Vertebrate Palaeontology

Two field observations of mating in the Coastal Taipan Oxyuranus scutellatus involving the same female, but with two different males on consecutive days, are described and their significance is discussed. Copyright all content: © 2019, Turner. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited. Handling editor: Eric Vanderduys Citation: Turner GS. 2019. Field observations of mating in Coastal Taipans (Oxyuranus scutellatus) (Elapidae). North Queensland Naturalist 49: 17-24.

The 2016 version of the FosSahul database compiled non-human vertebrate megafauna fossil ages from Sahul published up to 2013 in a standardized format. Its purpose was to create a publicly available, centralized, and comprehensive database for palaeoecological investigations of the continent. Such databases require regular updates and improvements to reflect recent scientific findings. Here we present an updated FosSahul (2.0) containing 11,871 dated non-human vertebrate fossil records from the Late Quaternary published up to 2018. Furthermore, we have extended the information captured in the database to include methodological details and have developed an algorithm to automate the quality-rating process. The algorithm makes the quality-rating more transparent and easier to reproduce, facilitating future database extensions and dissemination. FosSahul has already enabled several palaeoecological analyses, and its updated version will continue to provide a centralized organisation of...

The interest in mammalian palaeohistology has increased dramatically in the last two decades. Starting in 1849 via descriptive approaches, it has been demonstrated that bone tissue and vascularisation types correlate with several biological variables such as ontogenetic stage, growth rate, and ecology. Mammalian bone displays a large variety of bone tissues and vascularisation patterns reaching from lamellar or parallel-fibred to fibrolamellar or woven-fibred bone, depending on taxon and individual age. Here we systematically review the knowledge and methods on cynodont and mammalian bone microstructure as well as palaeohistology and discuss potential future research fields and techniques. We present new data on the bone microstructure of two extant marsupial species and of several extinct continental and island placental mammals. Extant marsupials display mainly parallel-fibred primary bone with radial and oblique but mainly longitudinal vascular canals. Three juvenile specimens of...

CONTENTS

New species of Sciurion and Hesperopetes (Mammalia, Rodentia, Sciuridae) from Oligocene faunas of the Cypress Hills Formation, Saskatchewan. 
SEAN D. BELL, TARAN MEYER AND JOHN E. STORER  p. 87-94.     

A new rodent fauna from the upper portion of the Brule Formation at Fitterer Ranch (Oligocene, Whitneyan), southwestern North Dakota. 
WILLIAM W. KORTH, CLINT A. BOYD, AND JEFF J. PERSON  p. 95-109.     

New records of Eocene and Oligocene squamates from southwest Montana. 
DONALD LOFGREN, DEBRA HANNEMAN, ANTHONY RUNKEL, PING FONG,
GABRIEL HONG, JOSEPHINE BURDEKIN, MICHAEL CHAI, YVONNE KAN
AND BAILEY JORGENSEN  p. 110-121.     

Aenigmictis, a new genus of leptictid (Mammalia, Leptictida) from northwestern Nebraska. 
T. J. MEEHAN AND WILLIAM W. KORTH  p. 122-129.     

Fossil Bush locality (late Orellan: early Oligocene), Cypress Hills Formation, southwestern Saskatchewan: geology and rodents Pelycomys and Aplodontidae. 
TARAN MEYER, JOHN E. STORER, AND MEAGAN M. GILBERT  p. 130-140.

CONTENTS

Additional small mammals from the Oligocene Brule Formation (Whitneyan) of southwestern North Dakota. 
WILLIAM W. KORTH, CLINT A. BOYD, AND ROBERT J. EMRY  p. 57–74.     

Late Eocene (Chadronian) bats (Chiroptera) from the White River Group of northwestern Nebraska. 
NICHOLAS J. CZAPLEWSKI, GARY S. MARGAN AND HANNAN E. LAGARRY  p. 75-86.

CONTENTS

Mammals of the early Arikareean (late Oligocene) Los Patrones Parkway local fauna, Rancho Mission Viejo, Orange County, California. 
THOMAS S. KELLY  p. 1-31.     

The ultimate ‘Iffyosaur’ – an unusual ichthyosaur composite containing British and German material of different geological stages. 
DEAN R. LOMAX, SVEN SACHS, AND ASHLEY HALL    p. 32-42.     

Braincase morphology of Baptanodonn natans (Reptilia: Ichthyosauria). 
JUDY A. MASSARE AND MELISSA V. CONNELY  p. 43-56.

SPECIAL ISSUE: 
Fossil Mammals from ant mounds situated on exposures of the Big Cottonwood Creek Member of the Chadron Formation (latest Eocene-early Oligocene), Sioux County, Nebraska. 
WILLIAM W. KORTH, CLINT A. BOYD, JEFF J. PERSON AND DEBORAH ANDERSON  p. 191-344.     

Author index to volume 13    p. 345-346.

