[PaleoOrnithology • 2019] Fully Fledged Enantiornithine Hatchling Revealed by Laser-Stimulated Fluorescence Supports Precocial Nesting Behavior

This  bird hatchling lived in a lake environment and may have been born on the ground like some other extinct enantiornithine birds.

in Kaye, Pittman, Marugán-Lobón, et al., 2019. 

 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-019-41423-7 

 Illustration: Julius T. Csotonyi

Abstract

Laser-Stimulated Fluorescence (LSF) is used to identify fully fledged feathering in the hatchling enantiornithine bird specimen MPCM-LH-26189, supporting precocial nesting behavior in this extinct group. The LSF results include the detection of a long pennaceous wing feather as well as cover feathers around the body. The LSF technique showed improved detection limits over and above synchrotron and UV imaging which had both been performed on this specimen. The findings underscore the value of using a wide range of analytical techniques.

Figure 1 Spanish enantiornithine hatchling MPCM-LH-26189.
(A) White light image of the counterslab. (B) Laser-Stimulated Fluorescence (LSF) image of the slab and counterslab combined (composite image) reveals brown patches around the specimen. These comprise of clumps of elongate feathers associated with the neck and wings (upper arrows; see Figs 2 and 3 for close-up images) as well as a single long pennaceous feather associated with the left wing (lower arrow; see Fig. 2E,F for close-up image). (C) White light image of the slab. Scale = 5 mm.

A bird hatchling leaving its nest shortly after birth ~125 million years ago. This baby bird lived in a lake environment and may have been born on the ground like some other extinct enantiornithine birds.

 Illustration: Julius T. Csotonyi / HKU Vertebrate Palaeontology Laboratory. 

Thomas G. Kaye, Michael Pittman, Jesús Marugán-Lobón, Hugo Martín-Abad, José Luis Sanz and Angela D. Buscalioni. 2019. Fully Fledged Enantiornithine Hatchling Revealed by Laser-Stimulated Fluorescence Supports Precocial Nesting Behavior. Scientific Reports. 9, 5006. DOI: 10.1038/s41598-019-41423-7

Ancient birds out of the egg running  phys.org/news/2019-03-ancient-birds-egg.html via @physorg_com

 nature.com/articles/s41467-018-03295-9

[Paleontology • 2019] Iberodactylus andreui • A New Crested Pterodactyloid from the Early Cretaceous of the Iberian Peninsula and the Radiation of the Clade Anhangueria

Iberodactylus andreui 

 Holgado, Pêgas, Canudo, Fortuny, Rodrigues, Company & Kellner. 2019

  DOI: 10.1038/s41598-019-41280-4 

[C: Hamipterus tianshanensis] twitter.com/pterosaurios

Illustration by Hugo Salais @metazoastudio 

Abstract

The pterosaur record from the Iberian Peninsula is mostly scarce and undefined, but in the last few years some new taxa have been described from different Lower Cretaceous sites of Spain. Here we describe a new genus and species of toothed pterodactyloid pterosaur from the Barremian of the Iberian Peninsula, Iberodactylus andreui gen. et sp. nov., that shows a close and rather unexpected relationship with Hamipterus tianshanensis from China. A review of the phylogenetic relationships of the Anhangueria reveals a new family of pterodactyloid pterosaurs, the Hamipteridae fam. nov. being recovered as sister-group of the Anhangueridae. This latter clade can be in turn divided into the new clades Anhanguerinae and Coloborhynchinae. The close relationships of Iberodactylus and Hamipterus shows an interesting palaeobiogeographical correlation between the Chinese and Iberian pterosaur faunas during the Barremian (Lower Cretaceous). The discovery of Iberodactylus strongly suggests that the clade Anhangueria has clear ancestral ties in eastern Laurasia.

a life reconstruction of a flock of Iberodactylus andreui gen. et sp. nov. 

by Hugo Salais @metazoastudio 

Figure 3 Comparison of the rostrum of Iberodactylus andreui gen. et sp. nov. (MPZ-2014/1) with a cast of a skull of Hamipterus tianshanensis (specimen stored at the Museu Nacional/Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil (MN), MN-7536-V). Pictures in right lateral (A,C) and palatal (B,D) views.

Systematic Palaeontology

Pterosauria Kaup, 1834.

Pterodactyloidea Plieninger, 1901.

Ornithocheiroidea Seeley, 1870 sensu Kellner (2003).

Pteranodontoidea Marsh, 1876 sensu Kellner (2003).

Lanceodontia Andres et al. (2014).

Ornithocheirae Seeley, 1870 sensu Andres et al. (2014).

Anhangueria Rodrigues & Kellner, 2013.

Hamipteridae fam. nov.

Branch-based definition: The most inclusive clade containing Hamipterus tianshanensis, but not Ludodactylus sibbicki, Coloborhynchus clavirostris, and Anhanguera blittersdorffi.

Diagnosis: Crested anhanguerian pterodactyloids with the following synapomorphies: well-defined parallel and forward curved striae and sulci on the anterior region of the premaxillary crest, and an anterior rounded expansion of the anterior margin of the premaxillary crest.

