A Report on Late Quaternary Vertebrate Fossil Assemblages from the Eastern San Francisco Bay Region, California
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Open Thesis Final V2.Pdf
The Pennsylvania State University The Graduate School Department of the Geosciences TAXONOMIC AND ECOLOGIC IMPLICATIONS OF MAMMOTH MOLAR MORPHOLOGY AS MEASURED VIA COMPUTED TOMOGRAPHY A Thesis in Geosciences by Gregory J Smith 2015 Gregory J Smith Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Master of Science August 2015 ii The thesis of Gregory J Smith was reviewed and approved* by the following: Russell W. Graham EMS Museum Director and Professor of the Geosciences Thesis Advisor Mark Patzkowsky Professor of the Geosciences Eric Post Director of the Polar Center and Professor of Biology Timothy Ryan Associate Professor of Anthropology and Information Sciences and Technology Michael Arthur Professor of the Geosciences Interim Associate Head for Graduate Programs and Research *Signatures are on file in the Graduate School iii ABSTRACT Two Late Pleistocene species of Mammuthus, M. columbi and M. primigenius, prove difficult to identify on the basis of their third molar (M3) morphology alone due to the effects of dental wear. A newly-erupted, relatively unworn M3 exhibits drastically different characters than that tooth would after a lifetime of wear. On a highly-worn molar, the lophs that comprise the occlusal surface are more broadly spaced and the enamel ridges thicken in comparison to these respective characters on an unworn molar. Since Mammuthus taxonomy depends on the lamellar frequency (# of lophs/decimeter of occlusal surface) and enamel thickness of the third molar, given the effects of wear it becomes apparent that these taxonomic characters are variable throughout the tooth’s life. Therefore, employing static taxonomic identifications that are based on dynamic attributes is a fundamentally flawed practice. -
The Easternmost Occurrence of Mammut Pacificus (Proboscidea: Mammutidae), Based on a Partial Skull from Eastern Montana, USA
The easternmost occurrence of Mammut pacificus (Proboscidea: Mammutidae), based on a partial skull from eastern Montana, USA Andrew T. McDonald1, Amy L. Atwater2, Alton C. Dooley Jr1 and Charlotte J.H. Hohman2,3 1 Western Science Center, Hemet, CA, United States of America 2 Museum of the Rockies, Montana State University, Bozeman, MT, United States of America 3 Department of Earth Sciences, Montana State University, Bozeman, MT, United States of America ABSTRACT Mammut pacificus is a recently described species of mastodon from the Pleistocene of California and Idaho. We report the easternmost occurrence of this taxon based upon the palate with right and left M3 of an adult male from the Irvingtonian of eastern Montana. The undamaged right M3 exhibits the extreme narrowness that characterizes M. pacificus rather than M. americanum. The Montana specimen dates to an interglacial interval between pre-Illinoian and Illinoian glaciation, perhaps indicating that M. pacificus was extirpated in the region due to habitat shifts associated with glacial encroachment. Subjects Biogeography, Evolutionary Studies, Paleontology, Zoology Keywords Mammut pacificus, Mammutidae, Montana, Irvingtonian, Pleistocene INTRODUCTION Submitted 7 May 2020 The recent recognition of the Pacific mastodon (Mammut pacificus (Dooley Jr et al., 2019)) Accepted 3 September 2020 as a new species distinct from and contemporaneous with the American mastodon Published 16 November 2020 (M. americanum) revealed an unrealized complexity in North American mammutid Corresponding author evolution during the Pleistocene. Dooley Jr et al. (2019) distinguished M. pacificus from Andrew T. McDonald, [email protected] M. americanum by a suite of dental and skeletal features: (1) upper third molars (M3) Academic editor and lower third molars (m3) much narrower relative to length in M. -
The American Mastodon Mammut Americanum in Mexico
