DOCSLIB.ORG

The ECPHORA the Newsletter of the Calvert Marine Museum Fossil Club Volume 31  Number 3 September 2016

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
The ECPHORA the Newsletter of the Calvert Marine Museum Fossil Club Volume 31  Number 3 September 2016 The ECPHORA The Newsletter of the Calvert Marine Museum Fossil Club Volume 31 Number 3 September 2016 Features Photographic Atlas of Alligator and Thecachampsa Big Crocodilians The Theology of the Situation is this… Upcoming Sculpting Workshop/Lecture Inside Land Shark Meg Monroe Gold Shark Pendants Urchin Preserves Spines Ellwood Donations Fish Scales in Coprolite SharkFest Paleo Summer Interns Young Paleontologist Klipspringer Horn Dino Coins and Stamps No Shores at Western Shores St. Marys Crabs During the Miocene epoch, large crocodilians lived in a warmer Burrow Bonanza southern Maryland. Their fossilized remains are now found along Club Events Calvert Cliffs. By providing a detailed annotated photographic atlas of the skeleton of the living Alligator, this work, authored by George Saturday, September 17th, F. Klein, will help identify the fossilized bony remains of 2016, 2 pm. Sculpting Thecachampsa - the marine crocodilian that shared its habitat with demonstration by Jeri the likes of megalodon. Cuffley and Erin Baker on how to use polymer clays. This volume is now available as an open source See examples of their work on page 5. Their sculptural PDF at: work has appeared in http://www.calvertmarinemuseum.com/276/CMM-Publications previous issues of The Ecphora. Print copies will also be available for sale. ☼ CALVERT MARINE MUSEUM www.calvertmarinemuseum.com 2 The Ecphora September 2016 Big Crocodilians originally excavated by Louis Leakey, the famous paleoanthropologist and his team (2, 3) in the 1970s. Part I Brochu and Storrs (2) recently named a very large crocodile found in the Turkana basin of Kenya. George F. Klein They classified it as a “true” crocodile, that is, a member of the genus Crocodylus. It far exceeds any There have been some recent discoveries in modern crocodile in size and may have been up to 28 crocodilian paleontology and biology that I thought feet in length. Named Crocodylus thorbjarnarsoni to would interest readers. honor the recently deceased crocodilian biologist, Dr. John Thorbjarnarson, it lived between 5 and 1.5 Ex Africa I million years ago. C. thorbjarnarsoni would have been the Earlier this year, a giant marine crocodile largest carnivore in that particular fossil ecosystem was discovered in the Cretaceous deposits of Tunisia and would have definitely been a threat to early (1), dated to about 120 million years before present. human ancestors of the area. Homo habilis would The croc was discovered by the Italian paleontologist have been the most advanced human ancestor of that Federico Fanti and his team, with the support of the time period, although australopithecines may have National Geographic Society. The crocodile is also been present in the fossil ecosystem. However, named Machimosaurus rex and is a teleosaurid, a there is no direct evidence, such as crocodile bite true marine crocodile. At 31 ft. (9.6 meters) in length marks on hominid bones, that link C. and 3 tons in weight, it was among the largest thorbjarnarsoni to attacks on H. sapiens ancestors. crocodiles ever. Figure 2: C. thorbjarnarsoni, a modern Nile Figure 1: The skull of Machimosaurus. I estimate Crocodile (Crocodylus niloticus), a human ancestor that its skull would be around 5.5 ft. in length. and a modern human compared. Teleosaurids were previously thought to have Another crocodile named by Brochu and died off in the Jurassic, but apparently not; they colleagues (3), Crocodylus anthropophagus, has survived into the Cretaceous. definitely been linked to attacks on early hominids. They were true marine crocs, spending all or Its name means “human eating crocodile”. Bite most of their life in the ocean. Judging from its marks have been found on fossil hominid bones, stocky, blunt teeth, Machimosaurus was probably a possibly Homo habilis, from the famous Olduvai generalist predator. Sea turtles were most likely Gorge location in Tanzania. C. anthropophagus was favored as prey by this huge animal. probably not as large as C. thorbjarnarsoni, however. Ex Africa II C. anthropophagus was not a large crocodile, about 10 feet in overall length. What makes it Chris Brochu of the University of Iowa (Iowa distinctive are prominent horn-like structures present City) has been examining fossil crocodiles from on the squamosal bone of the skull. It might have Africa. Much of what he has been examining was looked similar to the living Cuban crocodile, shown in Figure 3 below. Newsletter website: http://calvertmarinemuseum.com/204/The-Ecphora-Newsletter 3 The Ecphora September 2016 Unfortunately, Lolong died in 2013 after a typhoon struck this area of the Philippines. A necropsy revealed that congestive heart failure compounded by fungal