Karen Borrazzo, Luis Alberto Borrero, Ivana Laura Ozán
et al.
This paper presents the taphonomic and geoarchaeological study of a thin shell lens identified 3.2 km from the coast of San Sebastian Bay on the hilltop of the inland Cerro Bandurrias archaeological locality (Tierra del Fuego Province, Argentina). The biological assemblage of the shell lens comprises marine fauna (bivalves, gastropods, and fish) that may represent the remains of the occasional exploitation of littoral resources by hunter gatherers. However, since the lack of unequivocal anthropogenic signals, alternative non-anthropogenic hypotheses need to be also assessed. Indeed, the time frame of the shell lens (radiocarbon dated as ~6500 cal. years BP) indicates that the bioclast accumulation occurred during the Middle Holocene marine transgression with a different paleogeography, when the hill was part of a coastal landform (peninsula). The methodological design comprised the combination of different and independent sources of information and the techniques applied to assess competing genetic hypotheses. Based on compositional, taphonomic and sedimentological analyses, our research suggests that the most parsimonious explanation is that hunter gatherers were the primary agents of bioclast accumulation of the lens. Thus, this ephemeral archaeological evidence provides a new record for the human exploitation of littoral resources on the Atlantic coast of Isla Grande de Tierra del Fuego during the Middle Holocene. The conspicuous character of shells improves the archaeological visibility of short term, nonredundant past human occupations.
Abstract Otoliths are common and diverse in the Neogene of tropical America. Following previous studies of Neogene tropical American otoliths of the lanternfishes (Myctophidae), marine catfishes (Ariidae), croakers (Sciaenidae), and cusk-eels (Ophidiiformes), we describe here the otoliths of the gobies (Gobiidae). The Gobiidae represent the richest marine fish family, with more than 2000 species worldwide and about 250 in America. In the fossil record too they are the species richest family in the Neogene of tropical America. We have investigated otoliths sampled from Ecuador, Pacific and Atlantic Panama, Atlantic Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, Venezuela, and Trinidad, ranging in age from late Early Miocene (late Burdigalian) to late Early Pleistocene (Calabrian). Most of the studied material originates from the collection expeditions of the Panama Paleontology Project (PPP). Our study represents the first comprehensive record of fossil gobies from America, and we recognize 107 species, of which 51 are new to science, 35 are in open nomenclature, and 19 represent species that also live in the region today. Previously, only two fossil otolith-based goby species have been described from the Neogene of tropical America. The dominant gobies in the fossil record of the region are from the Gobiosomatini, particularly of genera living over soft bottoms or in deeper water such as Bollmannia, Microgobius, Antilligobius, and Palatogobius. Another purpose of our study is to provide a first comprehensive account of otoliths of the extant Gobiidae of America, which we consider necessary for an adequate identification and interpretation of the Neogene otoliths. We studied otoliths of 130 extant American gobiid species and figured 106 of them for comparison. We also present a morphological analysis and characterization of the extant otoliths as a basis for the identification of fossil otoliths. Problems that commonly arise with the identification of fossil otoliths and specifically of fossil goby otoliths are addressed and discussed. A comparison of the history of the Gobiidae in tropical America reveals a high percentage of shared species between the Pacific and the Atlantic basins during the Late Miocene (Tortonian and Messinian) from at least 11 to 6 Ma. A recording gap on the Pacific side across the Pliocene allows a comparison again only in the late Early Pleistocene (Calabrian, 1.8 to 0.78 Ma), which shows a complete lack of shared species. These observations support the effective closure of the former Central American Seaway and emersion of the Isthmus of Panama in the intervening time. Groups that today only exist in the East Pacific were also identified in the Miocene and Pliocene of the West Atlantic, and there is also at least one instance of a genus now restricted to the West Atlantic having occurred in the East Pacific as late as the Pleistocene. The evolution of gobies in tropical America and the implications thereof are extensively discussed. Furthermore, observations of fossil gobies in the region are discussed in respect to paleoenvironmental indications and paleobiogeographic aspects. ZooBank LSID: urn:lsid:zoobank.org:pub:821F185A-DF6B-4D19-984B-E040A206C45A. https://zoobank.org/CB4D4CB4-FED2-45BF-B164-EB48286E8DB5 .
