Evolution of the Sirenia: an Outline
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“Halitherium” Cristolii Fitzinger, 1842 (Mammalia, Sirenia) from the Late Oligocene of Austria, with the Description of a New Genus
European Journal of Taxonomy 256: 1–32 ISSN 2118-9773 http://dx.doi.org/10.5852/ejt.2016.256 www.europeanjournaloftaxonomy.eu 2016 · Voss M. et al. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License. Research article urn:lsid:zoobank.org:pub:43130F90-D802-4B65-BC6D-E3815A951C09 A taxonomic and morphological re-evaluation of “Halitherium” cristolii Fitzinger, 1842 (Mammalia, Sirenia) from the late Oligocene of Austria, with the description of a new genus Manja VOSS 1 ,*, Björn BERNING 2 & Erich REITER 3 1 Museum für Naturkunde – Leibniz Institute for Evolution and Biodiversity Science, Invalidenstraße 43, 10115 Berlin, Germany. 2 Upper Austrian State Museum, Geoscience Collections, Welser Straße 20, 4060 Leonding, Austria. 3 Institut für Chemische Technologie Anorganischer Stoffe, Johannes Kepler Universität Linz, Altenberger Straße 69, 4040 Linz, Austria. * Corresponding author: [email protected] 2 Email: [email protected] 3 Email: [email protected] 1 urn:lsid:zoobank.org:author:5B55FBFF-7871-431A-AE33-91A96FD4DD39 2 urn:lsid:zoobank.org:author:30D7D0DB-F379-4006-B727-E75A0720BD93 3 urn:lsid:zoobank.org:author:EA57128E-C88B-4A46-8134-0DF048567442 Abstract. The fossil sirenian material from the upper Oligocene Linz Sands of Upper Austria is reviewed and re-described in detail following a recent approach on the invalidity of the genus Halitherium Kaup, 1838. This morphological study provides the fi rst evidence for the synonymy of “Halitherium” cristolii Fitzinger 1842, “H.” abeli Spillmann, 1959 and “H.” pergense (Toula, 1899), supporting the hypothesis that only a single species inhabited the late Oligocene shores of present-day Upper Austria. -
Contributions from the Museum of Paleontology the University of Michigan
CONTRIBUTIONS FROM THE MUSEUM OF PALEONTOLOGY THE UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN VOL. 29.. No. 3. PP. 69-87 November 30. 1994 PROTOSIREN SMITHAE, NEW SPECIES (MAMMALIA, SIRENIA), FROM THE LATE MIDDLE EOCENE OF WADI HITAN, EGYPT BY DARYL P. DOMNING AND PHILIP D. GINGERICH MUSEUM OF PALEONTOLOGY THE UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN ANN ARBOR CONTRIBUTIONS FROM THE MUSEUM OF PALEONTOLOGY Philip D. Gingerich, Director This series of contributions from the Museum of Paleontology is a medium for publication of papers based chiefly on collections in the Museum. When the number of pages issued is sufficient to make a volume, a title page and a table of contents will be sent to libraries on the mailing list, and to individuals on request. A list of the separate issues may also be obtained by request. Correspondence should be directed to the Museum of Paleontology, The University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan 48 109-1079. VOLS. 2-29. Parts of volumes may be obtained if available. Price lists are available upon inquiry. PROTOSIREN SMITHAE, NEW SPECIES (MAMMALIA, SIRENIA), FROM THE LATE MIDDLE EOCENE OF WADI KITAN, EGYPT Abstract-Protosiren smithae is a new protosirenid sirenian described on the basis of associated cranial and postcranial material from the late middle Eocene (latest Bartonian) Gehannam Formation of Wadi Hitan (Zeuglodon Valley), Fayum Province, Egypt. The new species is similar to Protosiren fraasi Abel, 1907, from the earlier middle Eocene (Lutetian) of Egypt, but it is younger geologically and more derived morphologically. P. smithae is probably a direct descendant of P. fraasi. The postcranial skeleton of P. imithae- includes well-developed hindlimbs, which suggest some lingering amphibious tendencies in this otherwise aquatically-adapted primitive sea cow. -