The American Mastodon Mammut americanum in Mexico O.J. Polaco1, J. Arroyo-Cabrales1, E. Corona-M.1, J.G. López-Oliva2 1Laboratorio de Paleozoología, Instituto Nacional de Antropología e Historia, D.F. México - [email protected], [email protected], [email protected] 2Facultad de Ciencias de la Tierra, Universidad Autónoma de Nuevo León, Linares, México - [email protected] SUMMARY: Aim of this study is to clarify the occurrence of the American mastodon Mammut americanum at the southern portion of its distribution. Twenty-three specimens from 15 localities in Mexico have been recorded, most of them from the Central Plateau, up to an altitude of 1500 meters above sea level, and to the east of the country. In addition, the mammoth Mammuthus and the American mastodon are contemporaneous in three localities, and mastodon possible association with man in two localities. Their southernmost record is from Honduras. Our data indicate that the American mastodon is a rare taxon at the southern portion of its distribution, which could be related to the presence and possible feeding overlap with the gomphothere Cuvieronius. 1. INTRODUCTION Central America (Honduras; Lucas & Alvarado 1991). However, the presence of From 1996 to1998, an electronic database American Mastodon is not clearly document- on Late Quaternary mammals of Mexico was ed or is relatively scarce in the fossil record developed with a similar structure to the from México, as it is only known from few FAUNMAP project in the United States of localities in the Mexican Plateau (Polaco et al. America. The purpose was to gather, verify 1998). -
La Brea and Beyond: the Paleontology of Asphalt-Preserved Biotas
La Brea and Beyond: The Paleontology of Asphalt-Preserved Biotas Edited by John M. Harris Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County Science Series 42 September 15, 2015 Cover Illustration: Pit 91 in 1915 An asphaltic bone mass in Pit 91 was discovered and exposed by the Los Angeles County Museum of History, Science and Art in the summer of 1915. The Los Angeles County Museum of Natural History resumed excavation at this site in 1969. Retrieval of the “microfossils” from the asphaltic matrix has yielded a wealth of insect, mollusk, and plant remains, more than doubling the number of species recovered by earlier excavations. Today, the current excavation site is 900 square feet in extent, yielding fossils that range in age from about 15,000 to about 42,000 radiocarbon years. Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County Archives, RLB 347. LA BREA AND BEYOND: THE PALEONTOLOGY OF ASPHALT-PRESERVED BIOTAS Edited By John M. Harris NO. 42 SCIENCE SERIES NATURAL HISTORY MUSEUM OF LOS ANGELES COUNTY SCIENTIFIC PUBLICATIONS COMMITTEE Luis M. Chiappe, Vice President for Research and Collections John M. Harris, Committee Chairman Joel W. Martin Gregory Pauly Christine Thacker Xiaoming Wang K. Victoria Brown, Managing Editor Go Online to www.nhm.org/scholarlypublications for open access to volumes of Science Series and Contributions in Science. Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County Los Angeles, California 90007 ISSN 1-891276-27-1 Published on September 15, 2015 Printed at Allen Press, Inc., Lawrence, Kansas PREFACE Rancho La Brea was a Mexican land grant Basin during the Late Pleistocene—sagebrush located to the west of El Pueblo de Nuestra scrub dotted with groves of oak and juniper with Sen˜ora la Reina de los A´ ngeles del Rı´ode riparian woodland along the major stream courses Porciu´ncula, now better known as downtown and with chaparral vegetation on the surrounding Los Angeles. -
(Mammut Americanum) from Fulton County, Indiana
University of Nebraska - Lincoln DigitalCommons@University of Nebraska - Lincoln USGS Staff -- Published Research US Geological Survey 1-2008 The Overmyer Mastodon (Mammut americanum) from Fulton County, Indiana Neal Woodman USGS Patuxent Wildlife Research Center, [email protected] Jon W. Branstrator Earlham College, [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.unl.edu/usgsstaffpub Woodman, Neal and Branstrator, Jon W., "The Overmyer Mastodon (Mammut americanum) from Fulton County, Indiana" (2008). USGS Staff -- Published Research. 581. https://digitalcommons.unl.edu/usgsstaffpub/581 This Article is brought to you for free and open access by the US Geological Survey at DigitalCommons@University of Nebraska - Lincoln. It has been accepted for inclusion in USGS Staff -- Published Research by an authorized administrator of DigitalCommons@University of Nebraska - Lincoln. The American Midland Naturalist January 2008 : Vol. 159, Issue 1 (Jan 2008), pg(s) 125-146 Am. Midl. Nat. 159:125–146 The Overmyer Mastodon (Mammut americanum) from Fulton County, Indiana NEAL WOODMAN1 USGS Patuxent Wildlife Research Center, National Museum of Natural History MRC-111, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC 20013 AND JON W. BRANSTRATOR2 Geosciences Department, Earlham College, Richmond, Indiana 47374 ABSTRACT.—In June 1978 the partial skeleton of an American mastodon, Mammut americanum, was salvaged from a drainage ditch in Fulton County, north-central Indiana. The remains were recovered mostly from ca. 170–260 cm below the current land surface in marl overlain by peat and peaty marl. The stratigraphy of the site indicates that the remains were deposited in a small, open-water pond that subsequently filled. The skeleton, which is 41–48% complete, is that of a mature female, ca. -