Case Vincent Miller, Jen A Bright, Xiaoli Wang
et al.
Enantiornithines were the dominant birds of the Mesozoic, but understanding of their diet is still tenuous. We introduce new data on the enantiornithine family Bohaiornithidae, famous for their large size and powerfully built teeth and claws. In tandem with previously published data, we comment on the breadth of enantiornithine ecology and potential patterns in which it evolved. Body mass, jaw mechanical advantage, finite element analysis of the jaw, and traditional morphometrics of the claws and skull are compared between bohaiornithids and living birds. We find bohaiornithids to be more ecologically diverse than any other enantiornithine family: Bohaiornis and Parabohaiornis are similar to living plant-eating birds; Longusunguis resembles raptorial carnivores; Zhouornis is similar to both fruit-eating birds and generalist feeders; and Shenqiornis and Sulcavis plausibly ate fish, plants, or a mix of both. We predict the ancestral enantiornithine bird to have been a generalist which ate a wide variety of foods. However, more quantitative data from across the enantiornithine tree is needed to refine this prediction. By the Early Cretaceous, enantiornithine birds had diversified into a variety of ecological niches like crown birds after the K-Pg extinction, adding to the evidence that traits unique to crown birds cannot completely explain their ecological success.
Sérgio P. Ávila, Ana Hipólito, Patrícia Madeira
et al.
In a recent review article, Lima & Meneses (2023, Geoconservation Research, 6 (1): 114–127) reported on the Azores Geopark, introducing a new geosite for São Miguel Island. We here express our concerns regarding the data presented in this review article. In our commentary, we focus mainly on the use of older bibliographic sources and inaccurate age estimates for some islands, as well as the absence of important references, which results in a poor revision of the published literature on the geology and paleontology of the Azores Archipelago. Furthermore, and over ten years since the successful application to UNESCO for the implementation of the Azores Geopark, we stress the urgent need to re-evaluate the list of geosites selected by the Azores Geopark team, a task that we suggest could be done involving the collaboration of an expert and multidisciplinary scientific team.
General. Including nature conservation, geographical distribution
Werner Schwarzhans, Fumio Ohe, Yuki Tsuchiya
et al.
Lanternfishes (Myctophidae) are one of the most common groups of fishes in the mesopelagic zone of the world ocean, and their otoliths have been dominant in pelagic sediments since at least Miocene times. Many species have a wide geographic distribution, with several being circumglobal. This wide distribution makes myctophid otoliths potentially useful for supraregional stratigraphic purposes. The Sea of Japan and the Northwest Pacific is an important region for investigations into the diversity and evolution of the Myctophidae. Here, we describe a large collection of myctophid otoliths from the late early to early middle Miocene (late Burdigalian to early Langhian) from six localities on western and central Honshu, which were under warm water influence during that time. A total of 22 species are recognized, of which eight are new. In the order in which they are described, the new species are Bolinichthys higashibesshoensis sp. nov., Ceratoscopelus brevis sp. nov., Lampadena exima sp. nov., Lampanyctus lenticularis sp. nov., Lampanyctus tsuyamaensis sp. nov., Stenobrachius ohashii sp. nov., Diaphus epipedus sp. nov., and Diaphus watatsumi sp. nov. At least nine species are also known from coeval sediments outside of Japan, most notably New Zealand and Europe. This distribution reflects the extraordinary geographic spread of myctophid species already in the early Miocene and indicates the potential for their future use for biostratigraphic purposes. The paleoecological and paleobiogeographical implications of the studied myctophid otolith assemblages are discussed. Furthermore, the stratigraphic ranges of the observed species are discussed and compared with data from other regions of the world in an attempt to outline the potential future application of myctophid otoliths for supraregional biostratigraphic purposes.