Classification of Mammals 61
© Jones & Bartlett Learning, LLC © Jones & Bartlett Learning, LLC NOT FORCHAPTER SALE OR DISTRIBUTION NOT FOR SALE OR DISTRIBUTION Classification © Jones & Bartlett Learning, LLC © Jones & Bartlett Learning, LLC 4 NOT FORof SALE MammalsOR DISTRIBUTION NOT FOR SALE OR DISTRIBUTION © Jones & Bartlett Learning, LLC © Jones & Bartlett Learning, LLC NOT FOR SALE OR DISTRIBUTION NOT FOR SALE OR DISTRIBUTION © Jones & Bartlett Learning, LLC © Jones & Bartlett Learning, LLC NOT FOR SALE OR DISTRIBUTION NOT FOR SALE OR DISTRIBUTION © Jones & Bartlett Learning, LLC © Jones & Bartlett Learning, LLC NOT FOR SALE OR DISTRIBUTION NOT FOR SALE OR DISTRIBUTION © Jones & Bartlett Learning, LLC © Jones & Bartlett Learning, LLC NOT FOR SALE OR DISTRIBUTION NOT FOR SALE OR DISTRIBUTION © Jones & Bartlett Learning, LLC © Jones & Bartlett Learning, LLC NOT FOR SALE OR DISTRIBUTION NOT FOR SALE OR DISTRIBUTION © Jones & Bartlett Learning, LLC © Jones & Bartlett Learning, LLC NOT FOR SALE OR DISTRIBUTION NOT FOR SALE OR DISTRIBUTION © Jones & Bartlett Learning, LLC © Jones & Bartlett Learning, LLC NOT FOR SALE OR DISTRIBUTION NOT FOR SALE OR DISTRIBUTION © Jones & Bartlett Learning, LLC © Jones & Bartlett Learning, LLC NOT FOR SALE OR DISTRIBUTION NOT FOR SALE OR DISTRIBUTION © Jones & Bartlett Learning, LLC. NOT FOR SALE OR DISTRIBUTION. 2ND PAGES 9781284032093_CH04_0060.indd 60 8/28/13 12:08 PM CHAPTER 4: Classification of Mammals 61 © Jones Despite& Bartlett their Learning,remarkable success, LLC mammals are much less© Jones stress & onBartlett the taxonomic Learning, aspect LLCof mammalogy, but rather as diverse than are most invertebrate groups. This is probably an attempt to provide students with sufficient information NOT FOR SALE OR DISTRIBUTION NOT FORattributable SALE OR to theirDISTRIBUTION far greater individual size, to the high on the various kinds of mammals to make the subsequent energy requirements of endothermy, and thus to the inabil- discussions of mammalian biology meaningful. -
The World at the Time of Messel: Conference Volume
T. Lehmann & S.F.K. Schaal (eds) The World at the Time of Messel - Conference Volume Time at the The World The World at the Time of Messel: Puzzles in Palaeobiology, Palaeoenvironment and the History of Early Primates 22nd International Senckenberg Conference 2011 Frankfurt am Main, 15th - 19th November 2011 ISBN 978-3-929907-86-5 Conference Volume SENCKENBERG Gesellschaft für Naturforschung THOMAS LEHMANN & STEPHAN F.K. SCHAAL (eds) The World at the Time of Messel: Puzzles in Palaeobiology, Palaeoenvironment, and the History of Early Primates 22nd International Senckenberg Conference Frankfurt am Main, 15th – 19th November 2011 Conference Volume Senckenberg Gesellschaft für Naturforschung IMPRINT The World at the Time of Messel: Puzzles in Palaeobiology, Palaeoenvironment, and the History of Early Primates 22nd International Senckenberg Conference 15th – 19th November 2011, Frankfurt am Main, Germany Conference Volume Publisher PROF. DR. DR. H.C. VOLKER MOSBRUGGER Senckenberg Gesellschaft für Naturforschung Senckenberganlage 25, 60325 Frankfurt am Main, Germany Editors DR. THOMAS LEHMANN & DR. STEPHAN F.K. SCHAAL Senckenberg Research Institute and Natural History Museum Frankfurt Senckenberganlage 25, 60325 Frankfurt am Main, Germany [email protected]; [email protected] Language editors JOSEPH E.B. HOGAN & DR. KRISTER T. SMITH Layout JULIANE EBERHARDT & ANIKA VOGEL Cover Illustration EVELINE JUNQUEIRA Print Rhein-Main-Geschäftsdrucke, Hofheim-Wallau, Germany Citation LEHMANN, T. & SCHAAL, S.F.K. (eds) (2011). The World at the Time of Messel: Puzzles in Palaeobiology, Palaeoenvironment, and the History of Early Primates. 22nd International Senckenberg Conference. 15th – 19th November 2011, Frankfurt am Main. Conference Volume. Senckenberg Gesellschaft für Naturforschung, Frankfurt am Main. pp. 203. -