pneumonia, lipidosis of the liver and kidney failure. There was also damage to some of his internal organs, probably caused by resting on the hard concrete of his enclosure. Essentially Lolong’s immune system was compromised, and the temperature drop that preceded the typhoon was probably the final straw. Next Issue: Part II, Big Alligators Figure 3: The extant Cuban crocodile, Crocodylus References rhombifer. Note horn-like projections behind the eye. 1) http://news.nationalgeographic.com/2016/01/ Lolong 160111-ancient-crocodile-marine-largest- paleontology/ In 2011, reports surfaced of a giant living salt water crocodile (Crocodylus porosus) that was 2) Brochu, C. A. and G. W. Storrs “A Giant captured in a remote village in the Philippines. Dr. Crocodile from the Plio-Pleistocene of Adam Britton, a crocodile biologist from Australia, Kenya, the Phylogenetic Relationships of travelled to the village and performed accurate Neogene African Crocodylines and the measurements on the crocodile. The animal named Antiquity of Crocodylus in Africa” Journal of Lolong, measured 20 feet 3 inches long and weighed Vertebrate Paleontology, Vol. 32 (3): p. 587, in at 2370 lbs! May 2012 The crocodile was named for Ernesto “Lolong” Goloran Cañete, a noted Filipino crocodile 3) Brochu C. A. et al “A New Horned Crocodile hunter, who died while in pursuit of the crocodile. from the Plio-Pleistocene Hominid sites at Lolong (the man) was not killed by the crocodile, but Olduvai Gorge, Tanzania” PLoS One Vol. 5 died in his sleep one night during the pursuit. See (2): e9333 February 2010 below for a photograph of Lolong after capture. The people of the village deserve a lot of credit for not killing the crocodile, as it was linked to the death of 4) http://crocodilian.blogspot.com/2013/05/what a girl travelling by canoe to school. -really-killed-lolong.html ☼ 3D Models of Vertebrate Skulls If you like 3D models of vertebrate skulls, vasculature, and endocasts, visit WitmerLab at: http://www.ohio.edu/people/witmerl/3D- Visualization.htm Submitted by D. Morgan ☼ Figure 4: Lolong after capture. Newsletter website: http://calvertmarinemuseum.com/204/The-Ecphora-Newsletter 4 The Ecphora September 2016 The Theology of the Situation is Some vertebrae are very complex and have lots of openings and processes and hollow spaces. Theropod this… and sauropod vertebrae can be pretty distinctive. Hadrosaur vertebrae are not very distinctive, Editor’s Note: Fellow Vertebrate Paleontologist, Dr. especially if they come from the middle or end of the Peter Dodson (University of Pennsylvania) tail. If the neural spines and transverse processes are composed the following in response to a series of lacking there is little distinctive. In the same region questions from a sincere Young Earth Creationist. of South Dakota where the fossil came from there The individual wanted Dr. Dodson to analyze a lived during the Ice Age large mammals such as supposed hadrosaur bone for C14 and he predicted bison and mammoths. I would wonder, particularly if that it would give a young age. I think it is a the bones seem “unfossilized” as you described wonderful example on how-best to respond. Dr. them, if the vertebra came from an Ice Age mammal Dodson’s comments were lightly edited and included instead of a hadrosaur. The other thing is that I know here with his permission. that dinosaur bones exposed on the surface of the ground can be a substrate for lichens. I have seen this You asked a series of very pointed questions in Alberta. Now lichens are very slow-growing, and about what conclusion I would draw if the can live for centuries or millennia. This could presumptive dinosaur sample showed a young age. conceivably be another source of carbon for a young You in effect are asking if I would turn my back on date. two centuries of hard-won paleontological I will tell you another interesting fact. knowledge. In fairness I would have to ask you the Paleontologists rarely if ever date bones themselves. same question: would you abandon your faith in a Instead the dates cited come from the rocks that young earth if the sample came back negative? I surround the bones. The best rocks are volcanic suspect that you would not do so, nor should you. ashes or, more rarely, lava flows. These volcanic Did Jesus not say, "You shall not put the Lord your events record single events sharply differentiated in God to the test?" (Matthew 4: 7). Although I am a time. The Hell Creek Formation is well dated by Christian who does not believe in a young earth, I rocks within, above and below it. never try to impose my beliefs on those who do. I Are these dates potentially wrong? Perhaps, have a very dear friend who is a Seventh Day but if so, why is anything in science correct? The Adventist. She and I do not agree on the age of the theology of the situation is this. God gave us brains earth, but we both understand that this is not what and expects us to use them. We do not praise God makes us Christians.