Drawing on many areas of expertise, from paleontology to psychology, Tomasello offers a plausible, evolutionary story abouthow our ancestors are likely to have developed cooperative behaviors and collaborative lifeways in order to survive and thrive.He also claims that this narrative explains why they would have begun to think in characteristically cooperative and moral ways,developing a “we is greater than me” [we>me] psychological orientation. Do the arguments offered support this extra claim? Thisarticle suggests that they do not. It seeks to alleviate this shortcoming by drawing upon some conceptual resources offered bySartre’s Theory of Practical Ensembles. The centerpiece of the article consists of a detailed analysis of Sartre’s account of the genesisof the “group-in-fusion,” seeking to show that the genesis of a we-way of thinking in a group made up of many requires themediation of what Sartre calls a “third party” (le tiers). After closely examining Sartre’s treatment of the “third party” in theapocalyptic genesis of the “group-in-fusion,” I evaluate the success of this notion in resolving those questions that Tomasello’saccount raises while, at the same time, addressing the ontological question concerning the nature of the individual-grouprelation, in a way that suggests new and significant alternatives to standard dilemmas in contemporary social philosophy.
Cariad J. Williams, Martino Pani, Andrea Bucchi
et al.
Summary: Azhdarchid pterosaurs, the largest flying vertebrates, remain poorly understood, with fundamental aspects of their palaeobiology unknown. X-ray computed tomography reveals a complex internal micro-architecture for three-dimensionally preserved, hyper-elongate cervical vertebrae of the Cretaceous azhdarchid pterosaur, Alanqa sp. Incorporation of the neural canal within the body of the vertebra and elongation of the centrum result in a “tube within a tube” supported by helically distributed trabeculae. Linear elastic static analysis and linearized buckling analysis, accompanied with a finite element model, reveal that as few as 50 trabeculae increase the buckling load by up to 90%, implying that a vertebra without the trabeculae is more prone to elastic instability due to axial loads. Subsuming the neural tube into the centrum tube adds considerable stiffness to the cervical series, permitting the uptake of heavy prey items without risking damage to the cervical series, while at the same time allowing considerable skeletal mass reduction.
Javad Sharifi, Amane Tajika, Alireza Mohammadabadi
et al.
Abstract The Aitamir Formation, situated in the Koppeh Dagh Basin in the northeast of Iran, is known for its well-exposed Albian-to-Cenomanian succession. Although geologists previously documented a number of macro- and microfossils, no nautilids had been discovered until now to our knowledge. Here, we present lower Albian and middle Cenomanian nautilids from the Koppeh Dagh Basin for the first time. This discovery is also the first record of Cretaceous nautilids from Iran. We identified the specimens as Eutrephoceras clementianum (d’Orbigny 1840), E. sublaevigatum (d’Orbigny 1850), E. bouchardianum (d’Orbigny 1840) and Eutrephoceras sp. These specimens occur in horizons situated between several ammonite-bearing levels, which allowed us to more precisely constrain age estimates for the recovered nautilid specimens. E. clementianum could not be dated precisely but likely comes from between late Aptian ammonite index Hypacanthoplites uhligi and middle Albian Hoplites (Hoplites) baylei. E. sublaevigatum occurs just above the late Albian ammonites Mariella bergeri and Semenoviceras michalskii and below the Mantelliceras mantelli Zone. At the upper part of the section, E. bouchardianum and Eutrephoceras sp. were collected from lower Albian beds, which correspond to the Mantelliceras mantelli and Mantelliceras dixonii zones. These new findings contribute to our knowledge of the geographical distribution and stratigraphic range of Albian–Cenomanian nautilid species.
Trilobites achieved their maximum generic diversity in the Cambrian, but the peak of morphological disparity of their cranidia occurred in the Middle to Late Ordovician. Early to middle Cambrian trilobites with a specialized cephalon are rare, especially among the ptychoparioids, a group of libristomates featuring the so-called “generalized” bauplan. Here we describe an unusual ptychopariid trilobite Phantaspis auritus gen. et sp. nov. from the middle Cambrian (Miaolingian, Wuliuan) Mantou Formation in the Shandong Province, North China. This new taxon is characterized by a cephalon with an extended anterior area of double-lobate shape resembling a pair of rabbit ears in later ontogenetic stages; a unique type of cephalic specialization that has not been reported from other trilobites. Such a peculiar cephalon as in Phantaspis provides new insights into the variations of cephalic morphology in middle Cambrian trilobites, and may represent a heuristic example of ecological specialization to predation or an improved discoidal enrollment.