Included species: Hamipterus tianshanensis and Iberodactylus andreui gen. et sp. nov.

Iberodactylus andreui gen. et sp. nov.

Etymology: From the Iberian Peninsula and the Iberian System, where the specimen was recovered, and ‘dactylos’ (δάκτυλος), finger (ancient Greek), a common suffix in pterosaur names; in honour of Mr. Javier Andreu, a local collector who found the fossil.

Holotype: Museo de Ciencias Naturales de la Universidad de Zaragoza (MPZ, Zaragoza, Spain) MPZ-2014/1; an anterior portion of a rostrum, including premaxillae –with a premaxillary crest– and maxillae, both with alveoli and broken teeth.

Horizon and locality: Los Quiñones site, Morenillo limestones of the Blesa Formation, Barremian (Lower Cretaceous), Oliete sub-basin, Iberian Basin. Obón, Teruel Province, Aragón, northeast Spain.

Diagnosis: Hamipterid pterodactyloid with the following autapomorphies: relatively deep premaxillary tip, premaxillary crest with its anterior margin curvature at an angle of about 80°.

Figure 4 Skull characters of species from different lineages within Anhangueria. Each skull is based on the holotypes and paratypes (dark grey), and elements from other specimens (light grey) re-marked with broken lines. Hamipterus tianshanensis (IVPP V 18935.1), in righ lateral view (A) and palatal view (B) Ludodactylus sibbicki (specimen stored at the Staatliches Museum für Naturkunde Karlsruhe, Karlsruhe, Germany (SMNK), SMNK PAL 3828), in right lateral view (C) Caulkicephalus trimicrodon (specimen stored at the Isle of Wight County Museum Service, Sandown, Isle of Wight, England, United Kingdom (IWCMS), IWCMS 2002.189), in palatal view (D) Tropeognathus mesembrinus (specimen stored at the Bayerische Staatssammlung für Paläontologie und Geologie, Munich, Germany (BSP), BSP 1987 I 46), in right lateral view (E), and palatal view (F); Anhanguera blittersdorffi (MN 4805-V), in right lateral view (G), and palatal view (H) and Uktenadactylus wadleighi (specimen stored at the Southern Methodist University, Dallas, Texas, United States (SMU), SMU 73058), in right lateral view (I), and palatal view (J). Arrows show the character states in each skull. Scale bar 5 cm. See the Supplementary Information for details about number and state of characters.

Anhanguerinae clade nov.

Stem-based definition: The most inclusive clade containing Anhanguera blittersdorffi but not Coloborhynchus clavirostris.

Diagnosis: Anhanguerids with an enlarged fourth premaxillary tooth, larger than the fifth and sixth teeth and as large as or larger than the third tooth.

Content: Anhanguera, Caulkicephalus, Cearadactylus, Guidraco, Liaoningopterus, Ludodactylus and Maaradactylus.

Coloborhynchinae clade nov.

Stem-based definition: The most inclusive clade containing Coloborhynchus clavirostris but not Anhanguera blittersdorffi or Ludodactylus sibbicki.

Diagnosis: Anhanguerids with a quadrangular expansion of the premaxillary tip and a flat anterior surface of the rostrum24.

Content: Coloborhynchus, Siroccopteryx and Uktenadactylus.

Figure 5: Origin and radiation of the clade Anhangueria during the Early Cretaceous.
(A) Phylogenetic relationships of Iberodactylus andreui gen. et sp. nov. within Pterodactyloidea. Colours show their continental origin: Africa (brown), Asia (orange), Europe (red), North America (blue), and South America (green). Intermittent bars show uncertain temporal range.

(B) Barremian world map showing the distribution of the localities with Anhangueria remains: (1) Hastings Group (late Berriasian/Valanginian), England; (2) Hami, Tugulu Group (?Berriasian-Albian), Xinjiang, China; (3) Bol’shoi Kemchug, lower Ilek Formation (?Hauterivian-Barremian) Krasnoyarsk Krai, Russia; (4) Las Hoyas, La Huérgina Formation (Barremian), Cuenca, Spain; (5) Los Quiñones, Blesa Formation (Barremian), Teruel, Spain; (6) Isle of Wight, Wessex Formation (Barremian), England; 