CONTENTS

Marsupials from the Blue Ash local fauna (Whitneyan, Oligocene), South Dakota: Carnivora, Artiodactyla, and additional Rodentia. 
WILLIAM W. KORTH AND JOSEPH S. SULLIVAN  p. 69-84.     

Insectivorans from the Medicine Pole Hills local fauna (Chadronian) of Bowman County, North Dakota. 
WILLIAM W. KORTH, ALLEN J. KIHM, AND KAREW K. SCHUMAKER  p. 85-105.     

Osteichthyans from the Shark River Formation (middle Eocene) and Kirkwood Formation (early Miocene) contact, Monmouth County, New Jersey, USA with comments on habitat shifts along the Western Atlantic Coastal Plain. 
HARRY M. MAISCH, IV AND MARTIN A. BECKER  p. 106-127.     

Naral structures in Ichthyosaurus and other early Jurassic ichthyosaurs as precursors to a completely subdivided naris. 
JUDY A. MASSARE, WILLIAM R. WAHL AND DEAN R. LOMAX  p. 128-139.

CONTENTS

New records of cricetid rodents from the medial Clarendonian (middle Miocene) Esmeralda Formation, Fish Lake Valley, Nevada. 
THOMAS S. KELLY, ROBERT A. MARTIN, AND CHRISTOPHE RONEZ  p. 1-32.   

Mammals from the Blue Ash local fauna (Whitneyan, Oligocene), South Dakota: Insectivorans (Leptictida, Apatotheria, Lipotyphla). 
WILLIAM W. KORTH  p. 33-47.     

Third occurrence of the problematical rodent Epeiromys from late Whitneyan
(Oligocene) of South Dakota. 
WILLIAM W. KORTH p. 48-51.     

First occurrence of a partial dentition of Rhombodus binkhorsti (Batomorphi:
Rhombodontidae) in the Americas, with comments on the North American
distribution of the species. 
DAVID J. CICIMURRI AND JUN A. EBERSOLE  p. 52-66.     

Erratum to Martin et al. 2020    p. 67.

CONTENTS

Small mammals of the Horse locality fauna (latest Chadronian: Eocene),
Cypress Hills Formation. 
JOHN E. STORER  p. 87-108.     

Teleost abdominal centra from the bell river Group of Alberta, Canada. 
DONALD B. BRINKMAN  p. 190-152.     

Duchesnean (middle Eocene) through Arikareean (early Miocene) biostratigraphic distribution of rodent taxa in North America. 
CLINT A BOYD  p. 153-170.

CONTENTS

Second record of a bat (Mammalia, Chiroptera) from the Whitneyan (Middle Oligocene) of North America. 
WILLIAM W. KORTH  p. 43-45.     

A late Pleistocene record of Drymarchon sp. (Serpentes: Colubridae: Colubrinae) from South Carolina. 
JAMES L. KNIGHT and DAVID J. CICIMURRI  p. 46-52. 

Rodents (Mammalia) from the Mill Point local fauna (Oligocene) of Montana. 
WILLIAM W. KORTH  p. 53-67. 

Vertebrate trace fossils in the Mowry Shale (Lower Cretaceous) of Wyoming, USA. 
MELISSA V. CONNELY  p. 68-82.

CONTENTS
Oligocene (Orellian-Whitneyan) cricetid rodents (Mammalia: Rodentia) from Sioux County, Nebraska. 
WILLIAM W. KORTH  p. 1-12.     

A geochronologic and biochronologic reevaluation of the Coal Valley Formation, Lyon and Mineral counties, west-central Nevada. 
THOMAS S. KELLY  p. 13-42.

CONTENTS

New records of multituberculate mammals form the Goler Formation (Tiffanian, Paleocene) of California. 
DONALD L. LOFGREN, RANDALL L. NYDAM, MADDIE GAUMER, ELISA KONG, AND MALCOLM C. MCKENNA  p. 149-163.     

A second specimen of Protoichthyosaurus applebyi (Reptilia: Ichthyosauria)
and additional information on the genus and species. 
DEAN R. LOMAX AND JUDY A. MASSARE  p. 164-178.     

Description of unusual pathological disorders on pubes and associated left femur from a Diplodocus specimen. 
RYAN J. CLAYTON  p. 179-187.     

Author index to volume 11  p. 188-189.

CONTENTS

Ontogenetic change in dental dimensions of the Oligocene (Orellan) leporid
Palaeolagus Leidy (Mammalia, Lagomorpha) from Nebraska. 
WILLIAM W. KORTH and VENU DHARMAPURI  p. 77-85.     

A rodent and a lagomorph (Mammalia) from Cameron Springs, Wyoming
(Chadronian: latest Eocene) and the use of the occlusal wear pattern of
cheek teeth in determining ontogenetic age of individuals of subhypsodont species. 
WILIAM W. KORTH, LAURA M. GENNARO, ELIZABETH J. HIWALE and KENDRA A. WIENKE  p. 86-96.     