Paleobiogeography of Trilophodont Gomphotheres (Mammalia: Proboscidea)
Revista Mexicana deTrilophodont Ciencias Geológicas, gomphotheres. v. 28, Anúm. reconstruction 2, 2011, p. applying235-244 DIVA (Dispersion-Vicariance Analysis) 235 Paleobiogeography of trilophodont gomphotheres (Mammalia: Proboscidea). A reconstruction applying DIVA (Dispersion-Vicariance Analysis) María Teresa Alberdi1,*, José Luis Prado2, Edgardo Ortiz-Jaureguizar3, Paula Posadas3, and Mariano Donato1 1 Departamento de Paleobiología, Museo Nacional de Ciencias Naturales, CSIC, José Gutiérrez Abascal 2, 28006, Madrid, España. 2 INCUAPA, Departamento de Arqueología, Universidad Nacional del Centro, Del Valle 5737, B7400JWI Olavarría, Argentina. 3 LASBE, Facultad de Ciencias Naturales y Museo, Universidad Nacional de La Plata, Paseo del Bosque S/Nº, B1900FWA La Plata, Argentina. * [email protected] ABSTRACT The objective of our paper was to analyze the distributional patterns of trilophodont gomphotheres, applying an event-based biogeographic method. We have attempted to interpret the biogeographical history of trilophodont gomphotheres in the context of the geological evolution of the continents they inhabited during the Cenozoic. To reconstruct this biogeographic history we used DIVA 1.1. This application resulted in an exact solution requiring three vicariant events, and 15 dispersal events, most of them (i.e., 14) occurring at terminal taxa. The single dispersal event at an internal node affected the common ancestor to Sinomastodon plus the clade Cuvieronius – Stegomastodon. A vicariant event took place which resulted in two isolated groups: (1) Amebelodontinae (Africa – Europe – Asia) and (2) Gomphotheriinae (North America). The Amebelodontinae clade was split by a second vicariant event into Archaeobelodon (Africa and Europe), and the ancestors of the remaining genera of the clade (Asia). In contrast, the Gomphotheriinae clade evolved mainly in North America. -
Backgrounder
BACKGROUNDER Mammoths: Giants of the Ice Age Exhibition Walk Through Mammoths: Giants of the Ice Age will transport people back to a time great beasts dominated the world and ancient peoples struggled to survive in a rapidly changing environment. During the Ice Age, mammoths would have existed right here in British Columbia. The Royal BC Museum’s refreshed Natural History gallery, opening at the same time as the feature exhibition, will help tell this story, linking the rise and decline of mammoths around the world to mammoths here in BC. The exhibition gives visitors unique opportunities to: Discover Mammoth and Mastodon Origins and Evolutionary Adaptations The family tree of elephants, mammoths, and mastodons can be traced back 55 million years when the proboscidean (pronounced pro-bo-SID-e-an) order originated in Africa. Trunks and tusks are the hallmark of proboscideans. In the first section of the exhibition, visitors encounter a full-size model of Moeritherium (Mer-i-THER-ee-um), an ancient cousin of mammoths, mastodons and elephants, displayed as it might have looked grazing in a North African wetland some 35 million years ago. Surprisingly, Moeritherium did not resemble its later cousins – it was somewhat larger than a modern- day tapir, but with short legs, a relatively long body, and a short tail. This introductory section also features a proboscidean family tree with touchable scale models of family members, including a woolly mammoth, a Columbian mammoth, and an American mastodon. The family tree illustrates how mastodons split off, forming the Mammutidae family – now extinct – while mammoths and elephants are part of the Elephantidae family. -
Remains of Zygolophodon Turicensis (Proboscidea, Mammutidae) from the Coal Mines Near Bitola, Republic of Macedonia