(C) Albian world map showing the distribution of the localities with Anhangueria remains: (7) Mogoito, Murtoi Formation (Aptian), Buryatia, Russia; (8) Sekmenevka Formation (Aptian), Belgorod Oblast, Russia; (9) Jiufotang Formation (Aptian), Liaoning, China; (10) Elrhaz Formation (Aptian), Niger; (11) Krasnyi Yar, Khilok Formation (Aptian), Buryatia, Russia; (12) Pedra Furada, Recôncavo Basin, Marizal Formation? (Aptian), Bahia, Brazil; (13) Sierra de Perijá, Apón Formation (Aptian), Zulia, Venezuela; (13) Crato Formation (late Aptian), Ceará, Brazil; (15) Khuren–Dukh, Dzun–Bayin Formation (Aptian-Albian), Mongolia; (16) Sheskatovo, upper Ilek Formation (Aptian-Albian), Kemerovo Oblast, Russia; (17) Chenini Formation (early Albian), Tunisia; (18) Romualdo Formation (Albian), Ceará, Brazil; (19) Lightning Ridge, Griman Creek Formation (Albian), New South Wales, Australia; (20) Tarrant County, Paw Paw Formation (Albian), Texas, USA; (21) Boulia, Toolebuc Formation (Albian), Queensland, Australia; (22) Cortes de Arenoso, Utrillas Formation (Albian), Valencia, Spain; (23) Cambridge Greensand (Cenomanian, but fossils Albian in age), England; (24) Hughenden, Mackunda Formation (late Albian), Queensland, Australia. Rose indicates purported remains associated within the clade Anhangueria. Red indicates taxa (referenced each one in A) within the clade Anhangueria. Palaeogeographic world maps modified after PALEOMAP Project (www.scotese.com).

  

Borja Holgado, Rodrigo V. Pêgas, José Ignacio Canudo, Josep Fortuny, Taissa Rodrigues, Julio Company and Alexander W. A. Kellner. 2019. On A New Crested Pterodactyloid from the Early Cretaceous of the Iberian Peninsula and the Radiation of the Clade Anhangueria. Scientific Reports. volume 9, 4940. DOI: 10.1038/s41598-019-41280-4 

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[PaleoMammalogy • 2018] Miopetaurista neogrivensis • Oldest Skeleton of A Fossil Flying Squirrel Casts New Light on the Phylogeny of the Group

Miopetaurista neogrivensis Mein 1970

in Casanovas-Vilar, Garcia-Porta, Fortuny, et al., 2018. 

DOI:  10.7554/eLife.39270.001

Abstract

Flying squirrels are the only group of gliding mammals with a remarkable diversity and wide geographical range. However, their evolutionary story is not well known. Thus far, identification of extinct flying squirrels has been exclusively based on dental features, which, contrary to certain postcranial characters, are not unique to them. Therefore, fossils attributed to this clade may indeed belong to other squirrel groups. Here we report the oldest fossil skeleton of a flying squirrel (11.6 Ma) that displays the gliding-related diagnostic features shared by extant forms and allows for a recalibration of the divergence time between tree and flying squirrels. Our phylogenetic analyses combining morphological and molecular data generally support older dates than previous molecular estimates (~23 Ma), being congruent with the inclusion of some of the earliest fossils (~36 Ma) into this clade. They also show that flying squirrels experienced little morphological change for almost 12 million years.

Fig 1: The fossil flying squirrel Miopetaurista neogrivensis.
 (a) Reconstruction of the skeleton based in the partial skeleton IPS56468 from Abocador de Can Mata. Missing elements are based on extant giant flying squirrel Petaurista petaurista and are colored in blue.
(b) Life appearance of Miopetaurista neogrivensis showing the animal ready to land on a tree branch. Coat pattern and color are based in extant Petaurista species, the sister taxon of Miopetaurista.  Scale bar is 4 cm.

Fig 3: Mandible and cheek teeth of Miopetaurista neogrivensis.
 (a to c) Partial left hemimandible (IPS56468j) in lateral, medial and dorsal views. (d to e) Partial right hemimandible (IPS56468i) in lateral and medial views. A caudal vertebra and a bone fragment are attached to the lateral side of the mandibular ramus. Both hemimandibles were associated to the partial skeleton IPS56468 from ACM/C5-D1. (f to g) Partial hemimandible (IPS87560) from ACM/C8-B sector in lateral and medial views. (h) Left upper cheek teeth series (P3–M3) of IPS56468h (Figure 6—Figure supplement 1 ). (i) Left lower cheek teeth series (p4–m3) of IPS56468j. Cheek teeth measurements are given in Supplementary file 4 whereas mandibular measurements are given in Supplementary file 6. For a detailed description and comparisons of cheek teeth and mandible morphology see Appendix 3.1 and 3.2. an, angular process; ar, articular process; co, coronoid process. Scale bar is 1 cm in figs. a to g; 2 mm in (h to i).

Fig 7: Flying squirrel phylogeny and node dating estimates based on a Bayesian total evidence analysis including Miopetaurista neogrivensis.

Fig 8: Fossil record of ‘flying squirrels’ and paleoclimatic data. Temporal ranges of purported flying squirrel genera in Europe, Asia and North America. The 95% highest posterior density (HPD) intervals for flying squirrel divergence as derived from total evidence and node dating analyses are indicated in orange shading (see Figure 7 and Figure 7—figure supplement 1 ). Darker shading indicates the time interval where both independently calculated estimates overlap, thus defining the most likely time interval for flying squirrel divergence. Global paleoclimatic data are taken from Zachos et al., 2001.