Stratigraphic distributions of Pleistocene (Irvingtonian and Rancholabrean NALMA) fossil remains at the classical Fossil Lake area, Lake County, Oregon. 
JAMES E. MARTIN  p. 97-123.     

Late Pleistocene megafauna from Mississippis alluvium plan gravel bars. 
DANIELLE B. HUSLEY, NINA L. BAGHAI-RIDING, CHRISTINE BECK and ERIC BLACKWELL  p. 124-147.

CONTENTS

New records of Kimbetohia campi and Xanclomys mcgrewi (Mammalia,
Multituberculata) form the Fort Union Formation of the Great Divide
Basin, Wyoming. 
DONALD LOFGREN, GABRIEL GOSNEY, CHLOE SOLTIS, KRISTINIA ONEY, and LAUREN WEST  p. 43-50.     

Rodents (Mammalia) from the Pilgrim Creek local fauna, Wyoming: a mixed
Eocene and Oligocene assemblage (Duchesnean to Whitneyan). 
WILLIAM W. KORTH  p. 51-72.     

Correction to: A large forefin of Ichthyosaurus from the U.K., and estimates
of the size range of the genus. 
JUDY A. MASSARE and DEAN R. LOMAX  p. 73-75.

CONTENTS

Mammals from the Blue Ash local fauna (Whitneyan, Oligocene), South Dakota. Rodentia part 7: additional Eutypomidae and Castoridae. 
WILLIAM W. KORTH  p. 1-7.     

New records of Epihippus (Equidae) and a rhinocerotoid perissodactyl from
the middle Eocene Santiago Formation of southern California. 
THOMAS S. KELLY and PAUL C. MURPHEY  p. 8-30.     

Author index to volumes 1 – 10 (1996-2016)  p. 31-41.

CONTENTS

First evidence of the zygomasseteric structure of Diplolophus Troxell, 1923,
(Mammalia, Rodentia) and its systematic implications. 
WILLIAM W. KORTH  p. 185-188.     

Osteology of a complete skeleton of Dipoides stritoni (Rodentia, Castoridae)
from the late Miocene of northern Oregon. 
JAMES E MARTIN and SHAWNA L. JOHNSON  p. 189-206.     

Composite skeletons of Ichthyosaurus in historic collections. 
JUDY A. MASSARE and DEAN R. LOMAX  p. 207-240.     

Index to Volume 10  p. 241-242.

CONTENTS

Marsupials for the Chadronian (latest Eocene) Medicine Pole Hills local fauna, North Dakota. 
ALLEN J. KIHM and KAREW K. SCHUMAKER  p. 93-112.     

Mammals form the Blue Ash local fauna (late Oligocene), South Dakota. Additional specimens of Herpetotherium Cope (Marsupialia, Didelphidae). 
WILLIAM W. KORTH  p. 113-118.     

A large forefin of Ichthyosaurus from the U.K., and estimates of the size range of the genus. 
JUDY A. MASSARE, DEAN R. LOMAX, and AMANDA KLEIN  p. 119-135.

CONTENTS

New late Miocene (latest Clarendonian and earliest Hemphillian) cricetid
rodents from the upper part of the Dove Spring Formation, Mojave Desert,
California. 
THOMAS S. KELLY and DAVID P. WHISTLER  p. 1-48.     

Corrected dental measurements of Aulolithomys vexillames Korth and Emry
(Rodentia, Eomyidae). 
WILLIAM W. KORTH and ROBERT J. EMRY  p. 49.     

Preliminary report on the mammals form Lane’s Little Jaw Site quarry: a latest Cretaceous (earliest Puercan?) local fauna, Hell Creek Formation southeastern Montana. 
THOMAS S. KELLY  p. 50-91.

CONTENTS

Review of Paradjidaumo Burke (Rodentia, Eomyidae) from the Eocene and
Oligocene (Duchesnean-Whitneyan) of North America. 
WILLIAM W. KORTH  p. 111-126.     

A new species of Protospermophilus Gazin (Rodentia, Sciuridae) from the
Miocene of Nebraska. 
WILLIAM W. KORTH  p. 127-130.     

Plesiosaurian remains form the Arkadelphia Formation – Midway Group contact (Maastrichtian-Paleocene) Hot Spring Count, near Malvern, Arkansas, U.S.A. 
MARTIN A. BECKER, HARRY M. MAISCH, IV, AND
JOHN A. CHAMBERLAIN, JR.  p. 131-143.     

Morphology of the caudal vertebrate in Rhomaleosaurus zetlandicus and a
review of the evidence for the tail fin in Plesiosauria. 
ADAM S. SMITH  p. 144-158.

CONTENTS

Rodents form the Chadronian (latest Eocene) Medicine Pole Hills local fauna,
North Dakota. Part 2. Ischyromyidae, Sciruavidae, Aplodontidae, Sciuridae
and Heliscomyidae. 
ALLEN J. KIHM  p. 41-55.       