Load more

Recommended publications
  • A New Microvertebrate Assemblage from the Mussentuchit
    A new microvertebrate assemblage from the Mussentuchit Member, Cedar Mountain Formation: insights into the paleobiodiversity and paleobiogeography of early Late Cretaceous ecosystems in western North America Haviv M. Avrahami1,2,3, Terry A. Gates1, Andrew B. Heckert3, Peter J. Makovicky4 and Lindsay E. Zanno1,2 1 Department of Biological Sciences, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC, USA 2 North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences, Raleigh, NC, USA 3 Department of Geological and Environmental Sciences, Appalachian State University, Boone, NC, USA 4 Field Museum of Natural History, Chicago, IL, USA ABSTRACT The vertebrate fauna of the Late Cretaceous Mussentuchit Member of the Cedar Mountain Formation has been studied for nearly three decades, yet the fossil-rich unit continues to produce new information about life in western North America approximately 97 million years ago. Here we report on the composition of the Cliffs of Insanity (COI) microvertebrate locality, a newly sampled site containing perhaps one of the densest concentrations of microvertebrate fossils yet discovered in the Mussentuchit Member. The COI locality preserves osteichthyan, lissamphibian, testudinatan, mesoeucrocodylian, dinosaurian, metatherian, and trace fossil remains and is among the most taxonomically rich microvertebrate localities in the Mussentuchit Submitted 30 May 2018 fi fi Accepted 8 October 2018 Member. To better re ne taxonomic identi cations of isolated theropod dinosaur Published 16 November 2018 teeth, we used quantitative analyses of taxonomically comprehensive databases of Corresponding authors theropod tooth measurements, adding new data on theropod tooth morphodiversity in Haviv M. Avrahami, this poorly understood interval. We further provide the first descriptions of [email protected] tyrannosauroid premaxillary teeth and document the earliest North American record of Lindsay E.
    [Show full text]
  • Smithsonian Contributions and Studies
    Thecachampsa antiqua (Leidy, 1852) (Crocodylidae: Thoracosaurinae) from Fossil Marine Deposits at Lee Creek Mine, Aurora, North Carolina, USA Albert C. Myrick, Jr. Formation (early Pliocene; Gibson, 1983; Hazel, 1983). It ABSTRACT provides a first opportunity to study the Lee Creek crocodilian materials in relation to other similar forms of comparable geo- Fossil remains of crocodilians at Lee Creek Mine have been few and fragmentary. Nevertheless, isolated teeth and dermal plates logic age. The purpose of this paper is to describe the Lee from the spoil piles are identifiable as Thecachampsa antiqua Creek Mine crocodilian specimens and to comment on the (Leidy). This species was established by Leidy on characters of taxonomic status and paleozoogeographic implications related teeth presumably from the Calvert Formation of Virginia (late to the Lee Creek Mine occurrence and to occurrences of early to early middle Miocene), but the species is now validated by skulls and numerous elements from the middle Miocene forma- closely related forms elsewhere. tions of the Chesapeake Group. The same form is common in the ACKNOWLEDGMENTS.•The Lee Creek Mine specimens cit- Florida early Pliocene, where it is represented by several fairly ed in this report were collected and donated by P.J. Harmatuk, complete skeletons known as Gavialosuchus americanus (Sell- F. Hyne, and B. Hyne. I thank L.G. Barnes (Los Angeles arás). It also is known from numerous skulls from early and mid- County Museum of Natural History) for providing refresher dle Miocene formations near Lisbon, Portugal, as Tomistoma lusitanica (Vianna and Moraes). Teeth and a dermal scute indicat- information on the California specimens.