Conclusions: 

Miopetaurista neogrivensis is the oldest unquestionable flying squirrel and dates back to the middle/late Miocene boundary (11.6 Ma). Its diagnostic wrist anatomy indicates that the two subtribes of flying squirrels had already diverged at that time. Moreover, this new fossil allows for a recalibration of flying squirrel time of origin and diversification, generally providing somewhat older estimates than previous molecular analyses. These differ according to the phylogenetic method used, total evidence analysis estimates an interval of 36.6 – 24.9 Ma while node dating results in a younger estimate of 30.6 – 17.4 Ma. Therefore, we cannot rule out that at least some of the oldest (ca. 36 Ma) fossils tentatively identified as flying squirrels may indeed belong to this group. However, the estimates of both independent phylogenetic approaches overlap for the late Oligocene (31 – 25 Ma), which should be considered the most likely interval for flying squirrel divergence. The two flying squirrel subtribes are found to have diverged during the early Miocene (22 – 18 Ma) while most extant genera would do so during the Miocene, although they are not recorded until the Pleistocene. Miopetaurista neogrivensis is estimated to have diverged from Petaurista spp., its sister taxon, between 18.8 – 12.4 Ma, the oldest boundary overlapping with the earliest record of the genus Miopetaurista (18 – 17 Ma). Perhaps not surprisingly, the skeletons of both genera show little differences. Sciurids are often regarded as a morphologically conservative group and flying squirrels are no exception having experienced few morphological changes for almost 12 million years.

Isaac Casanovas-Vilar, Joan Garcia-Porta, Josep Fortuny, Óscar Sanisidro, Jérôme Prieto, Marina Querejeta, Sergio Llácer, Josep M Robles, Federico Bernardini, and David M Alba. 2018. Oldest Skeleton of A Fossil Flying Squirrel Casts New Light on the Phylogeny of the Group.  eLife. 7; e39270 DOI:  10.7554/eLife.39270.001

Oldest fossil of a flying squirrel sheds new light on its evolutionary tree
bit.ly/2Eaqv3f via @elife @EurekAlert

phys.org/news/2018-10-oldest-fossil-squirrel-evolutionary-tree.html via @physorg_com

[Botany • 2018] Linaria qartobensis (Plantaginaceae) • A New Linaria Species from the southern Iberian Peninsula

Linaria qartobensis  

Blanca, Cueto, J. Fuentes, L. Sáez & R. Tarifa

in Blanca, Cueto, Fuentes, et al., 2018. 

 DOI:  10.1111/njb.01914 

 twitter.com/NordicJBotany

Linaria qartobensis, from southern Iberian Peninsula, is here newly described, illustrated and compared with its morphologically closest relatives from L. sect. Supinae: L. ricardoi and L. orbensis. The new species is characterized by longer calyx lobes, corolla and spur, violet corolla with yellow-orangish palate, big and globose capsule, and seeds with black and prominently white-tuberculate disc and subentire wing. Linaria qartobensis is an endemic species growing on marly deposits from the Guadalquivir river basin, in the Córdoba province (Andalusia, Spain).

 Keywords: Antirrhineae, endemic plants, Iberian Peninsula, taxonomy

Linaria qartobensis Blanca, Cueto, J. Fuentes, L. Sáez & R. Tarifa sp. nov.

Etymology The specific epithet refers to the original iberian or phoenician name for the city of Córdoba (Qart-Oba), much predating the roman name Corduba, the homonym of the province where the species is found.

Gabriel Blanca, Miguel Cueto, Julián Fuentes, Llorenç Sáez and Rubén Tarifa. 2018. Linaria qartobensis sp. nov. (Plantaginaceae) from the southern Iberian Peninsula. Nordic Journal of Botany.  36(8) DOI:  10.1111/njb.01914  

twitter.com/NordicJBotany/status/1036903952607010817

[Paleontology • 2018] Paludidraco multidentatus • New Highly Pachyostotic Nothosauroid Interpreted As A Filter-feeding Triassic Marine Reptile

Paludidraco multidentatus 

Miguel Chaves, Ortega & Pérez-García, 2018

  DOI: 10.1098/rsbl.2018.0130 

Abstract
Two well-preserved specimens of a new eosauropterygian from the Upper Triassic of Central Spain are attributed to a new taxon, Paludidraco multidentatus gen. et sp. nov. It is a member of Simosauridae that presents several exclusive characters suggesting a highly specialized trophic adaptation. This discovery increases the already high ecological disparity of the Triassic marine reptiles.

KEYWORDS: Sauropterygia, Simosauridae, Keuper, Spain

Systematic palaeontology

 Sauropterygia Owen, 1860
 Eosauropterygia Rieppel, 1994
Nothosauroidea Baur, 1889
Simosauridae Huene, 1948

Paludidraco multidentatus gen. et sp. nov.

Etymology. The generic name is composed of the Latin words paludos, meaning marshy (in reference to the El Atance reservoir) and draco, from the Latin word for dragon. The specific name refers to the Latin words multi, meaning numerous, and dentatus, for toothed.

MUPA-ATZ0101, holotype of the new eosauropterygian Paludidraco multidentatus.
 The relative position of the two blocks and the skull corresponds to their original position in the field.