New records of small mammals form the latest Uintan (middle Eocene) Strathearn local fauna, Sespe Formation, California. 
THOMAS S. KELLY  p. 56-69.     

New Hemphillian (late Miocene) rodents from the Coal Valley Formation,
Smith Valley, Nevada. 
THOMAS S. KELLY  p. 70-96.     

A new specimen of the elasmosaurid plesiosaur Zarafasaura oceanis from the Upper Cretaceous (Maastrichtian) of Morocco. 
DEAN R. LOMAX AND WILLIAM R. WAHL  p. 97-109.

CONTENTS
Aplodontid rodents (Mammalia) from the Orellan (early Oligocene) Canyon
Ferry fauna of Montana. 
WILLIAM W. KORTH  p. 1-6.     

Two new rodents (Mammalia) from the Chadronian (latest Eocene) of
Montana and Wyoming. 
WILLIAM W. KORTH  p. 7-12.     

Further notes on the Port Kennedy Cave arvicolid rodents. 
ROBERT A. MARTIN  p. 13-20.     

Ontogeny of the shoulder in Polycotylus latipinnus (Plesiosauria: Polycotylidae) and its bearing on plesiosaur viviparity. 
F. ROBIN O’KEEFE AND CHRISTINA J. BYRD  p. 21-31.     

Gastric contents of a plesiosaur from the Sundance Formation (Jurassic), Hot Springs County, Wyoming, and implications for the paleobiology of
Cryptocleidid plesiosaurs. 
WILLIAM R. WAHL  p. 32-39.

CONTENTS

Craniometry of the Equidae part I: two dimensional shape analysis. 
ROBERT L. EVANDER  p.1-13.   

Mammals from the Blue Ash local fauna (late Oligocene), South Dakota.
Rodentia, part 2: families Florentiamyidae and Geomyidae. 
WILLIAM W. KORTH  p.14-25.     

Domnina (Mammalia, Soricomorpha) from the lastest Eocene (Chadronian)
Medicine Pole Hills local fauna of North Dakota. 
ALLEN J. KIHM AND KAREW K. SCHUMAKER  p. 26-36.     

Taxonomic note: Parapliosaccomys witteorum (Rodentia, Geomyidae), a replacement name for Parapliosaccomys wittei Martin, 2008. 
JAMES E. MARTIN  p.37.

CONTENTS
A sea turtle skull (Cheloniidae: Carettini) from the Lower Miocene Nye Formation of Oregon, U.S.A. 
DONALD B. BRINKMAN  p. 39-46.     

Mammals from the Blue Ash local fauna (late Oligocene), South Dakota. Rodentia, Part 3: Family Sciuridae.   
WILLIAM W. KORTH  p. 47-60.     

The early Pleistocene Hamilton Cave muskrats and a review of muskrat size change through the late Neogene. 
ROBERT A. MARTIN, FEDERICA MARCOLINI, AND FREDERICK GRADY  p.61-66.

This paper describes the Dinero Local Fauna, a small collection of fossils from a roadcut in the Goliad Formation in Live Oak County, Texas. It is from higher in the section than the classic early Clarendonian Lapara Creek Fauna. Four mammalian taxa are present: the rodent Ceratogaulus cf. anecdotus, and the equids Pseudhipparion skinneri, Cormohipparion cf. ingenuum, and Calippus cf. cerasinus. The co-occurrence of these taxa is consistent with the late Clarendonian age assignment.

Doliodus problematicus (NBMG 10127), from the Lower Devonian of New Brunswick, Canada (approx. 397-400 Mya) is the earliest sharklike jawed vertebrate (gnathostome) in which the pectoral girdle and fins are well preserved. Its pectoral endoskeleton included shark-like expanded paired coracoids, but Doliodus also possessed an "acanthodian-like" array of dermal spines, described here for the first time. Doliodus provides the strongest anatomical evidence to date that chondrichthyans arose from "acanthodian" fishes by exhibiting an anatomical mosaic of "acanthodian" and sharklike features.