Remains of Zygolophodon turicensis (Proboscidea, Mammutidae) from the coal mines... 157 Historia naturalis bulgarica, 20: 157-162, 2012 Remains of Zygolophodon turicensis (Proboscidea, Mammutidae) from the coal mines near Bitola, Republic of Macedonia Risto GAREVSKI, Biljana GAREVSKA, Georgi N. MARKOV GAREVSKI R., GAREVSKA B., MARKOV G.N. 2012. Remains of Zygolophodon turicensis (Proboscidea, Mammutidae) from the coal mines near Bitola, Republic of Macedonia. – Historia naturalis bulgarica, 20: 157-162. Abstract. We report Zygolophodon turicensis (Schinz, 1824) from the Miocene deposits in a coal mine near Bitola, Republic of Macedonia, and refer a misidentified molar from Nerezi near Skopje published in the 1930s to the same species. Zygolophodon turicensis is a new taxon to the fossil fauna of Macedonia, and the finds discussed in the paper are among the few fossils of pre-Turolian age from the country. Key words: Proboscidea, Mammutidae, Zygolophodon, Miocene, Macedonia Introduction The specimens described below are an accidental find from the coal mines of the thermal power station near Bitola in the southwest of the Republic of Macedonia. Found in sandy deposits, the molars most probably belong to the same individual. Material and methods Material: Left and right m2-m3, coal mine near Bitola, stored at the Bitola Natural History Museum (BiNHM), coll. no. 13536. Methods: Dental nomenclature follows TASSY (1996). Measurements (in mm) taken by B. Garevska. Systematic palaeontology Order Proboscidea Illiger, 1811 Family Mammutidae Hay, 1922 Genus Zygolophodon Vacek, 1877 Zygolophodon turicensis (Schinz, 1824) All four molars (Fig.1, Fig. 2) are in a rather good condition. The left m2 is preserved very well. -
ELEPHANT MANAGEMENT Contributing Authors
ELEPHANT MANAGEMENT Contributing Authors Brandon Anthony, Graham Avery, Dave Balfour, Jon Barnes, Roy Bengis, Henk Bertschinger, Harry C Biggs, James Blignaut, André Boshoff, Jane Carruthers, Guy Castley, Tony Conway, Warwick Davies-Mostert, Yolande de Beer, Willem F de Boer, Martin de Wit, Audrey Delsink, Saliem Fakir, Sam Ferreira, Andre Ganswindt, Marion Garaï, Angela Gaylard, Katie Gough, C C (Rina) Grant, Douw G Grobler, Rob Guldemond, Peter Hartley, Michelle Henley, Markus Hofmeyr, Lisa Hopkinson, Tim Jackson, Jessi Junker, Graham I H Kerley, Hanno Killian, Jay Kirkpatrick, Laurence Kruger, Marietjie Landman, Keith Lindsay, Rob Little, H P P (Hennie) Lötter, Robin L Mackey, Hector Magome, Johan H Malan, Wayne Matthews, Kathleen G Mennell, Pieter Olivier, Theresia Ott, Norman Owen-Smith, Bruce Page, Mike Peel, Michele Pickover, Mogobe Ramose, Jeremy Ridl, Robert J Scholes, Rob Slotow, Izak Smit, Morgan Trimble, Wayne Twine, Rudi van Aarde, J J van Altena, Marius van Staden, Ian Whyte ELEPHANT MANAGEMENT A Scientific Assessment for South Africa Edited by R J Scholes and K G Mennell Wits University Press 1 Jan Smuts Avenue Johannesburg 2001 South Africa http://witspress.wits.ac.za Entire publication © 2008 by Wits University Press Introduction and chapters © 2008 by Individual authors ISBN 978 1 86814 479 2 All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the express permission, in writing, of both the author and the publisher. Cover photograph by Donald Cook at stock.xchng Cover design, layout and design by Acumen Publishing Solutions, Johannesburg Printed and bound by Creda Communications, Cape Town FOREWORD SOUTH AFRICA and its people are blessed with diverse and thriving wildlife. -
Redalyc.FOSSIL PROBOSCIDEA from the UPPER CENOZOIC OF
Revista Geológica de América Central ISSN: 0256-7024 [email protected] Universidad de Costa Rica Costa Rica Lucas, Spencer G.; Alvarado, Guillermo E. FOSSIL PROBOSCIDEA FROM THE UPPER CENOZOIC OF CENTRAL AMERICA: TAXONOMY, EVOLUTIONARY AND PALEOBIOGEOGRAPHIC SIGNIFICANCE Revista Geológica de América Central, núm. 42, 2010, pp. 9-42 Universidad de Costa Rica San José, Costa Rica Disponible en: http://www.redalyc.org/articulo.oa?id=45437349001 Cómo citar el artículo Número completo Sistema de Información Científica Más información del artículo Red de Revistas Científicas de América Latina, el Caribe, España y Portugal Página de la revista en redalyc.org Proyecto académico sin fines de lucro, desarrollado bajo la iniciativa de acceso abierto Revista Geológica de América Central, 42: 9-42, 2010 ISSN: 0256-7024 FOSSIL PROBOSCIDEA FROM THE UPPER CENOZOIC OF CENTRAL AMERICA: TAXONOMY, EVOLUTIONARY AND PALEOBIOGEOGRAPHIC SIGNIFICANCE Proboscideos FÓsiles del Cenozoico Superior de AMÉrica Central: TaxonomÍA, evoluciÓN Y significado paleogeogrÁfico Spencer G. Lucas1* & Guillermo E. Alvarado2 1New Mexico Museum of Natural History and Science, 1801 Mountain Road N.W., Albuquerque, New Mexico 87104 