Conclusion:

 Remains belonging to two individuals of the new eosauropterygian Paludidraco multidentatus gen. et sp. nov. have been recovered from the Upper Triassic El Atance site (Central Spain). Paludidraco multidentatus is primarily characterized by a very slender mandible and numerous small and sicklelike teeth with pleurodont implantation, as well as an extremely pachyostotic axial skeleton. An ecological role analogous to that of extant manatees is interpreted for this bizarre sauropterygian. Therefore, this discovery increases the already high disparity of the sauropterygians from the Triassic.




Carlos de Miguel Chaves, Francisco Ortega and Adán Pérez-García. 2018. New Highly Pachyostotic Nothosauroid Interpreted As A Filter-feeding Triassic Marine Reptile. Biology Letters.  DOI: 10.1098/rsbl.2018.0130

  twitter.com/Tortugologo/status/1024563244390866944

 twitter.com/frco_ortega/status/1024559993863974912

 twitter.com/Godzillin/status/1024566006403018753

[Botany • 2018] Taxonomic Revision of the Genus Calendula (Asteraceae) in the Iberian Peninsula and the Balearic Islands

Calendula suffruticosa Vahl (1791)

in Gonçalves, Castro, Paiva, et al., 2018.

DOI:  10.11646/phytotaxa.352.1.1 

Abstract

A taxonomic revision of the genus Calendula is presented, based on an extensive analysis of its morphological variation, which allowed a re-evaluation of the species delimitations in the Iberian Peninsula and the Balearic Islands. Morphometric data based on field and herbarium material were gathered and analysed. Characters traditionally used to delimit taxa in the genus were re-evaluated, and the taxonomic value of new characters was explored. The variation between and within taxa was explored statistically. Morphological patterns were compared with chromosome numbers and genome size estimates. The results revealed that the achenes are particularly important to distinguish taxa, although, due to their variability, they should be used carefully. Four species are recognised in the area (C. arvensis, C. officinalis, C. tripterocarpa and C. suffruticosa), including nine subspecies of C. suffruticosa. Among these, two new subspecies (C. suffruticosa subsp. trialata and C. suffruticosa subsp. vejerensis) are described. Identification keys, descriptions, geographical distributions and conservation assessments are also provided for each taxon.

Keywords: Calenduleae, Compositae, Mediterranean, Portugal, Spain, systematic, Eudicots

Ana Carla Gonçalves, Sílvia Castro, Jorge Paiva, Conceição Santos and Paulo Silveira. 2018. Taxonomic Revision of the Genus Calendula (Asteraceae) in the Iberian Peninsula and the Balearic Islands. Phytotaxa. 352(1); 1–91. DOI:  10.11646/phytotaxa.352.1.1

[Paleontology • 2018] Parahenodus atancensis • A New Placodont from the Upper Triassic of Spain provides New Insights on the Acquisition of the Specialized Skull of Henodontidae

Parahenodus atancensis

 de Miguel Chaves, Ortega & Pérez‐García, 2018

   DOI: 10.1002/spp2.1218 

Illustration: Eloy Manzanero  divulgauned.es

Abstract

Henodus chelyops Huene is considered to be a highly autapomorphic cyamodontoid placodont with specialized trophic adaptations relative to all the other members of Placodontia. It has been exclusively found in the Carnian (Upper Triassic) of Tübingen (Germany). Here we present a partial skull identified as a new cyamodontoid placodont from the Upper Triassic of El Atance (Guadalajara Province, Spain), Parahenodus atancensis gen. et sp. nov. It is recognized as the sister taxon of H. chelyops, both taxa composing the clade Henodontidae. An emended diagnosis for H. chelyops and Henodontidae is given here. Parahenodus atancensis shares with H. chelyops several cranial characters considered until now to be autapomorphic for the latter, but it also retains some states common in most cyamodontoids. Thus, the discovery of P. atancensis provides new information on the acquisition process of the highly specialized skull of the Henodontidae.

Key words: Placodontia, Cyamodontoidea, Henodontidae, Parahenodus atancensis, El Atance.

SYSTEMATIC PALAEONTOLOGY

SAUROPTERYGIA Owen, 1860

PLACODONTIFORMES Neenan et al., 2013

PLACODONTIA Cope, 1871

CYAMODONTOIDEA Nopcsa, 1923

CYAMODONTIDA Nopcsa, 1923

HENODONTIDAE Huene, 1936

Type species. Henodus chelyops Huene, 1936.

Included species. Henodus chelyops, Parahenodus atancensis gen. et sp. nov.

Emended diagnosis. Clade of Cyamodontida characterized by the following exclusive characters: flat skull; maxillae without tooth plates but with a deep ventral longitudinal groove; palatines with a single posterior tooth plate; upper temporal fenestrae reduced to absent; parietals broad and fan-shaped; presence of contact between the jugals and the squamosals; palatines separated from one another by long pterygoids; cephalic condyle of the quadrates posteriorly expanded and abutting a ventral flange of the squamosals.