The Batoví Member of the Tacuarembó Formation comprises fossiliferous sandstones and pelites of mainly fluvio-lacustrine origin, which have yielded a fossil assemblage of Late Jurassic-?Early Cretaceous age. Vertebrates known from the Los Rosanos locality include ?semionotiform bones and scales, dipnoan toothplates (Ceratodus africanus Haug), a rostrum of a pholidosaurid mesoeucrocodylian (Meridiosaurus vallisparadisi Mones), and teeth of indeterminate crocodyliforms and theropod dinosaurs. Herein we describe several coelacanth bones (including an operculum, a postparietal, a dentary, and a pterygoid), the ornamentation, morphology and size of which allow us to refer them to the Mawsoniidae, and probably to Mawsonia, being the southernmost record of the genus. Mawsonia, the largest coelacanth, was restricted to non-marine environments of the Tithonian-Cenomanian of Brazil and Africa. The genus has been recently reviewed, only two species being currently recognized. Other mawsoniids from Western Gondwana include Axelrodichthys, Lualabaea and the recently described Parnaibaia. The Uruguayan record is one of the oldest occurrences of the family. Coelacanths are regarded as possible prey of the hybodontid Priohybodus. Other new remains from Los Rosanos include a large theropod tooth (crown height = 56mm) and a crocodyliform skull roof fragment. The tooth, albeit fragmentary, can be referred either to the Ceratosauridae or the Carcharodontosauridae (both taxa being already recorded in the Batoví Member). The skull fragment shows sutured frontals, which indicates it belongs to the Mesoeucrocodylia. All these remains provide valuable information about the fossil assemblages of the Tacuarembó Formation, including the largest fishes and theropods ever recorded in this unit.

Tooth plates of three extinct species of callorhynchid holocephalans, Edaphodon mirificus, E. barberi, and Ischyodus bifurcatus have been collected from Upper Cretaceous strata of Alabama. Of the two species of Eda-phodon, E. mirificus is represented by isolated tooth plates as well as associated dentitions. Edaphodon barberi was based on a small left mandibular tooth plate, but additional mandibular tooth plates in museum collections show that the diagnostic features seen on the E. barberi holotype are consistently present and therefore useful for species differentiation. Ischyodus bifurcatus is reported for the first time in Alabama and is known from a partial associated dentition and several isolated tooth plates. Most of the fossils are from the upper Santonian to lower Campanian Mooreville Chalk, but two specimens of Edaphodon from a lower Campanian component of the Tombigbee Sand Member of the Eutaw Formation and one from the lower Maastrichtian Ripley Formation represent the ...

The dodo Raphus cucullatus Linnaeus, 1758, an extinct and flightless, giant pigeon endemic to Mauritius, has fascinated people since its discovery, yet has remained surprisingly poorly known. Until the mid-19th century, almost all that was known about the dodo was based on illustrations and written accounts by 17th century mariners, often of questionable accuracy. Furthermore, only a few fragmentary remains of dodos collected prior to the bird's extinction exist. Our understanding of the dodo's anatomy was substantially enhanced by the discovery in 1865 of subfossil bones in a marsh called the Mare aux Songes, situated in southeastern Mauritius. However, no contextual information was recorded during early excavation efforts, and the majority of excavated material comprised larger dodo bones, almost all of which were unassociated. Here we present a modern interdisciplinary analysis of the Mare aux Songes, a 4200-year-old multitaxic vertebrate concentration Lagerst€ atte. Our analysis of the deposits at this site provides the first detailed overview of the ecosystem inhabited by the dodo. The interplay of climatic and geological conditions led to the exceptional preservation of the animal and associated plant remains at the Mare aux Songes and provides a window into the past ecosystem of Mauritius. This interdisciplinary research approach provides an ecological framework for the dodo, complementing insights on its anatomy derived from the only associated dodo skeletons known, both of which were collected by Etienne Thirioux and are the primary subject of this memoir.

Important Cretaceous and Tertiary terrestrial vertebrate remains have been found in transgressive and highstand marine systems tracts in the Gulf Coastal Plain of Mississippi. However, no terrestrial vertebrate fossils are known from the state's terrestrial deposits with the exception of Pleistocene vertebrates and a tooth of the Late Pliocene horse Nannippus. In the Cretaceous marine record, dinosaur remains are known from the McShan Formation, lower Eutaw Formation, Tombigbee Sand, Coffee Sand, and Demopolis Formation. One Demopolis occurrence was that of a storm-rafted or perhaps a tsunami-rafted hadrosaur associated with lignitized wood in highstand marine chalk. Land mammals are known from the Lower Eocene T4 Sand of the upper Tuscahoma Formation, Lower Eocene marine sand and marl of the upper Bashi Formation, Middle Eocene limestone of the Archusa Marl of the Cook Mountain Formation, Upper Middle Eocene sand and marl of the Moodys Branch Formation, Upper Oligocene sand and marl of the Byram Formation, Upper Oligocene sand and marl of the Paynes Hammock Formation, and estuarine/deltaic clay and sand of the Middle Miocene Hattiesburg Formation. Tertiary land mammal finds in Mississippi provide an important link between the North American Land Mammal Ages of the Western Interior and the globally recognized marine stages found in the Gulf Coastal Plain. The larger land mammal fossils include: (1) the Middle Eocene titanothere Notiotitanops mississippiensis, (2) an unidentified late Middle Eocene brontothere, (3) the Early Oligocene amynodont Metamynodon planifrons, (4) the Early Oligocene rhinoceros Subhyracodon occidentalis, (5) a Late Oligocene rhinoceros cf. Subhyracodon sp., and (6) the Middle Miocene short-legged rhinoceros Teleoceras medicornutum. A significant small land mammal is reportedly the oldest (early Early Eocene) North American primate Teilhardina magnoliana.