Terminal Pleistocene to Middle Holocene sea level rise resulted in a number of changes to coastal ecosystems around the world, providing new challenges and opportunities for coastal peoples. In California, glacial to interglacial sea level rise resulted in some reductions in rocky shore kelp forests, but it also resulted in the formation of estuaries. Estuaries were important for terminal Pleistocene peoples in the Santa Barbara Channel region (SBC), a pattern that persisted through the Early to Middle Holocene, and sometimes later. While paleoestuaries appear to have been relatively common along the SBC mainland coast, they were rare to absent on the Channel Islands. The Abalone Rocks Paleoestuary on Santa Rosa Island is the only well documented island estuary. However, questions remain about the size and productivity of this estuary and its importance for human subsistence and settlement relative to the more extensive mainland estuaries. Faunal data from two previously unreported site components and synthesis of shellfish data from other Abalone Rocks sites and similarly aged sites near mainland estuaries illustrate the importance of SBC mainland versus island estuaries. Estuarine shellfish were considerably more abundant at most Early and Middle Holocene mainland sites, with the Abalone Rocks Paleoestuary largely supplementary to rocky shore habitats. At island estuary sites, taxonomic richness was fairly consistent during the Early to Middle Holocene, although diversity and evenness decline slightly through time, with estuarine shellfish largely disappearing from island assemblages prior to 5000 years ago. These data demonstrate the power of archaeological research to evaluate the relationships between past environmental change and human behavior.
The field of paleontology, which is based principally on observations of the natural world, includes an active community that is engaged across multiple social media platforms, consisting of museums, academic researchers, amateur fossil collectors, paleontological artists, and commercial fossil dealers. As such, it represents an ideal environment for examining the people, interactions, and flow of scientific information. Using interactions involving the four most popular Twitter hashtags for paleontology, this embedded mixed methods study defined the members of this social world and investigated how they influenced and controlled the flow of information, as well as how their expression of scientific practice was related to their identity. Results provide further evidence for the diversity of people and practice involved in this domain of science and indicate that the magnitude and breadth of the public’s impact may be larger than previously projected. Certain types of messages were shown to be effective for different segments of the community, but news posts, essentially media outlet stories, were ineffective for generating any form of engagement. This study adds to our understanding of the important scientific contribution being made by members of the public as they interact with professional scientists and educators as peers in an open social media platform that supports a diverse and active community.
Nick A. Kelder, Karin Sant, Mark J. Dekkers
et al.
Abstract Dating of upper Miocene sediments of the Pannonian Basin (Hungary) has proven difficult due to the endemic nature of biota, scarcity of reliable radio isotopic data, and generally inconsistent magnetostratigraphic results. The natural remanent magnetization (NRM) is mostly residing in greigite (Fe3S4), which complicates NRM interpretation. We reinvestigate the viability of these sediments for magnetostratigraphy using samples from recently drilled well cores (PAET‐30 and PAET‐34) from the Paks region. Significant intervals of the cores contain composite NRM behavior. Thermal demagnetization results include multipolarity (M‐type) samples consisting of a low‐temperature (LT, above ~120 °C), a medium‐temperature (MT), and a high‐temperature (HT) component, within distinct temperature ranges and all exhibiting dual polarities. The LT and HT components have the same polarity and are antiparallel to the MT component. Rock magnetic and scanning electron microscopy results indicate that all magnetic components reside in authigenic greigite. The LT and HT components represent the characteristic remanent magnetization and are of early diagenetic origin. The MT component records a late diagenetic overprint. Alternating field demagnetization cannot resolve the individual components: it yields polarities corresponding to the dominant component resulting in erratic polarity patterns. Interpretation of LT and HT components allows a reasonably robust magnetostratigraphic correlation to the geomagnetic polarity time scale with the base of PAET‐30 at ~8.4 Ma and its top at ~6.8 Ma (average sedimentation rate of ~30 cm/kyr). The base of PAET‐34 is correlated to ~9 Ma and its top to ~6.8 Ma (average sedimentation rate of 27 cm/kyr).
Patricio E. Santamarina, Viviana D. Barreda, Ari Iglesias
et al.