    [Show full text]
  • 4. Palaeontology
    Zurich Open Repository and Archive University of Zurich Main Library Strickhofstrasse 39 CH-8057 Zurich www.zora.uzh.ch Year: 2015 Palaeontology Klug, Christian ; Scheyer, Torsten M ; Cavin, Lionel Posted at the Zurich Open Repository and Archive, University of Zurich ZORA URL: https://doi.org/10.5167/uzh-113739 Conference or Workshop Item Presentation Originally published at: Klug, Christian; Scheyer, Torsten M; Cavin, Lionel (2015). Palaeontology. In: Swiss Geoscience Meeting, Basel, 20 November 2015 - 21 November 2015. 136 4. Palaeontology Christian Klug, Torsten Scheyer, Lionel Cavin Schweizerische Paläontologische Gesellschaft, Kommission des Schweizerischen Paläontologischen Abhandlungen (KSPA) Symposium 4: Palaeontology TALKS: 4.1 Aguirre-Fernández G., Jost J.: Re-evaluation of the fossil cetaceans from Switzerland 4.2 Costeur L., Mennecart B., Schmutz S., Métais G.: Palaeomeryx (Mammalia, Artiodactyla) and the giraffes, data from the ear region 4.3 Foth C., Hedrick B.P., Ezcurra M.D.: Ontogenetic variation and heterochronic processes in the cranial evolution of early saurischians 4.4 Frey L., Rücklin M., Kindlimann R., Klug C.: Alpha diversity and palaeoecology of a Late Devonian Fossillagerstätte from Morocco and its exceptionally preserved fish fauna 4.5 Joyce W.G., Rabi M.: A Revised Global Biogeography of Turtles 4.6 Klug C., Frey L., Rücklin M.: A Famennian Fossillagerstätte in the eastern Anti-Atlas of Morocco: its fauna and taphonomy 4.7 Leder R.M.: Morphometric analysis of teeth of fossil and recent carcharhinid selachiens
    [Show full text]
  • Steneosaurus Brevior
    The mystery of Mystriosaurus: Redescribing the poorly known Early Jurassic teleosauroid thalattosuchians Mystriosaurus laurillardi and Steneosaurus brevior SVEN SACHS, MICHELA M. JOHNSON, MARK T. YOUNG, and PASCAL ABEL Sachs, S., Johnson, M.M., Young, M.T., and Abel, P. 2019. The mystery of Mystriosaurus: Redescribing the poorly known Early Jurassic teleosauroid thalattosuchians Mystriosaurus laurillardi and Steneosaurus brevior. Acta Palaeontologica Polonica 64 (3): 565–579. The genus Mystriosaurus, established by Kaup in 1834, was one of the first thalattosuchian genera to be named. The holotype, an incomplete skull from the lower Toarcian Posidonienschiefer Formation of Altdorf (Bavaria, southern Germany), is poorly known with a convoluted taxonomic history. For the past 60 years, Mystriosaurus has been consid- ered a subjective junior synonym of Steneosaurus. However, our reassessment of the Mystriosaurus laurillardi holotype demonstrates that it is a distinct and valid taxon. Moreover, we find the holotype of “Steneosaurus” brevior, an almost complete skull from the lower Toarcian Whitby Mudstone Formation of Whitby (Yorkshire, UK), to be a subjective ju- nior synonym of M. laurillardi. Mystriosaurus is diagnosed in having: a heavily and extensively ornamented skull; large and numerous neurovascular foramina on the premaxillae, maxillae and dentaries; anteriorly oriented external nares; and four teeth per premaxilla. Our phylogenetic analyses reveal M. laurillardi to be distantly related to Steneosaurus bollensis, supporting our contention that they are different taxa. Interestingly, our analyses hint that Mystriosaurus may be more closely related to the Chinese teleosauroid (previously known as Peipehsuchus) than any European form. Key words: Thalattosuchia, Teleosauroidea, Mystriosaurus, Jurassic, Toarcian Posidonienschiefer Formation, Whitby Mudstone Formation, Germany, UK.