L'articolo descrive il percorso storico che hanno seguito i musei, in particolare scientifici, da semplici depositi di reliquie a centri di educazione e divulgazione, fino ad approdare in Internet sotto forma interamente virtuale. This article describes the historical path museums, especially scientific ones, have followed. They were simple depository of items, then they became centers of science dissemination and education and eventually reached Internet, becoming wholly virtual.

This paper presents new data on the taxonomic composition of the vertebrate assemblages from the Middle and Upper Devonian of the Tsilma River section (northern part of the Middle Timan), as well as their
stratigraphic and areal distribution. The coeval vertebrate assemblages of both the Timanian and Ust’yaregian Regional Stages cropping out in the upper and middle reaches of the Tsilma River area differ substantially in
diversity and composition. This is apparently due to the contrasting facies of these deposits: in the upper reaches of the Tsilma River they were formed in lacustrine/wetland environments, whereas in the middle
reaches of the Tsilma River, deposition occurred in a predominantly shallow marine basin. Comparison of the vertebrate assemblages from the studied sections with other regions confirms their affinity to the Baltic paleozoogeographical province. The new results considerably complement the data on the Devonian vertebrate assemblages of the Middle Timan and allow correlation with local stratigraphic units in adjacent areas to be amended.

Tullimonstrum gregarium, also known as the “Tully Monster,” is one of the most enigmatic soft-bodied fossils from the Paleozoic era. Its unusual morphology, including stalked eyes, a proboscis with a terminal claw, and a lack of mineralized structures, has sparked decades of debate about its classification. This paper reexamines morphological, functional, and ecological evidence to support the hypothesis that Tullimonstrum was a jawless vertebrate (agnathan), not a mollusk, annelid, or arthropod. Key features—such as a notochord-like axial structure, vertebrate-grade melanosomes in the eyes, and signs of segmentation—align it with basal chordates. A new taxonomic proposal is introduced: the extinct order †Tullimonstriformes and family †Tullimonstridae, both placed within Agnatha. This reinterpretation strengthens a hypothesis last seriously defended in 2016 and provides updated comparative analysis, paleoecological context, and functional reasoning. While classification remains uncertain, this work contributes a reinforced, modernized framework for understanding Tullimonstrum’s place in early vertebrate evolution.

Mammalian grinding dentitions are composed of four major tissues that differentially wear, creating coarse surfaces for pulverizing tough plants and liberating nutrients. Although such dentition evolved repeatedly in mammals (e.g. horses, bison, elephants), a similar innovation occurred much earlier (~85 ma) within the duck-billed dinosaur group Hadrosauridae, fueling their 35 million year occupation of Laurasian mega-herbivorous niches. How this complexity was achieved is unknown, as reptilian teeth are generally twotissue structures that presumably lack biomechanical attributes for grinding. Here we show that hadrosaurids broke from the primitive reptilian archetype and evolved six-tissue dental composition that is among the most sophisticated known. Three-dimensional wear models incorporating fossilized wear properties reveal how these tissues interacted for grinding and ecological specialization.

Following the Permo–Triassic Extinction, large-bodied diapsid reptiles—with a body length >1 m—rapidly expanded their ecological roles. This diversification is reflected in enormous disparity in the development of the rostrum and adductor chamber. However, it is unclear how marked the diversity of the feeding apparatus was in contemporary small-bodied diapsids. Here we describe the remarkably small skull (2.5 cm long) of a saurian reptile, Colobops noviportensis, gen. et sp. nov., from the Triassic New Haven Arkose of Connecticut, USA. The taxon possesses an exceptionally reinforced snout and strikingly expanded supratemporal fossae for adductor musculature relative to any known Mesozoic or Recent diapsid of similar size. Our phylogenetic analyses support C. noviportensis as an early diverging pan-archosaur. Colobops noviportensis reveals extraordinary disparity of the feeding apparatus in small-bodied early Mesozoic diapsids, and a suite of morphologies, functionally related to ...

The avian skull is distinctive in its construction and in its function. Much of bird anatomical variety is expressed in the beak; but the beak itself, largely formed of the premaxillary bone, is set upon a shortened face and a bulbous, enlarged braincase. Here, we use original anatomical observations and reconstructions to describe the overall form of the avian skull in a larger context and to provide a general account of the evolutionary transformation from the early dinosaur skull-the skull of an archosaurian macropredator-to that of modern birds. Facial shortening, the enlargement of the braincase around an enlarged brain (with consequential reduction of circumorbital elements and the adductor chamber), and general thinning and looser articulation of bones are trends. Many of these owe to juvenilization or paedomorphosis, something that is abundantly evident from comparison of a juvenile early theropod (Coelophysis) to early avialans like Archaeopteryx Near the avian crown, the p...