MARINE MAMMALS, EXTINCTIONS of Glenn R
MARINE MAMMALS, EXTINCTIONS OF Glenn R. VanBlaricom,* Leah R. Gerber,† and Robert L. Brownell, Jr.‡ *U.S. Geological Survey and University of Washington, †University of California, Santa Barbara, and ‡National Marine Fisheries Service I. Introduction principal source for taxonomic nomenclature, includ- II. Patterns and Case Studies of Extinction in ing common names, is the recent review of Rice (1998). Marine Mammals The order Cetacea includes whales, dolphins, and III. Discussion porpoises (Table I). The ‘‘pinnipedia’’ is a group of species in three families in the mammalian order Carni- vora (Table I). The pinnipeds include the seals, fur seals, sea lions, and walrus. The term pinnipedia is no I. INTRODUCTION longer recognized formally by marine mammal taxono- mists, but it continues to appear in the systematic ver- A. Taxonomic Definition of nacular as a matter of tradition and convenience. The order Sirenia includes the extant manatees and dugong ‘‘Marine Mammals’’ and the extinct Steller’s sea cow (Table I). The order The marine mammals include one extinct order and Desmostylia is the only recognized order of marine three major extant taxa that were or are fully aquatic, mammals to become entirely extinct. in most cases occurring entirely in the marine habitats Two largely terrestrial families of the order Carnivora of the major ocean basins and associated coastal seas also include species recognized as marine mammals and estuaries. In addition, a few species of largely terres- (Table I). Sea otters and chungungos (family Mustel- trial taxa are currently regarded as marine mammals. idae) live entirely or primarily in marine habitats. Polar We consider 127 recent mammal species in total to bears (family Ursidae) also spend a significant propor- be marine mammals for purposes of this review. -
West Indian Manatee (Trichechus Manatus) Habitat Characterization Using Side-Scan Sonar
Andrews University Digital Commons @ Andrews University Master's Theses Graduate Research 2017 West Indian Manatee (Trichechus Manatus) Habitat Characterization Using Side-Scan Sonar Mindy J. McLarty Andrews University, [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.andrews.edu/theses Part of the Biology Commons Recommended Citation McLarty, Mindy J., "West Indian Manatee (Trichechus Manatus) Habitat Characterization Using Side-Scan Sonar" (2017). Master's Theses. 98. https://digitalcommons.andrews.edu/theses/98 This Thesis is brought to you for free and open access by the Graduate Research at Digital Commons @ Andrews University. It has been accepted for inclusion in Master's Theses by an authorized administrator of Digital Commons @ Andrews University. For more information, please contact [email protected]. ABSTRACT WEST INDIAN MANATEE (TRICHECHUS MANATUS) HABITAT CHARACTERIZATION USING SIDE-SCAN SONAR by Mindy J. McLarty Chair: Daniel Gonzalez-Socoloske ABSTRACT OF GRADUATE STUDENT RESEARCH Thesis Andrews University School of Arts and Sciences Title: WEST INDIAN MANATEE (TRICHECHUS MANATUS) HABITAT CHARACTERIZATION USING SIDE-SCAN SONAR Name of researcher: Mindy J. McLarty Name and degree of faculty chair: Daniel Gonzalez-Socoloske, Ph.D. Date completed: April 2017 In this study, the reliability of low cost side-scan sonar to accurately identify soft substrates such as grass and mud was tested. Benthic substrates can be hard to classify from the surface, necessitating an alternative survey approach. A total area of 11.5 km2 was surveyed with the sonar in a large, brackish mangrove lagoon system. Individual points were ground-truthed for comparison with the sonar recordings to provide a measure of accuracy. -
