DOCSLIB.ORG

Thin Section Microscopy of the Fossil Fish Cylindracanthus

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Thin Section Microscopy of the Fossil Fish Cylindracanthus 130 Proceedings of the South Dakota Academy of Science, Vol. 96 (2017) THIN SECTION MICROSCOPY OF THE FOSSIL FISH CYLINDRACANTHUS Barbara S. Grandstaff1, Rodrigo A. Pellegrini2, David C. Parris2*, and Donald Clements2 1School of Veterinary Medicine University of Pennsylvania 3800 Spruce Street Philadelphia, PA 19104-6045 2New Jersey State Museum 205 West State Street PO Box 530 Trenton, NJ 08625-0530 *corresponding author email: [email protected] ABSTRACT Since discovery of the definitive specimen of Cylindracanthus in the Verendrye Formation of Hyde County, South Dakota, new interest has been focused this genus, known only from its distinctive rostral spines. Hypothetically linked to ascip- enseriform (sturgeon-like) fishes, the spines, found in circum-Atlantic Cretaceous to Eocene marine formations, have been examined in thin sections for more than a century. We have expanded this range of microscopy to include detailed descrip- tion of the tooth pedicels, examination of possible lesions and healed bony tissue, and petrography of the fossil, and probable functional anatomy. We have repeated the historical comparative studies with modern billfish specimens. Billfish rostral structure has no real resemblance (structural or mineralogical) to Cylindracanthus. The tooth base attachments in billfish are subdermal. In contrast, the tooth base structures and the lesions and damaged surfaces in Cylindracanthus give no evidence of having been subdermal. We have also expanded our comparative histological research to include Polyodon (paddlefishes) and Acipenser (sturgeons). Although fish teeth are typically acrodont (i. e., fused to the oral surfaces of the jaw and palatal elements), the teeth of Cylindracanthus are functionally pleur- odont, attached along (in fact, within) a groove, from which they protrude only slightly. The teeth point backwards toward the mouth (away from the tapered end of the rostrum). Hypothetically, the teeth could function in predation by causing damage during a stabbing motion of the rostral spine; they would be useless in a striking and/or slapping motion. The teeth would be highly effective in head-on attacks of shelled cephalopods, such as ammonites. This would have been advan- tageous during the Cretaceous Period but of no value later during the Eocene, after the ammonites had become extinct. We conjecture that the teeth became vestigial after the K-Pg event, as they are unknown in Cenozoic specimens. Keywords Cylindracanthus, Cretaceous, Eocene, histology Proceedings of the South Dakota Academy of Science, Vol. 96 (2017) 131 INTRODUCTION Agassiz (1833-1843) used the name Coelorhynchus for fossils which he identi- fied as probable rostral elements. Leidy (1857a) independently gave the name Cylindracanthus to fossils from New Jersey and Alabama which he interpreted as dorsal fin spines. He later (1857b) noted that his Cylindracanthus fossils resem- bled figures of Coelorhynchus published by Dixon (1850). Leriche (1905) pro- posed the name Glyptorhynchus to replace Coelorhynchus because Coelorhynchus was preoccupied by a chimaeroid, and noted that Glyptorhynchus is similar to the rostrum of Blochius. Glyptorhynchus is now considered a junior synonym of Cylindracanthus (Purdy et al. 2001). Smith-Woodward (1888, 1891) believed that Cylindracanthus (Coelorhynchus) was a fin spine. Histologic studies by Williamson (1849) and Carter (1927) did not clearly identify these fossils as either fin spines or rostra. Thus both anatomic and taxonomic interpretations of Cylindracanthus remain subject to question (Friedman 2012). Our understanding of Cylindracanthus has advanced greatly in recent years. A specimen from South Dakota (SDSM 30638) was instrumental in confirming that this enigmatic fossil is a rostrum: this specimen preserves both teeth and ring-shaped tooth pedicels (Figure 1A). The tooth pedicels form elevations on the bottoms of two wider grooves that extend over the entire preserved length of the specimen. Teeth occupy the tops of many of the pedicels (Parris et al. 2001). Tooth crowns and pedicels are also preserved on a specimen from the Bluffport Marl Member of the Demopolis Chalk in Marengo County, Alabama, ASM-PV 994.2.111 (Parris et al. 2001). Both tooth-bearing specimens are Late Cretaceous in age. Other Cretaceous specimens, including Leidy’s type material from New Jersey (ANSP 5186-5188) and the Cretaceous specimen that was sectioned