ABSTRACT: There are four identifiable specimens of Gomphotherium in the collections of the New Mexico Museum of Natural History and Science in Albuquerque, all collected in New Mexico. The most diagnostic specimen, NMMNH P-28972, consists of a nearly complete skull of a young adult female found in the Pojoaque Member of the Tesuque Formation (late Barstovian). NMMNH P-19204 is an incomplete skull and lower jaws of a more mature, presumably female, individual with associated left forelimb elements ...

Caves have been an important source of vertebrate fossils for much of Southeast Asia, particularly for the Quaternary. Despite this importance, the mechanisms by which vertebrate remains accumulate and preserve in Southeast Asian caves has never been systematically reviewed or examined. Here, we present the results of three years of cave surveys in Indonesia and Timor-Leste, describing cave systems and their attendant vertebrate accumulations in diverse geological, biogeographical, and environmental settings. While each cave system is unique, we find that the accumulation and preservation of vertebrate remains are highly dependent on local geology and environment. These factors notwithstanding, we find the dominant factor responsible for faunal deposition is the presence or absence of biological accumulating agents, a factor directly dictated by biogeographical history. In small, isolated, volcanic islands, the only significant accumulation occurs in archaeological settings, thereby limiting our understanding of the palaeontology of those islands prior to human arrival. In karstic landscapes on both oceanic and continental islands, our understanding of the longterm preservation of vertebrates is still in its infancy. The formation processes of vertebratebearing breccias, their taphonomic histories, and the criteria used to determine whether these represent syngenetic or multiple deposits remain critically understudied. The latter in particular has important implications for arguments on how breccia deposits from the region should be analysed and interpreted when reconstructing palaeoenvironments.

Sibling species Aethomys chrysophilus (de Winton) and Aethomys ineptus Thomas and Wroughton are indistinguishable in external morphology. Although their combined geographic range extends over a large area of southern Africa, their respective distributions are uncertain. We have assembled a database that includes all known positively identified specimens from the literature, as well as those recently collected by the authors in South Africa. Based on these specimens, we suggest that A. chrysophilus occupies most of the combined range, reaching its southern limit in northern South Africa, primarily in low elevations of the Limpopo River drainage. The remainder of South Africa is occupied by A. ineptus, which occurs at higher elevations in north central South Africa but expands into lower elevation habitats in the southern portion of its range. Although mostly parapatric, their ranges are known to overlap west of Pretoria (Magaliesberg region of North West Province) and west of the Soutpansberg in Limpopo Province. However, they are known with certainty to be syntopic at only one locality (Langjan Nature Reserve, Limpopo Province). Further research is needed to determine the zone of parapatry in Mozambique, Botswana and Namibia.

The genus Aethomys currently includes 11 species, but recent evidence indicates a need for taxonomic revision of the genus. Aethomys chrysophilus (De Winton, 1897) is a muroid rodent commonly called the red veld rat. A medium-sized rodent with a long, sparsely haired tail, A. chrysophilus is largely parapatric with its sibling species, A. ineptus, and in areas of co-occurrence, determination of chromosome number, mitochondrial DNA analysis, or morphology of spermatozoa are required to distinguish A. chrysophilus from A. ineptus. Endemic to Africa, A. chrysophilus is found in savanna-woodland habitats that include varying combinations of grass-herbaceous ground cover, shrub understory, and miombo or mopane woodlands. It is not of special conservation concern.

Aethomys ineptus , commonly called the Tete veld rat, is a medium-sized rodent with a long, sparsely haired tail and spermatozoa with spatulate-shaped heads (unique for all muroid rodents thus far examined). A. ineptus co-occurs with its sibling species, A. chrysophilus, and in areas of co-occurrence, an examination of spermatozoa, diploid number, allozymes, or mitochondrial DNA is required to distinguish the 2. Previous work described as many as 11 species of Aethomys, but recent evidence indicates a need for taxonomic revision of the genus. Endemic to Africa, A. ineptus prefers habitats where there is substantial cover in the form of shrubs, rocks, and herbaceous vegetation. It is not of special conservation concern.