Distribution. Upper Triassic (Carnian to Norian) of Europe (southern Germany and central Spain).

Genus HENODUS Huene, 1936 

Type species. Henodus chelyops Huene, 1936.

....

FIG. 1. Skull MUPA ATZ0104, holotype of the cyamodontoid placodont Parahenodus atancensis gen. et sp. nov., from the Upper Triassic of El Atance.
A, dorsal view. B, ventral view. C, schematic interpretation of the skull in dorsal view. D, schematic interpretation of the skull in ventral view.

Scale bars represent: 20 mm (A–D) 

Genus PARAHENODUS nov. 

Type species. Parahenodus atancensis sp. nov. 

Parahenodus atancensis sp. nov. 

Derivation of name. Para (paqa), Greek for ‘near’ or ‘beside’, implying morphological closeness to Henodus Huene, 1936; atance, from El Atance, the fossil site; and ensis, a Latin adjectival suffix meaning ‘pertaining to’.

FIG. 2. Strict consensus tree obtained from our phylogenetic analysis based on the cranial data matrix of Neenan et al. (2015) showing the position of the cyamodontoid placodont Parahenodus atancensis gen. et sp. nov., from the Upper Triassic of El Atance. Bootstrap frequencies that exceed 50% (top) and Bremer support values (bottom) are indicated.

  

Carlos de Miguel Chaves,  Francisco Ortega and Adán Pérez‐García. 2018. A New Placodont from the Upper Triassic of Spain provides New Insights on the Acquisition of the Specialized Skull of Henodontidae.  Papers in Palaeontology.  DOI: 10.1002/spp2.1218

Describen una nueva especie de placodonto que habitó en Guadalajara durante el Triásico Superior  divulgauned.es/placodonto/ via @divulgauned

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[PaleoMammalogy • 2018] Sobrarbesiren cardieli • First Adequately-known Quadrupedal Sirenian from Eurasia (Eocene, Bay of Biscay, Huesca, northeastern Spain)

Sobrarbesiren cardieli

Díaz-Berenguer, Badiola, Moreno-Azanza & Canudo, 2018

 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-018-23355-w 

Abstract

Sirenians are the only extant herbivorous mammals fully adapted to an aquatic lifestyle. They originated in Africa during the Paleocene from an undetermined clade of afrotherian mammals, and by the end of the Eocene they were widely distributed across the tropical latitudes. Here we introduce Sobrarbesiren cardieli gen. et sp. nov. It is the first adequately-known quadrupedal sirenian from Eurasia and the oldest record of this clade from western Europe. Fossils have been recovered from the middle Lutetian (SBZ15) site of Castejón de Sobrarbe-41 (Huesca, Spain), and comprise many cranial and postcranial remains, including pelvic girdle and hind limb bones, from at least six sirenian individuals of different ontogenetic stages. Sobrarbesiren shows a suite of characters previously considered synapomorphies of different clades of derived sirenians, such as the presence of the processus retroversus of the squamosal and the pterygoid fossa, combined with ancestral characters such as the presence of an alisphenoid canal, a permanent P5, at least two sacral vertebrae, a primitive pelvis and functional femora and fibulae. Sobrarbesiren is recovered as the sister taxon of Dugongidae and represents a transitional stage of adaptation to aquatic life between the amphibious quadrupedal prorastomids and the aquatic quadrupedal protosirenids.

Figure 2 Skull of Sobrarbesiren cardieli gen. et sp. nov. (holotype, MPZ 2017/1), in lateral view. (a) Photograph, (b) interpretative sketch. Sutures are marked with plain lines; dashed lines represent reconstructed sutures; shaded areas represent broken or badly preserved bones; and dotted areas represent matrix.

Anatomical abbreviations: ac, alisphenoid canal; as, alisphenoid; bo, basioccipital; bs, basisphenoid; eam, external auditory meatus; eo, exoccipital; fio, infraorbital foramen; fm, foramen magnum; fr, frontal; j, jugal; lc, lacrimal; lcf, lacrimal foramen; mf, mesorostral fossa; mx, maxilla; n, nasal; nc, nuchal crest; oc, occipital condyle; pa, parietal; pal, palatine; paop, paraoccipital process; pmx, premaxilla; pt, pterygoid; ptp, post-tympanic process; so, supraoccipital; sop, supraorbital process of frontal; sq, squamosal; tc, temporal crest; zps, zygomatic process of squamosal.

Systematic palaeontology

Class Mammalia Linnaeus, 1758

Superorder Afrotheria Stanhope et al., 1998

Mirorder Tethytheria McKenna, 1975

Order Sirenia Illiger, 1811

Family uncertain

Sobrarbesiren cardieli gen. et sp. nov.

Etymology: In reference to the Sobrarbe region (Huesca, northeastern Spain), and in honour of Jesús Cardiel Lalueza, who discovered the fossil site.