for this study (Figure 1C) preserve tooth pedicels but do not preserve any teeth. Some Eocene specimens from North Carolina (Figure 1B, D) and Alabama (Parris et al. 2001) preserve tooth pedicels; these specimens also lack associated teeth. No tooth crowns were preserved with any of the Eocene specimens we have examined to date. Tooth pedicels in Eocene specimens are smaller than those in Cretaceous specimens (Parris et al. 2001). Tooth pedicels on the New Jersey Cretaceous specimen are about 1mm across. Tooth pedicels on the North Carolina Eocene specimens are about 0.4mm across. Absence of tooth crowns in most of the specimens that preserve tooth pedicels suggests the teeth are easily lost post mortem. Both of the Cylindracanthus speci- mens that preserve teeth (SDSM 30638 and ASM-PV 994.2.111) were recovered from sediments which record low energy depositional environments (shale and chalk respectively). Tooth pedicels are not preserved in all Eocene specimens. Their absence might be taphonomic given that some Cylindracanthus specimens show significant loss of surface detail due to transport abrasion. The pedicels in Cylindracanthus occupy a relatively protected position at the bottoms of the surface grooves, however, and some relatively unworn Eocene specimens (such as ASM-PV 989.4.200) lack tooth pedicels. Fierstine (2001) reported that tooth pedicels are found on only some Cylindracanthus specimens. Teeth and tooth pedicels may have been entirely lacking in some Eocene members of this genus. 132 Proceedings of the South Dakota Academy of Science, Vol. 96 (2017) Distribution of Cylindracanthus. Cylindracanthus fossils have been found in North America, Europe, and Africa. Specimens of Cylindracanthus range from Cenomanian (Vullo et al. 2009) to Eocene (Leriche 1905; Fierstine 2001) in age, and Cylindracanthus has been reported from rocks as young as Miocene (Adnet et al. 2010). The South Dakota specimen (SDSM 30638) comes from the Verendrye Formation of the Pierre Shale Group (Campanian). Other speci- mens included in this study were recovered from the Cretaceous and Eocene of Alabama, the Eocene of North Carolina, and the Cretaceous of New Jersey. Figure 1. Cretaceous (A, C) and Eocene (B, D) specimens. Arrows indicate locations of tooth-bearing grooves. A. South Dakota Cretaceous specimen SDSM 30638 showing one of two grooves in which tooth pedicels and teeth are located. B. Eocene from North Carolina. The two wider grooves with tooth pedicels are visible running down the center Proceedings of the South Dakota Academy of Science, Vol. 96 (2017) 133 of the specimen. A and B are at the same scale. C. New Jersey Cretaceous specimen donated by Mr. Tony Fabian prior to sectioning. A line of tooth pedicels is visible running along the length of the specimen. Scale is in millimeters. The specimen as figured here was sacrificed; it is now preserved as histologic slides NJSM PH1 through NJSM PH7. D. Eocene specimen from North Carolina showing a closer view of the tooth pedicels in wider grooves near the middle and bottom of the image. C and D are at the same scale to facilitate comparison of tooth pedicel sizes in Cretaceous and Eocene specimens; scale is in millimeters. The specimen figured in B and D is in the private collection of Mr. Eric Sadorf. METHODS Transverse and longitudinal histologic thin sections were made through tooth pedicels on a Cretaceous Cylindracanthus specimen from New Jersey (now NJSM PH1 through PH7) and an Eocene Cylindracanthus specimen from North Carolina (NJSM 24275). Lesions on a second Eocene specimen from North Carolina (NJSM 24276) were sectioned. No Cylindracanthus teeth were sectioned due to the extreme rarity of tooth-bearing specimens. Transverse and longitudinal histologic sections were made on segments removed from the middle of the bill and predentary of an Atlantic blue marlin taxidermy mount (Makaira cf. nigricans, NJSM TC1061). One marlin bill longitudinal section was oriented horizontally to sample histology along the length of the tooth-bearing band that covers the lateral aspect of the bill. Polyodon (paddlefish) sections were cut from a dermal scale removed near the edge of the rostrum about a quarter of the way behind the tip of the rostrum and from the rostral portion of one of the nasal bones of a desiccated head collected from the Missouri River banks south of Yankton, South Dakota (NJSM B477). The Polyodon dermal scale was sectioned horizontally, parallel to its surface. Both a transverse section and a vertical (para- sagittal) longitudinal section were made of the paddlefish nasal bone. Histologic sections were prepared at the New Jersey State Museum by one of us (R.A.P). Fossil specimens were impregnated with Epo-tek 301 epoxy resin before thin sectioning; impregnation was done under vacuum to minimize bubbles. The modern Polyodon specimens were not impregnated prior to sectioning. Both transverse (mediolateral) and longitudinal (anteroposterior) histologic sections were made of Cylindracanthus, Makaira, and Polyodon. All thin sections were cut using a low-deformation wafer saw, ground flat on lap tables,