Extant crocodylians have a limited taxonomic and ecological diversity but they belong to a lineage (Crocodylomorpha) that includes basal and rather generalized species and a highly diverse clade, Crocodyliformes. The latter was among the most successful groups of Mesozoic tetrapods, both in terms of taxonomic and ecological diversity. Crocodyliforms thrived in terrestrial, semiaquatic, and marine environments, and their fossil diversity includes carnivorous, piscivorous, insectivorous, and herbivorous species. This remarkable ecological and trophic diversity is thought only to occur in forms with a completely akinetic skull, characterized by a functionally integrated and tightly sutured braincase-quadrate-palate complex. However, the patterns of evolutionary change that led to the highly modified skull of crocodyliforms and that likely enabled their diversification remain poorly understood. Herein, a new basal crocodylomorph from the Late Jurassic of Patagonia is described, Almadasuchus figarii gen. et sp. nov. The new taxon is known from a well-preserved posterior region of the skull as well as other craniomandibular and postcranial remains. Almadasuchus figarii differs from all other crocodylomorphs in the presence of six autapomorphic features, including the presence of a large lateral notch on the upper temporal bar, an otic shelf of the squamosal that is wider than long, a deep subtriangular concavity on the posterolateral surface of the squamosal, and an elongated pneumatopore on the ventral surface of the quadrate. Phylogenetic analysis focused on the origin of Crocodyliformes places Almadasuchus as the sister group of Crocodyliformes, supported by synapomorphic features of the skull (e.g. subtriangular basisphenoid, absence of basipterygoid process, absence of a sagittal ridge on the frontal, and a flat anterior skull roof with an ornamented dorsal surface). New braincase information provided by Almadasuchus and other crocodylomorphs indicates that most of the modifications on the posterior region of the skull of crocodyliforms, including the strongly sutured braincase, quadrate, and the extensive secondary palate appeared in a stepwise manner, and pre-dated the evolutionary changes in the snout, jaws, and dentition. This indicates that the progressively increased rigidity of the skull provided the structural framework that allowed the great ecological diversification of crocodyliforms during the course of the Mesozoic. The phylogenetic pattern of character acquisition inferred for the strongly sutured (akinetic) skull and the appearance of more diverse feeding behaviours that create high mechanical loads on the skull provides another interesting parallel between the evolution of Mesozoic crocodyliforms and the evolutionary origins of mammals.

Background: Sloths are one of only two exceptions to the mammalian 'rule of seven' vertebrae in the neck. As a striking case of breaking the evolutionary constraint, the explanation for the exceptional number of cervical vertebrae in sloths is still under debate. Two diverging hypotheses, both ultimately linked to the low metabolic rate of sloths, have been proposed: hypothesis 1 involves morphological transformation of vertebrae due to changes in the Hox gene expression pattern and hypothesis 2 assumes that the Hox gene expression pattern is not altered and the identity of the vertebrae is not changed. Direct evidence supporting either hypothesis would involve knowledge of the vertebral Hox code in sloths, but the realization of such studies is extremely limited. Here, on the basis of the previously established correlation between anterior Hox gene expression and the quantifiable vertebral shape, we present the morphological regionalization of the neck in three different species of sloths with aberrant cervical count providing indirect insight into the vertebral Hox code. Results: Shape differences within the cervical vertebral column suggest a mouse-like Hox code in the neck of sloths. We infer an anterior shift of HoxC-6 expression in association with the first thoracic vertebra in short-necked sloths with decreased cervical count, and a posterior shift of HoxC-5 and HoxC-6 expression in long-necked sloths with increased cervical count. Although only future developmental analyses in non-model organisms, such as sloths, will yield direct evidence for the evolutionary mechanism responsible for the aberrant number of cervical vertebrae, our observations lend support to hypothesis 1 indicating that the number of modules is retained but their boundaries are displaced. Our approach based on quantified morphological differences also provides a reliable basis for further research including fossil taxa such as extinct 'ground sloths' in order to trace the pattern and the underlying genetic mechanisms in the evolution of the vertebral column in mammals.

The unparalleled ability of turtle neck retraction is possible in three different modes, which characterize stem turtles, living side-necked (Pleurodira), and hidden-necked (Cryptodira) turtles, respectively. Despite the conservatism in vertebral count among turtles, there is significant functional and morphological regionalization in the cervical vertebral column. Since Hox genes play a fundamental role in determining the differentiation in vertebra morphology and based on our reconstruction of evolutionary genetics in deep time, we hypothesize genetic differences among the turtle groups and between turtles and other land vertebrates. We correlated anterior Hox gene expression and the quantifiable shape of the vertebrae to investigate the morphological modularity in the neck across living and extinct turtles. This permitted the reconstruction of the hypothetical ancestral Hox code pattern of the whole turtle clade. The scenario of the evolution of axial patterning in turtles indica...

The relationship between developmental genes and phenotypic variation is of central interest in evolutionary biology. An excellent example is the role of Hox genes in the anteroposterior regionalization of the vertebral column in vertebrates. Archosaurs (crocodiles, dinosaurs including birds) are highly variable both in vertebral morphology and number. Nevertheless, functionally equivalent Hox genes are active in the axial skeleton during embryonic development, indicating that the morphological variation across taxa is likely owing to modifications in the pattern of Hox gene expression. By using geometric morphometrics, we demonstrate a correlation between vertebral Hox code and quantifiable vertebral morphology in modern archosaurs, in which the boundaries between morphological subgroups of vertebrae can be linked to anterior Hox gene expression boundaries. Our findings reveal homologous units of cervical vertebrae in modern archosaurs, each with their specific Hox gene pattern, en...