    [Show full text]
  • The Giant Pliosaurid That Wasn't—Revising the Marine Reptiles From
    The giant pliosaurid that wasn’t—revising the marine reptiles from the Kimmeridgian, Upper Jurassic, of Krzyżanowice, Poland DANIEL MADZIA, TOMASZ SZCZYGIELSKI, and ANDRZEJ S. WOLNIEWICZ Madzia, D., Szczygielski, T., and Wolniewicz, A.S. 2021. The giant pliosaurid that wasn’t—revising the marine reptiles from the Kimmeridgian, Upper Jurassic, of Krzyżanowice, Poland. Acta Palaeontologica Polonica 66 (1): 99–129. Marine reptiles from the Upper Jurassic of Central Europe are rare and often fragmentary, which hinders their precise taxonomic identification and their placement in a palaeobiogeographic context. Recent fieldwork in the Kimmeridgian of Krzyżanowice, Poland, a locality known from turtle remains originally discovered in the 1960s, has reportedly provided additional fossils thought to indicate the presence of a more diverse marine reptile assemblage, including giant pliosaurids, plesiosauroids, and thalattosuchians. Based on its taxonomic composition, the marine tetrapod fauna from Krzyżanowice was argued to represent part of the “Matyja-Wierzbowski Line”—a newly proposed palaeobiogeographic belt comprising faunal components transitional between those of the Boreal and Mediterranean marine provinces. Here, we provide a de- tailed re-description of the marine reptile material from Krzyżanowice and reassess its taxonomy. The turtle remains are proposed to represent a “plesiochelyid” thalassochelydian (Craspedochelys? sp.) and the plesiosauroid vertebral centrum likely belongs to a cryptoclidid. However, qualitative assessment and quantitative analysis of the jaws originally referred to the colossal pliosaurid Pliosaurus clearly demonstrate a metriorhynchid thalattosuchian affinity. Furthermore, these me- triorhynchid jaws were likely found at a different, currently indeterminate, locality. A tooth crown previously identified as belonging to the thalattosuchian Machimosaurus is here considered to represent an indeterminate vertebrate.
    [Show full text]
  • Occurrence of Torvoneustes (Crocodylomorpha, Metriorhynchidae) in Marine Jurassic Deposits of Oaxaca, Mexico
    Rev. bras. paleontol. 19(3):415-424, Setembro/Dezembro 2016 © 2016 by the Sociedade Brasileira de Paleontologia doi: 10.4072/rbp.2016.3.07 OCCURRENCE OF TORVONEUSTES (CROCODYLOMORPHA, METRIORHYNCHIDAE) IN MARINE JURASSIC DEPOSITS OF OAXACA, MEXICO JAIR I. BARRIENTOS-LARA Posgrado en Ciencias Biológicas, Instituto de Geología, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Circuito de la Investigación S/N, Ciudad Universitaria, Delegación Coyoacán, Distrito Federal, 04510, México. [email protected] YANINA HERRERA, MARTA S. FERNÁNDEZ División Paleontología Vertebrados, Unidades de Investigación Anexo Museo, Facultad de Ciencias Naturales y Museo, Universidad Nacional de La Plata, Av. 60 y 122, B1900AVW, La Plata, Argentina. [email protected], [email protected] JESÚS ALVARADO-ORTEGA Instituto de Geología, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Circuito de la Investigación s/n, Ciudad Universitaria, Delegación Coyoacán, Distrito Federal, 04510, México. [email protected] ABSTRACT – IGM 9026 is a singular fossil collected at the beginning of the 20th century in an improperly documented site within the Tlaxiaco Basin, near to Tlaxiaco town, Oaxaca, Mexico. The age of the site was suggested as being early Cretaceous. This specimen is the holotype of Plesiosaurus (Polypticodon) mexicanus, which later was identified as a possible late Jurassic marine crocodylomorph of the family Metriorhynchidae, and consequently it was referred as ?Cricosaurus mexicanus. The present study provides a re-description of this fossil based on a microscopic analysis and the use of white and UV lights; these analyses led to the discovery of peculiar dental characters diagnostic of the genus Torvoneustes. This finding supports the re-classification of IGM 9026 under a new nominal combination asTorvoneustes mexicanus.