USA 2Escuela Centroamericana de Geología, Universidad de Costa Rica, Apdo. 214, 2060, San José, Costa Rica *Autor para contacto: [email protected] (Recibido: 03/02/2010; aceptado: 22/06/2010) ABSTRACT: Fossils of proboscideans from Central America are assigned to four genera: Gomphotherium, Cuvieronius, Mammut and Mammuthus. Previous reports of Stegomastodon, Rhynchotherium and Haplomastodon from Central Amer- ica are based on incorrect taxonomic identifications or on fossils not definitely diagnostic of these genera. The oldest proboscidean records from Central America (Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, and Costa Rica) are Late Miocene (early Hemphillian, ~ 7 Ma) records of Gomphotherium, and this suggests that gomphotheres dispersed from North America to Central America about nine million years after they dispersed from Asia to North America. -
Mammalia: Proboscidea: Gomphotheriidae) from the Continental Shelf, Pearl Islands, Panama
Quaternary International xxx (2015) 1e14 Contents lists available at ScienceDirect Quaternary International journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/quaint Forum communication Quaternary gomphotheres (Mammalia: Proboscidea: Gomphotheriidae) from the continental shelf, Pearl Islands, Panama * Gary S. Morgan a, , Bruce J. MacFadden b, Martín Martínez c a New Mexico Museum of Natural History, Albuquerque, NM 87104, USA b Florida Museum of Natural History, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32611, USA c Museo de Ciencias Naturales de Panama, Panama City, Panama article info abstract Article history: Fishermen have recovered four Quaternary proboscidean teeth from the continental shelf in the vicinity Available online xxx of the Pearl Islands, about 50e80 km offshore from the southern coast of Panama. Two upper third molars (M3) and one lower third molar (m3) are similar to comparable teeth of the Pleistocene gom- Keywords: phothere Cuvieronius based on the presence of 4½ to 5½ lophs/lophids that are either horizontal or Pearl Islands slightly inclined to long axis of the tooth and rather complicated enamel with single trefoils, incipient Panama double trefoils, and numerous small accessory cusps. Cuvieronius is also known from the Pleistocene El Pleistocene Hatillo and La Trinidaíta sites from the Azuero Peninsula in Panama. The teeth of Cuvieronius from the Gomphothere Cuvieronius Pearl Islands are referred to C. hyodon following recent taxonomic revisions indicating a single pan- American species of this genus was present in both North America and South America. The oldest re- cords of Cuvieronius are from early Pleistocene (early Irvingtonian) faunas in El Salvador, Florida, and New Mexico. Cuvieronius dispersed to South America in the early Pleistocene during the Great American Biotic Interchange, with the earliest record of C. -
Paleontological Resource Inventory and Monitoring, Upper Columbia Basin Network
National Park Service U.S. Department of the Interior Upper Columbia Basin Network Paleontological Resource Inventory and Monitoring UPPER COLUMBIA BASIN NETWORK Paleontological Resource Inventory and Monitoring \ UPPER COLUMBIA BASIN NETWORK Jason P. Kenworthy Inventory and Monitoring Contractor George Washington Memorial Parkway Vincent L. Santucci Chief Ranger George Washington Memorial Parkway Michaleen McNerney Paleontological Intern Seattle, WA Kathryn Snell Paleontological Intern Seattle, WA August 2005 National Park Service, TIC #D-259 NOTE: This report provides baseline paleontological resource data to National Park Service administration and resource management staff. The report contains information regarding the location of non-renewable paleontological resources within NPS units. It is not intended for distribution to the general public. On the Cover: Well-preserved skull of the “Hagerman Horse”, Equus simplicidens , from Hagerman Fossil Beds National Monument. Equus simplicidens is the earliest, most primitive known representative of the modern horse genus Equus and the state fossil of Idaho. For more information, see page 17. Photo: NPS/Smithsonian Institution. How to cite this document: Kenworthy, J.P., V. L. Santucci, M. McNerney, and K. Snell. 2005. Paleontological Resource Inventory and Monitoring, Upper Columbia Basin Network. National Park Service TIC# D-259. TABLE OF CONTENTS INTRODUCTION ...................................................................................................................................1