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A new marine vertebrate assemblage from the Late Neogene Purisima Formation in Central California, part II: Pinnipeds and Cetaceans Robert W. BOESSENECKER Department of Geology, University of Otago, 360 Leith Walk, P.O. Box 56, Dunedin, 9054 (New Zealand) and Department of Earth Sciences, Montana State University 200 Traphagen Hall, Bozeman, MT, 59715 (USA) and University of California Museum of Paleontology 1101 Valley Life Sciences Building, Berkeley, CA, 94720 (USA) [email protected] Boessenecker R. W. 2013. — A new marine vertebrate assemblage from the Late Neogene Purisima Formation in Central California, part II: Pinnipeds and Cetaceans. Geodiversitas 35 (4): 815-940. http://dx.doi.org/g2013n4a5 ABSTRACT e newly discovered Upper Miocene to Upper Pliocene San Gregorio assem- blage of the Purisima Formation in Central California has yielded a diverse collection of 34 marine vertebrate taxa, including eight sharks, two bony fish, three marine birds (described in a previous study), and 21 marine mammals. Pinnipeds include the walrus Dusignathus sp., cf. D. seftoni, the fur seal Cal- lorhinus sp., cf. C. gilmorei, and indeterminate otariid bones. Baleen whales include dwarf mysticetes (Herpetocetus bramblei Whitmore & Barnes, 2008, Herpetocetus sp.), two right whales (cf. Eubalaena sp. 1, cf. Eubalaena sp. 2), at least three balaenopterids (“Balaenoptera” cortesi “var.” portisi Sacco, 1890, cf. Balaenoptera, Balaenopteridae gen. et sp. indet.) and a new species of rorqual (Balaenoptera bertae n. sp.) that exhibits a number of derived features that place it within the genus Balaenoptera. is new species of Balaenoptera is relatively small (estimated 61 cm bizygomatic width) and exhibits a comparatively nar- row vertex, an obliquely (but precipitously) sloping frontal adjacent to vertex, anteriorly directed and short zygomatic processes, and squamosal creases. -
Evolução, Hegemonia E Desaparecimento Dos Sirénios Dos Mares Europeus Ao Longo Do Cenozoico
Universidade de Lisboa Faculdade de Ciências Departamento de Geologia Evolução, hegemonia e desaparecimento dos sirénios dos mares europeus ao longo do Cenozoico causas endógenas (alterações climáticas globais) ou exógenas (ambiente galáctico)? Gonçalo Abreu Prista Dissertação Mestrado em Ciências do Mar 2012 Universidade de Lisboa Faculdade de Ciências Departamento de Geologia Evolução, hegemonia e desaparecimento dos sirénios dos mares europeus ao longo do Cenozoico causas endógenas (alterações climáticas globais) ou exógenas (ambiente galáctico)? Gonçalo Abreu Prista Dissertação Mestrado em Ciências do Mar Orientadores: Professor Doutor Mário Albino Cachão Professor Doutor Rui Jorge Agostinho 2012 EVOLUÇÃO, HEGEMONIA E DESAPARECIMENTO DOS SIRÉNIOS DOS MARES EUROPEUS AO LONGO DO CENOZOICO causas endógenas (alterações climáticas globais) ou exógenas (ambiente galáctico)? GONÇALO ABREU PRISTA ORIENTAÇÃO CIENTÍFICA: PROF. DOUTOR MÁRIO ALBINO PIO CACHÃO Professor Auxiliar Agregado do Departamento de Geologia da Faculdade de Ciências da Universidade de Lisboa Membro do Centro de Geologia da Universidade de Lisboa PROF. DOUTOR RUI JORGE AGOSTINHO Professor Auxiliar Agregado do Departamento de Física da Faculdade de Ciências da Universidade de Lisboa Membro do Centro de Astronomia e Astrofísica da Universidade de Lisboa Director do Observatório Astronómico de Lisboa iii "Graças aos descobrimentos da Paleontologia, a História Natural é História, no sentido literal da palavra" Albert Gaudry (1827 - 1908). "O azoto no nosso DNA, o cálcio nos nossos dentes, o ferro no nosso sangue, o carbono nas nossas tartes de maçã foram feitos no interior de estrelas em colapso. Nós somos feitos de material estelar" Carl Sagan (1934 - 1996) iv AGRADECIMENTOS Primeiro aos meus pais, pois sem o seu apoio, a todos os níveis, este mestrado e esta dissertação não seriam possíveis. -