    [Show full text]
  • Revision of the Late Jurassic Teleosaurid Genus Machimosaurus (Crocodylomorpha, Mark T
    Downloaded from http://rsos.royalsocietypublishing.org/ on November 28, 2018 Revision of the Late Jurassic teleosaurid genus rsos.royalsocietypublishing.org Machimosaurus Research (Crocodylomorpha, Cite this article: Young MT et al.2014 Thalattosuchia) Revision of the Late Jurassic teleosaurid genus Machimosaurus (Crocodylomorpha, Mark T. Young1,2, Stéphane Hua3, Lorna Steel4, Thalattosuchia). R. Soc. open sci. 1: 140222. http://dx.doi.org/10.1098/rsos.140222 Davide Foffa1,5, Stephen L. Brusatte1,6, Silvan Thüring7, Octávio Mateus8,9, José Ignacio Ruiz-Omeñaca10, 11 12 Received: 13 August 2014 Philipe Havlik ,YvesLepage and Accepted: 16 September 2014 Marco Brandalise De Andrade13 1School of GeoSciences, University of Edinburgh, The King’s Buildings, Edinburgh EH9 3JW, UK Subject Areas: 2School of Ocean and Earth Science, National Oceanography Centre, University of taxonomy and systematics/ Southampton, Southampton SO14 3ZH, UK 3 palaeontology/evolution Le Musée des Dinosaures d’Espéraza, Espéraza 11260, France 4Department of Earth Sciences, Natural History Museum, London SW7 5BD, UK 5 Keywords: School of Earth Sciences, Wills Memorial Building, University of Bristol, Bristol Africa, Europe, Kimmeridgian, Machimosaurus, BS8 1RJ, UK 6 Teleosauridae, Tithonian National Museums Scotland, Chambers Street, Edinburgh, EH1 1JF, UK 7Naturmuseum Solothurn, Klosterplatz 2, Solothurn 4500, Switzerland 8Departamento de Ciências da Terra, Faculdade de Ciências e Tecnologia, Universidade Nova de Lisboa, GeoBioTec, Quinta da Torre, Caparica 2829-516,
    [Show full text]
  • Late Jurassic) of England, and a Discussion On
    Edinburgh Research Explorer Evidence of thalattosuchian crocodylomorphs in the Portland Stone Formation (Late Jurassic) of England, and a discussion on Cretaceous teleosauroids Citation for published version: Young, M & Sachs, S 2020, 'Evidence of thalattosuchian crocodylomorphs in the Portland Stone Formation (Late Jurassic) of England, and a discussion on Cretaceous teleosauroids', Historical Biology. https://doi.org/10.1080/08912963.2019.1709453 Digital Object Identifier (DOI): 10.1080/08912963.2019.1709453 Link: Link to publication record in Edinburgh Research Explorer Document Version: Peer reviewed version Published In: Historical Biology General rights Copyright for the publications made accessible via the Edinburgh Research Explorer is retained by the author(s) and / or other copyright owners and it is a condition of accessing these publications that users recognise and abide by the legal requirements associated with these rights. Take down policy The University of Edinburgh has made every reasonable effort to ensure that Edinburgh Research Explorer content complies with UK legislation. If you believe that the public display of this file breaches copyright please contact [email protected] providing details, and we will remove access to the work immediately and investigate your claim. Download date: 24. Sep. 2021 Historical Biology For Peer Review Only Evidence of thalattosuchian crocodylomorphs in the Portland Stone Formation (Late Jurassic) of England, and a discussion on Cretaceous teleosauroids Journal: Historical Biology
    [Show full text]
  • Phylogenetic Taphonomy: a Statistical and Phylogenetic