We report here two megaspores species related to the aquatic ferns of the Order Salviniales from the Late Cretaceous Mata Amarilla Formation (Austral Basin), southern Santa Cruz Province, Argentina. We identified the species Arcellites disciformis and Balmeisporites cf. B. holodictyus. The presence of A. disciformis, in particular, is significant not only because it represents the first record for the Southern Hemisphere, indicating a bi-hemispheric distribution for the species, but also because it increases the diversity of this genus in Patagonia. The new findings of salvinialean megaspores highlight the importance of water ferns in the Late Cretaceous aquiferous enviroments of southern South America. The common occurrences of Arcellites and Balmeisporites, whether in shallow, fresh or brackish water facies, indicates aquatic paleoenvironment of the Mata Amarilla Formation, as was inferred also from the sedimentological evidence. Their presence also indicates that the lower and middle levels of the Mata Amarilla Formation can be attributed to the megaspore Zone M3 (Albian–Cenomanian) defined for the Cretaceous of Patagonia.
SUPPLEMENTAL DATA—Supplemental materials are available for this article for free at www.tandfonline.com/UJVP Citation for this article: Liebrecht, T., J. Fortuny, À. Galobart, J. Müller, and P. Martin Sander. 2016. A large, multiple-tooth-rowed captorhinid reptile (Amniota: Eureptilia) from the Upper Permian of Mallorca (Balearic Islands, western Mediterranean). Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology. DOI: 10.1080/02724634.2017.1251936.
Abstract Bioerosion trace fossils in bones are defined as biogenic structures that cut or destroy hard bone tissue as the result of mechanical and/or chemical processes. Under the premise that their paleoecological potential can completely be realized only through correct taxonomic assignment, this work focuses on the methodology for naming these biogenic structures. Thus, we propose the following ichnotaxobases in order to assist in naming trace fossils in bones: general morphology, bioglyphs, filling, branching, pattern of occurrence, and site of emplacement. The most common general morphologies are: pits and holes (borings); chambers; trails; tubes; channels (canals); grooves; striae; and furrows. The main types of bioglyphs are grooves and scratches, which may display different arrangements, such as parallel and opposing, or arcuate paired. The nature of the fill may help recognition of the origin, composition, and relationship with the surrounding sediment, as well as processes of destruction or consumption of bony tissue. The structure and layout of the filling, such as meniscate backfill or pelleted filling, offer information about the bioeroding processes. Branching structures on cortical bone are present in canals and furrows. Where the trace penetrates spongy bone, branching structures are forming tunnels that may connect internal chambers. The common patterns of occurrence are individual, paired, grouped, overlapping, lined, and arcuate. The site of emplacement may be in cortical bone, spongy bone, articular surfaces, internal bone microstructures, and external bone anatomical structures. The use of substrate as an ichnotaxobase is problematic, but as biological substrate, bone itself is a valuable source of information for paleoecologic and ethologic inferences. Given the paleontological importance of bioerosion trace fossils in bones, we underscore interactions between ichnology and other sciences, such as forensic entomology, archaeology, paleoecology, and taphonomy.
The absolute age estimates for calcareous plankton events proposed by the writer in a recent paper are discussed according to the new proposed paleomagnetic time scales. A re-interpretation of the sequence of lithological cycles recognized in the "Rossello composite section" makes their number perfectly comparable with the number of planktonic foraminifera abundance fluctuations in the same stratigraphic interval.
An absolute age of 5.33 MA is estimated for the base of the Pliocene, as defined in the Capo Rossello section. Periodicity of the relative abundance fluctuations of the planktonic foraminiferal assemblages during the Early Pleistocene stratigraphic interval is estimated at about 41 kyr, well comparable with the periodicity of the obliquiry astronomical cycles. By correlation of the sequence of biostratigraphic events recorded in the Early Pleistocene interval in the Mediterranean sections with the sequence of abundance fluctuations, their absolute ages have been obtained, as well as the absolute age of chronostratigraphic boundaries. The base of the Pleistocene is at 1.83 MA and the top of the Early Pleistocene, coincident with the top of the Sicilian, is at 0.89 MA. A re-evaluation of the Oxygen isotopic Stages of the upper Singa section is proposed, on the base of paleomagnetic and calcareous plankton biostratigraphic data reported for this section. Correlation with the North Atlantic Site 607 proved that rhe G. oceanica s.l. FO, the C. macintyrei LO and rhe Gephyrocapsa sp.3 FO are slightly diachronous between the Mediterranean and the mid-North Atlantic high latitudes.