Holotype: MPZ 2017/1 a complete skull of a subadult individual which preserves alveoli of P1-4, a complete left P5, and M1-3 on both sides (Figs 2, 3, 4a,b,g,h and 5). The specimen is housed in the Museo de Ciencias Naturales de la Universidad de Zaragoza (MPZ) (Zaragoza, Spain). S. cardieli is the type species of the genus by monotypy and by original designation.

Figure 4 Skull of Sobrarbesiren cardieli gen. et sp. nov. (holotype, MPZ 2017/1), in ventral view and dentition (holotype, MPZ 2017/1 and MPZ 2017/4, MPZ 2017/5). (a,b) Skull (MPZ 2017/1) in ventral view. (a) Photograph, (b) interpretative sketch. For anatomical abbreviations see Fig. 2. (c,d) ?I1 (MPZ 2017/4) in lingual (c) and occlusal (d) views. (e,f) ?I3 (MPZ 2017/5) in lateral (e) and occlusal (f) views. (g,h) Left dental arcade of the holotype skull (MPZ 2017/1). (g) Photograph, (h) interpretative sketch. Sutures are marked with plain lines; dashed lines represent reconstructed sutures; and dotted areas represent matrix.

Dental anatomical abbreviations: ac, anterior cingular cusp; acc, anterior accessory cusp; acl, anterior cingulum; hy, hypocone; Lac, labial cusp; lac, lingual cusp; lcl, lingual cingulum; mc, main cusp; mcl, metaconule; me, metacone; pa, paracone; pc, posterior cingular cusp; pcc, posterior accesory cusp; pcl, posterior cingulum; pcv, posterior cingular valley; pr, protocone; prl, protoconule; tv, transverse valley.

Locality and horizon: Only known from the Castejón de Sobrarbe-41 fossil site (CS-41), in Castejón de Sobrarbe, Huesca, Ainsa Basin in the southern Pyrenees, Sobrarbe Formation (middle Lutetian, early middle Eocene)21 (Fig. 1b).

Diagnosis: (Ch. Character state following the descriptions and numbering sequence of Domning (1994) as updated by Vélez-Juarbe et al. (2014) and Springer et al. (2015) (e.g., Ch. 102 (0) refers to state 0 of character 102)): sirenian, based on the following synapomorphies: retracted and enlarged external nares (Ch. 8 (1)); premaxilla contacts the frontals (Ch. 9 (1)); and a P1-5, M1-3 postcanine dental formula (Ch. 155 (1)); and characterized by the following combination of characters (autapomorphies highlighted with*): upper dental formula 2.1.5.3 (I2 absent); pterygoid fossa present, extending above the level of the roof of the internal nares (Ch. 102 (1)); alisphenoid canal present (Ch. 101 (0)); rectangular and elongated basioccipital* (Fig. 4a,b and Supplementary Information Fig. S1a); hook-shaped acromion process of the scapula* (Fig. 7d), which extends just to the dorsal border of the glenoid fossa* (Fig. 7b); posterior iliac spine of the innominate bone present* (Fig. 9c); lateral iliac spine that appears abruptly on the lateral surface of the ilium with a flattened ventrolateral surface* (Fig. 9e).

Figure 10 Reconstructed composite skeleton of Sobrarbesiren cardieli gen. et sp. nov. Shaded elements represent the fossils studied.

Conclusions: 

We describe a new stem sirenian species, Sobrarbesiren cardieli, from the early middle Eocene (Lutetian, SBZ15) of the southern Pyrenees. This is the first adequately known quadrupedal sirenian from the northeastern Atlantic coast (Bay of Biscay, Spain) and the oldest sirenian from western Europe. It is represented by three skulls, cervical, dorsal, lumbar, sacral and caudal vertebrae, complete anterior, middle and posterior ribs, four scapulae, two hemipelvises, and fore and hind limb bones. This large collection of skeletal elements in different ontogenetic stages constitutes the most complete sample of an early middle Eocene sirenian in the Old World. Our phylogenetic analyses place Sobrarbesiren cardieli most parsimoniously as the sister taxon of a paraphyletic Dugongidae, which gives rise to Trichechidae. Sobrarbesiren is the only Eurasian sirenian that preserves terrestrially-functional pelvic girdle and hind limb bones. These indicate an intermediate state of adaptation to the aquatic lifestyle between other groups of quadrupedal sirenians, (namely the plesiomorphic pelvis and hind limbs of prorastomids, versus the slightly more derived limbs of the protosirenids). A further study of the functional morphology of sirenian hind limbs may be one of the keys to understanding the first stages of adaptation to aquatic life by these marine mammals.

Ester Díaz-Berenguer, Ainara Badiola, Miguel Moreno-Azanza and José Ignacio Canudo. 2018. First Adequately-known Quadrupedal Sirenian from Eurasia (Eocene, Bay of Biscay, Huesca, northeastern Spain). Scientific Reports. 8, Article number: 5127. DOI: 10.1038/s41598-018-23355-w

 twitter.com/inarvaezp/status/977228936701718528

[Entomology • 2018] Morphological Convergences in Ameles and Pseudoyersinia (Insecta: Mantodea): Taxonomic Implications of Wing Reduction and Flight Predisposition in some West-Mediterranean Amelini

Ameles andreae (Galvagni, 1976)

in Battiston, Correas, Lombardo, Mouna, Payne & Schütte, 2018.