    Drumheller and Brochu | 1 1 PHYLOGENETIC TAPHONOMY: A STATISTICAL AND PHYLOGENETIC 2 APPROACH FOR EXPLORING TAPHONOMIC PATTERNS IN THE FOSSIL 3 RECORD USING CROCODYLIANS 4 STEPHANIE K. DRUMHELLER1, CHRISTOPHER A. BROCHU2 5 1. Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences, The University of Tennessee, Knoxville, 6 Tennessee, 37996, U.S.A. 7 2. Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, The University of Iowa, Iowa City, Iowa, 8 52242, U.S.A. 9 email: [email protected] 10 RRH: CROCODYLIAN BITE MARKS IN PHYLOGENETIC CONTEXT 11 LRH: DRUMHELLER AND BROCHU Drumheller and Brochu | 2 12 ABSTRACT 13 Actualistic observations form the basis of many taphonomic studies in paleontology. 14However, surveys limited by environment or taxon may not be applicable far beyond the bounds 15of the initial observations. Even when multiple studies exploring the potential variety within a 16taphonomic process exist, quantitative methods for comparing these datasets in order to identify 17larger scale patterns have been understudied. This research uses modern bite marks collected 18from 21 of the 23 generally recognized species of extant Crocodylia to explore statistical and 19phylogenetic methods of synthesizing taphonomic datasets. Bite marks were identified, and 20specimens were then coded for presence or absence of different mark morphotypes. Attempts to 21find statistical correlation between trace types, marking animal vital statistics, and sample 22collection protocol were unsuccessful. Mapping bite mark character states on a eusuchian 23phylogeny successfully predicted the presence of known diagnostic, bisected marks in extinct 24taxa. Predictions for clades that may have created multiple subscores, striated marks, and 25extensive crushing were also generated. Inclusion of fossil bite marks which have been positively 26associated with extinct species allow this method to be projected beyond the crown group.
    [Show full text]
  • Microvertebrates of the Lourinhã Formation (Late Jurassic, Portugal)
    Alexandre Renaud Daniel Guillaume Licenciatura em Biologia celular Mestrado em Sistemática, Evolução, e Paleobiodiversidade Microvertebrates of the Lourinhã Formation (Late Jurassic, Portugal) Dissertação para obtenção do Grau de Mestre em Paleontologia Orientador: Miguel Moreno-Azanza, Faculdade de Ciências e Tecnologia da Universidade Nova de Lisboa Co-orientador: Octávio Mateus, Faculdade de Ciências e Tecnologia da Universidade Nova de Lisboa Júri: Presidente: Prof. Doutor Paulo Alexandre Rodrigues Roque Legoinha (FCT-UNL) Arguente: Doutor Hughes-Alexandres Blain (IPHES) Vogal: Doutor Miguel Moreno-Azanza (FCT-UNL) Júri: Dezembro 2018 MICROVERTEBRATES OF THE LOURINHÃ FORMATION (LATE JURASSIC, PORTUGAL) © Alexandre Renaud Daniel Guillaume, FCT/UNL e UNL A Faculdade de Ciências e Tecnologia e a Universidade Nova de Lisboa tem o direito, perpétuo e sem limites geográficos, de arquivar e publicar esta dissertação através de exemplares impressos reproduzidos em papel ou de forma digital, ou por qualquer outro meio conhecido ou que venha a ser inventado, e de a divulgar através de repositórios científicos e de admitir a sua cópia e distribuição com objetivos educacionais ou de investigação, não comerciais, desde que seja dado crédito ao autor e editor. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS First of all, I would like to dedicate this thesis to my late grandfather “Papi Joël”, who wanted to tie me to a tree when I first start my journey to paleontology six years ago, in Paris. And yet, he never failed to support me at any cost, even if he did not always understand what I was doing and why I was doing it. He is always in my mind. Merci papi ! This master thesis has been one-year long project during which one there were highs and lows.