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Late Eocene), Louisiana
    Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology 27(1):226-231, March 2007 © 2007 by the Society of Vertebrate Paleontology SHORT COMMUNICATION SPECIMENS OF THE BILLFISH XIPHIORHYNCHUS VAN BENEDEN, 1871, FROM THE YAZOO CLAY FORMATION (LATE EOCENE), LOUISIANA HARRY L. FIERSTINE,*,l and GARY L. STRINGER2, IBiological Sciences Deparlment, California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo, California 93407-0401 U.S.A., [email protected]; 2Department of Geosciences, University of Louisiana at Monroe, Monroe, Louisiana 71209-5220 U.S.A., [email protected] In 1974, Fiersline and Applegate described a new species of lowermost and uppermost strata (Manning and Standhardt, billfish, Xiphiorhynchus kimblalocki, based on a rostrum, two 1986). Radiometric dates for the Yazoo Clay Formation are ap­ vertebrae, and two partial fin spines, from the Yazoo Clay For­ proximately 34 Ma (Dockery, 1996). In some areas of Louisiana, mation, late Eoccne, Mississippi, U.S.A. This was the first sub­ the Yazoo Clay Formation is divided into members, which are, stantiated record of Xiphiorhynchus van Beneden, 1871, outside respectively from the base to top, the Tullos, Union Church, and of western Europe. Since this initial discovery, there have been Vcrda. The Yazoo Clay sediments at the site belong to the Tullos three other records of Xiphiorhynchus in the United States. Member (Fig. 1). Since there are over 50 m of the Tullos Mem­ Based on four rostral fragments, Breard and Stringer (1995) ber exposed at the site, the locality is divided into two parts listed Xiphiorhynchus among the numerous marine vertebrates (Locality 1a and Locality 1b). Locality 1a is in the lower part of they collected in the Yazoo Clay Formation, late Eocene, Loui­ the section near the contact with the underlying Moodys Branch siana.
    [Show full text]
  • Marine Mammals and Sea Turtles of the Mediterranean and Black Seas
    Marine mammals and sea turtles of the Mediterranean and Black Seas MEDITERRANEAN AND BLACK SEA BASINS Main seas, straits and gulfs in the Mediterranean and Black Sea basins, together with locations mentioned in the text for the distribution of marine mammals and sea turtles Ukraine Russia SEA OF AZOV Kerch Strait Crimea Romania Georgia Slovenia France Croatia BLACK SEA Bosnia & Herzegovina Bulgaria Monaco Bosphorus LIGURIAN SEA Montenegro Strait Pelagos Sanctuary Gulf of Italy Lion ADRIATIC SEA Albania Corsica Drini Bay Spain Dardanelles Strait Greece BALEARIC SEA Turkey Sardinia Algerian- TYRRHENIAN SEA AEGEAN SEA Balearic Islands Provençal IONIAN SEA Syria Basin Strait of Sicily Cyprus Strait of Sicily Gibraltar ALBORAN SEA Hellenic Trench Lebanon Tunisia Malta LEVANTINE SEA Israel Algeria West Morocco Bank Tunisian Plateau/Gulf of SirteMEDITERRANEAN SEA Gaza Strip Jordan Suez Canal Egypt Gulf of Sirte Libya RED SEA Marine mammals and sea turtles of the Mediterranean and Black Seas Compiled by María del Mar Otero and Michela Conigliaro The designation of geographical entities in this book, and the presentation of the material, do not imply the expression of any opinion whatsoever on the part of IUCN concerning the legal status of any country, territory, or area, or of its authorities, or concerning the delimitation of its frontiers or boundaries. The views expressed in this publication do not necessarily reflect those of IUCN. Published by Compiled by María del Mar Otero IUCN Centre for Mediterranean Cooperation, Spain © IUCN, Gland, Switzerland, and Malaga, Spain Michela Conigliaro IUCN Centre for Mediterranean Cooperation, Spain Copyright © 2012 International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources With the support of Catherine Numa IUCN Centre for Mediterranean Cooperation, Spain Annabelle Cuttelod IUCN Species Programme, United Kingdom Reproduction of this publication for educational or other non-commercial purposes is authorized without prior written permission from the copyright holder provided the sources are fully acknowledged.