Sirenian Feeding Apparatus: Functional Morphology of Feeding Involving Perioral Bristles and Associated Structures
THE SIRENIAN FEEDING APPARATUS: FUNCTIONAL MORPHOLOGY OF FEEDING INVOLVING PERIORAL BRISTLES AND ASSOCIATED STRUCTURES By CHRISTOPHER DOUGLAS MARSHALL A DISSERTATION PRESENTED TO THE GRADUATE SCHOOL OF THE UNrVERSITY OF FLORIDA IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REOUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY UNIVERSITY OF FLORIDA 1997 DEDICATION to us simply as I dedicate this work to the memory of J. Rooker (known "Rooker") and to sirenian conservation. Rooker was a subject involved in the study during the 1993 sampling year at Lowry Park Zoological Gardens. Rooker died during the red tide event in May of 1996; approximately 140 other manatees also died. During his rehabilitation at Lowry Park Zoo, Rooker provided much information regarding the mechanism of manatee feeding and use of the perioral bristles. The "mortality incident" involving the red tide event in southwest Florida during the summer of 1996 should serve as a reminder that the Florida manatee population and the status of all sirenians is precarious. Although some estimates suggest that the Florida manatee population may be stable, annual mortality numbers as well as habitat degradation continue to increase. Sirenian conservation and research efforts must continue. ii ACKNOWLEDGMENTS Research involving Florida manatees required that I work with several different government agencies and private parks. The staff of the Sirenia Project, U.S. Geological Service, Biological Resources Division - Florida Caribbean Science Center has been most helpful in conducting the behavioral aspect of this research and allowed this work to occur under their permit (U.S. Fish and Wildlife Permit number PRT-791721). Numerous conversations regarding manatee biology with Dr. -
A Statistical Analysis of Marine Mammal Dispersal Routes Across Major Ocean Regions Using Beta Diversity at the Generic Level
A Statistical Analysis of Marine Mammal Dispersal Routes Across Major Ocean Regions Using Beta Diversity at the Generic Level A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science at George Mason University By Carlos Mauricio Peredo Bachelor of Science Seton Hill University, 2012 Director: Mark D. Uhen, Assistant Professor Department of Atmospheric, Oceanic and Earth Sciences Spring Semester 2015 George Mason University Fairfax, VA Copyright 2015 Carlos Mauricio Peredo All Rights Reserved ii DEDICATION Dedicated to my wonderful parents, Mauricio and Julie Peredo, who left behind everything they knew and started fresh in a foreign land purely in the pursuit of a better life for their children; to my older brother Miguel, whose witty humor, eternal optimism, and fierce loyalty has kept my head above water and a smile on my face throughout countless tribulations; to my younger brother Julio, who has far surpassed us all in talent and intellect, and who inspires me to never stop learning; and most of all, to my loving wife Molly, who has never stopped believing in me and drives me to settle for nothing less than perfection. iii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I would like to thank my committee members, Drs. George, Lyons, and Parsons, for their tireless revisions and hard work on my behalf. I would like to thank George Mason University and the Smithsonian Institution for providing the support and inspiration for much of this project. I would like to thank the Paleobiology Database, and all of its contributors, for their ambitious vision and their relentless pursuit of its execution. -