DOI:  10.11646/zootaxa.4377.1.2 

Abstract

Species in the genus Ameles Burmeister and Pseudoyersinia Kirby (Amelini) are traditionally defined as small-sized, ground-dwelling mantids whose males are distinct for being, respectively, macropterous and brachypterous. However, comparative morphological studies across Amelini confirmed the existence of short-winged males in Ameles, suggesting that this traditional diagnostic concept does not apply to all species. Our analyses of several species from West Mediterranean localities (Canary Islands, Spain, Italy, and Morocco) resulted in the relocation of Pseudoyersinia andreae Galvagni, 1976 to Ameles as Ameles andreae (Galvagni, 1976) (n. comb.) with Ameles insularis Agabiti, Ippolito & Lombardo, 2010 as its new synonym (n. syn.), the clarification of the taxonomic identity of A. gracilis (Brullé, 1838) and A. maroccana Uvarov, 1931, including diagnoses of their males, and the description of Ameles spallanzania obscura (n. ssp.) (from Spain). We also take the opportunity to describe Pseudoyersinia maroccana (n. sp.) (from Morocco) based on museum specimens separating it from Ameles maroccana Uvarov, 1931. We also found that wing length is positively correlated to ocelli size. We discuss this trend from an ecological, evolutionary, and biogeographic perspectives to both facilitate species circumscription and justify the taxonomic modifications herein introduced.

Keywords: Mantodea, Ameles, mantids, new species, ecology, flight, wing reduction, colour, biogeography

Roberto Battiston, José Correas, Francesca Lombardo, Mohamed  Mouna, Keith Payne and Kai Schütte. 2018. Morphological Convergences in Ameles Burmeister and Pseudoyersinia Kirby: Taxonomic Implications of Wing Reduction and Flight Predisposition in some West-Mediterranean Amelini (Insecta: Mantodea). Zootaxa. 4377(1); 21–38.  DOI:  10.11646/zootaxa.4377.1.2

[Paleontology • 2017] Algorachelus peregrinus • A New Turtle Taxon (Podocnemidoidea, Bothremydidae) reveals the Oldest Known Dispersal Event of the crown Pleurodira from Gondwana to Laurasia

Algorachelus peregrinus

Pérez-García. 2017 

Illustration by José Antonio Peñas

DOI:  10.1080/14772019.2016.1228549 

Abstract

Pan-Pleurodira is one of the two clades of extant turtles (i.e. Testudines). Its crown group, Pleurodira, has a Gondwanan origin being known from the Barremian. Cretaceous turtle fauna of Gondwana was composed almost exclusively of pleurodires. Extant pleurodires live in relatively warm regions, with a geographical distribution restricted to tropical regions that were part of Gondwana. Although pleurodires were originally freshwater forms, some clades have adapted to a nearshore marine lifestyle, which contributed to their dispersal. However, few lineages of Pleurodira reached Laurasian regions and no representatives have so far been described from the pre-Santonian of Laurasia, where the continental and coastal Cretaceous faunas of turtles consist of clades exclusive to this region. A new turtle, Algorachelus peregrinus gen. et sp. nov., is described here from the southern Laurasian Cenomanian site of Algora in Spain. Numerous remains, including a skull and well-preserved postcranial specimens, are attributed to this species. The abundant shell elements, much more numerous than those known in most members of pleurodiran clade Bothremydidae, allow its variability to be studied. The new taxon represents the oldest evidence of the occurrence of Pleurodira in Laurasia, and is the oldest genus of the abundant and diverse Bothremydodda so far described. Factors such as the relatively high Cenomanian temperatures, the adaptation of this Gondwanan clade to coastal environments, and the geographical proximity between the two landmasses may have contributed to its dispersal. This finding shows that the first dispersals of Pleurodira from Gondwana to Laurasia occurred much earlier than previously thought.

Keywords: Pleurodira, Bothremydidae, new taxa, dispersal, Laurasia

  

Adán Pérez-García. 2017. A New Turtle Taxon (Podocnemidoidea, Bothremydidae) reveals the Oldest Known Dispersal Event of the crown Pleurodira from Gondwana to Laurasia. Journal of Systematic Palaeontology. 15(9); 709-731. DOI:  10.1080/14772019.2016.1228549

ResearchGate.net/publication/309090708_A_new_turtle_taxon_Podocnemidoidea_Bothremydidae_reveals_the_oldest_known_dispersal_event_of_the_crown_Pleurodira_from_Gondwana_to_Laurasia

 twitter.com/Tortugologo/status/935821606479368193

 fosil.cl/algorachelus-peregrinus-migracion 

El increíble viaje de la primera tortuga africana que llegó a Europa  agenciasinc.es/Noticias/El-increible-viaje-de-la-primera-tortuga-africana-que-llego-a-Europa via @agencia_sinc