb., Cearagrylloides perforatorius n. gen. et n. comb., Cearagrylloides microcephalus n. gen. et n. comb., Cearagrylloides previstus n. gen. et n. comb., and Paracearagryllus poliacanthus n. gen. et n. comb. (Cearagryllinae n. subfam.). Additionally new data on the paleoecology and paleoethology are furnished as well as a statistical approach.

Rare myodocopid ostracods from Mesozoic sections of Hungary: summary, revision and description of new taxa

Zootaxa ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 4374 (3) ◽  
pp. 350 ◽  
Author(s):  
EMŐKE TÓTH ◽  
TÜNDE CSÉFÁN
Keyword(s):  
New Species ◽  
Fossil Record ◽  
Current Knowledge ◽  
New Genera ◽  
Phylogenetic Relations ◽  
New Information ◽  
The Family ◽  
Valve Structure ◽  
Phylogenetic Model ◽  
New Occurrences

With the exception of polycopids, Mesozoic myodocopid ostracods are regarded as uncommon in the fossil record. They are known from a few localities in the Tethys, and most of them are considered to be pelagic forms. However, a relatively rich and taxonomically diverse material is derived from Hungarian sections; these represent various formations deposited during the Triassic to Cretaceous.The aim of this study is to summarize the current knowledge of Mesozoic myodocopids and to provide new information concerning their classification and phylogenetic relations. This includes new occurrences of Triassic entomozoid Schallreuterizoe groosae Kozur, 2004, cylindroleberidid Triadocypris sp., cypridinid Palaeocypridina tulceaensis Sebe, 2013, Jurassic thaumatocyprid Pokornyopsis cf. bettenstaedti (Bartenstein, 1949) and P. feifeli (Triebel, 1941). The revision of the holotype of gigantic Triassic Triadogigantocypris balatonica Monostori, 1991 give new results concerning the valve structure and taxonomic position of the genus. Two new genera (Neorichterina n. gen. and Hungaroleberis n. gen.) and four new species (Neorichterina striata n. sp., Pokornyopsis csurgokutensis n. sp., Hungaroleberis retiferus n. sp. and Palaeocypridina goeroegae n. sp.) of the subclass Myodocopa are described. Moreover, most of the Albian to Cenomanian representatives of “Conchoecia” are newly classified as Entomozoidae (Neorichterina n. gen.), which allows to extend the range of the family up to the Cretaceous. A summary of the relevant assemblages present in Hungary will help to complement the existing, previously published literature on myodocopids, and also clarify details about the phylogenetic model of the group. 

scholarly journals Aspectos tafonômicos de Testudines da formação Santana (Cretáceo Inferior), Bacia do Araripe, Nordeste do Brasil

2007 ◽  
Vol 30 (1) ◽  
pp. 83-93
Author(s):  
Gustavo Ribeiro de Oliveira
Keyword(s):  
Cervical Vertebrae ◽  
Lithostratigraphic Unit ◽  
Fossil Assemblages ◽  
Crato Member ◽  
Santana Formation

Araripe Basin is worldwide famous by diverse and exquisitely well preserved fossil assemblages in Santana Formation. This lithostratigraphic unit is subdivided into three members: Crato, Ipubi and Romualdo. Up to date six species of turtles are known: Araripemys barretoi Price, 1973; Santanachelys gaffneyi, Hirayama, 1998; Brasilemys josai Lapparent de Broin, 2000; Cearachelys placidoi Gaffney, Campos & Hirayama, 2001, Euraxemys essweini Gaffney, Tong & Meylan, 2006 and Caririemys violetae Oliveira & Kellner, 2007. Taphonomical features of turtles from Crato and Romualdo members are presents here. One specimen was examined in the Crato lagerstätte, (MN 4893-V) Araripemys sp. (partial skull, axial and apendicular skeleton). This exemplar is preserved in light-beige colored laminated limestone from the Crato Member. Three specimens were analized (MN 6743-V, MN 6744-V and MN 6760-V) in the Romualdo lagerstätte, the two first are Araripemys barretoi specimens (shell and cervical vertebrae) and the later is a Cearachelys placidoi specimen (fragmented shell). They are preserved in calcareous nodules. No data of collection of these specimens are available, however are possible to infer on aspects of preservation of these exemplares, since that these are preserved in the original sedimentary matrix. All specimens have shown the surface of bones without abrasion, what it allows to infer these turtles as autocthonous.

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