The Giant Sea Mammal That Went Extinct in Less Than Three Decades
The Giant Sea Mammal That Went Extinct in Less Than Three Decades The quick disappearance of the 30-foot animal helped to usher in the modern science of human-caused extinctions. JACOB MIKANOWSKI, THE ATLANTIC 4/19/17 HTTPS://WWW.THEATLANTIC.COM/SCIENCE/ARCHIVE/2017/04/PLEIST OSEACOW/522831/ The Pleistocene, the geologic era immediately preceding our own, was an age of giants. North America was home to mastodons and saber-tooth cats; mammoths and wooly rhinos roamed Eurasia; giant lizards and bear-sized wombats strode across the Australian outback. Most of these giants died at the by the end of the last Ice Age, some 14,000 years ago. Whether this wave of extinctions was caused by climate change, overhunting by humans, or some combination of both remains a subject of intense debate among scientists. Complicating the picture, though, is the fact that a few Pleistocene giants survived the Quaternary extinction event and nearly made it intact to the present. Most of these survivor species found refuge on islands. Giant sloths were still living on Cuba 6,000 years ago, long after their relatives on the mainland had died out. The last wooly mammoths died out just 4,000 years ago. They lived in a small herd on Wrangel Island north of the Bering Strait between the Chukchi and East Siberian Seas. Two-thousand years ago, gorilla-sized lemurs were still living on Madagascar. A thousand years ago, 12-foot-tall moa birds were still foraging in the forests of New Zealand. Unlike the other long-lived megafauna, Steller’s sea cows, one of the last of the Pleistocene survivors to die out, found their refuge in a remote scrape of the ocean instead of on land. -
Constraints on the Timescale of Animal Evolutionary History
Palaeontologia Electronica palaeo-electronica.org Constraints on the timescale of animal evolutionary history Michael J. Benton, Philip C.J. Donoghue, Robert J. Asher, Matt Friedman, Thomas J. Near, and Jakob Vinther ABSTRACT Dating the tree of life is a core endeavor in evolutionary biology. Rates of evolution are fundamental to nearly every evolutionary model and process. Rates need dates. There is much debate on the most appropriate and reasonable ways in which to date the tree of life, and recent work has highlighted some confusions and complexities that can be avoided. Whether phylogenetic trees are dated after they have been estab- lished, or as part of the process of tree finding, practitioners need to know which cali- brations to use. We emphasize the importance of identifying crown (not stem) fossils, levels of confidence in their attribution to the crown, current chronostratigraphic preci- sion, the primacy of the host geological formation and asymmetric confidence intervals. Here we present calibrations for 88 key nodes across the phylogeny of animals, rang- ing from the root of Metazoa to the last common ancestor of Homo sapiens. Close attention to detail is constantly required: for example, the classic bird-mammal date (base of crown Amniota) has often been given as 310-315 Ma; the 2014 international time scale indicates a minimum age of 318 Ma. Michael J. Benton. School of Earth Sciences, University of Bristol, Bristol, BS8 1RJ, U.K. [email protected] Philip C.J. Donoghue. School of Earth Sciences, University of Bristol, Bristol, BS8 1RJ, U.K. [email protected] Robert J.