    [Show full text]
  • An Eocene Tomistomine from Peninsular Thailand Jérémy Martin, Komsorn Lauprasert, Haiyan Tong, Varavudh Suteethorn, Eric Buffetaut
    An Eocene tomistomine from peninsular Thailand Jérémy Martin, Komsorn Lauprasert, Haiyan Tong, Varavudh Suteethorn, Eric Buffetaut To cite this version: Jérémy Martin, Komsorn Lauprasert, Haiyan Tong, Varavudh Suteethorn, Eric Buffetaut. An Eocene tomistomine from peninsular Thailand. Annales de Paléontologie, Elsevier Masson, 2019, 10.1016/j.annpal.2019.03.002. hal-02121886 HAL Id: hal-02121886 https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-02121886 Submitted on 6 May 2019 HAL is a multi-disciplinary open access L’archive ouverte pluridisciplinaire HAL, est archive for the deposit and dissemination of sci- destinée au dépôt et à la diffusion de documents entific research documents, whether they are pub- scientifiques de niveau recherche, publiés ou non, lished or not. The documents may come from émanant des établissements d’enseignement et de teaching and research institutions in France or recherche français ou étrangers, des laboratoires abroad, or from public or private research centers. publics ou privés. An Eocene tomistomine from peninsular Thailand Un tomistominé éocène de la peninsule Thaïlandaise Jeremy E. Martin1, Komsorn Lauprasert2, Haiyan Tong2, Varavudh Suteethorn2 and Eric Buffetaut3 1Laboratoire de Géologie de Lyon: Terre, Planète et Environnement, UMR CNRS 5276 (CNRS, ENS, Université Lyon 1), Ecole Normale Supérieure de Lyon, 69364 Lyon Cedex 07, France, email: [email protected] 2Palaeontological Research and Education Centre, Mahasarakham University, Khamrieng, 44150 Thailand 3Laboratoire de Géologie de l’Ecole Normale Supérieure, CNRS (UMR 8538), 24 rue Lhomond, Paris Cedex 05, 75231, France Abstract Skull and mandibular elements of a tomistomine crocodilian are described from the late Eocene to early Oligocene lignite seams of Krabi, peninsular Thailand.
    [Show full text]
  • New Paleontology Gallery Exhibit Soon to Open
    The Newsletter of the Calvert Marine Museum Fossil Club Volume 22 .Number 4 D~cember2007 New Paleontology Gallery Exhibit Soon to Open ... After years of planning and months of construction and installation, a new exhibit, nearing its birth now graces' the entrance, to our Paleontology Gallery. Designed by Exhibits Curator, James Langley, this superb addition to the Museum was made possible through funding from a CMM's resident artist, Tim Scheirer National Parks Service begins to apply the spiral Earth-history Gateways Grant and the time-line to the wall. Rachel Reese, Clarissa and Lincoln Dryden another member of the CMM Exhibit's Endowment for Department, completed the computer Paleontology. CMM Fossil graphic work. The new exhibit will also Club members donated feature video presentations, some of the fossils on geoanimations, and computer terminals for display. in depth information about thefossils. Tommy Younger (left) and Skip The mural includes cast replicas. It Edwards crafted the jewel-like is my desir.e to gradually replace armature that holds an original most of the casts with original oreodont skull now on display. Scalae Naturae ... fossils as donations and/or funds become available. CALVERT MARINE MUSEUM www.calvertmarinemuseum.com '~The Ecphora December 2007 Deinosuchus: Another Maryland "SuperCroc" Figure 2 shows life drawings of crocodile and alligator heads, at approximately the same scale as By: George F. Klein Figure 1. You will note the width of the alligator's head compared to that of the crocodile. In terms of skull width, Deinosuchus resembles an alligator Deinosuchus was a large crocodilian that more than a crocodile.
    [Show full text]