    [Show full text]
  • Seafood Assessment
    Seafood Assessment Northern Shrimp Pandalus borealis (fromWikipedia) Atlantic Canada September 2006 Bettina Saier1 and Susanna D. Fuller2 1Independent Consultant and 2 Dalhousie University Shrimp – Atlantic Canada August 2006 About SeaChoice ® and Seafood Assessments The SeaChoice® program evaluates the ecological sustainability of wild-caught and farmed seafood commonly found in the Canadian marketplace. SeaChoice® defines sustainable seafood as originating from sources, whether wild-caught or farmed, which can maintain or increase production in the long-term without jeopardizing the structure or function of affected ecosystems. SeaChoice® makes its science-based recommendations available to the public in the form of a pocket guide, Canada’s Seafood Guide, that can be downloaded from the Internet (www.seachoice.org) or obtained from the SeaChoice® program directly by emailing a request to us. The program’s goals are to raise awareness of important ocean conservation issues and empower Canadian seafood consumers and businesses to make choices for healthy oceans. Each sustainability recommendation on Canada’s Seafood Guide is supported by a Seafood Assessment by SeaChoice or a Seafood Report by Monterey Bay Aquarium; both groups use the same assessment criteria. Each assessment synthesizes and analyzes the most current ecological, fisheries and ecosystem science on a species, then evaluates this information against the program’s conservation ethic/sustainability criteria to arrive at a recommendation of “Best Choices”, “Concerns” or “Some Concern”. The detailed evaluation methodology is available on our website at www.seachoice.org. In producing Seafood Assessments, SeaChoice® seeks out research published in academic, peer-reviewed journals whenever possible. Other sources of information include government technical publications, fishery management plans and supporting documents, and scientific reviews of ecological sustainability.
    [Show full text]
  • A Partial Rostrum of the Porbeagle Shark
    GEOLOGICA BELGICA (2010) 13/1-2: 61-76 A PARTIAL ROSTRUM OF THE PORBEAGLE SHARK LAMNA NASUS (LAMNIFORMES, LAMNIDAE) FROM THE MIOCENE OF THE NORTH SEA BASIN AND THE TAXONOMIC IMPORTANCE OF ROSTRAL MORPHOLOGY IN EXTINCT SHARKS Frederik H. MOLLEN (4 figures, 3 plates) Elasmobranch Research, Meistraat 16, B-2590 Berlaar, Belgium; E-mail: [email protected] ABSTRACT. A fragmentary rostrum of a lamnid shark is recorded from the upper Miocene Breda Formation at Liessel (Noord-Brabant, The Netherlands); it constitutes the first elasmobranch rostral process to be described from Neogene strata in the North Sea Basin. Based on key features of extant lamniform rostra and CT scans of chondrocrania of modern Lamnidae, the Liessel specimen is assigned to the porbeagle shark, Lamna nasus (Bonnaterre, 1788). In addition, the taxonomic significance of rostral morphology in extinct sharks is discussed and a preliminary list of elasmobranch taxa from Liessel is presented. KEYWORDS. Lamniformes, Lamnidae, Lamna, rostrum, shark, rostral node, rostral cartilages, CT scans. 1. Introduction Pliocene) of North Carolina (USA), detailed descriptions and discussions were not presented, unfortunately. Only In general, chondrichthyan fish fossilise only under recently has Jerve (2006) reported on an ongoing study of exceptional conditions and (partial) skeletons of especially two Miocene otic capsules from the Calvert Formation large species are extremely rare (Cappetta, 1987). (lower-middle Miocene) of Maryland (USA); this will Therefore, the fossil record of Lamniformes primarily yield additional data to the often ambiguous dental studies. comprises only teeth (see e.g. Agassiz, 1833-1844; These well-preserved cranial structures were stated to be Leriche, 1902, 1905, 1910, 1926), which occasionally are homologous to those seen in extant lamnids and thus available as artificial, associated or natural tooth sets useful for future phylogenetic studies of this group.
    [Show full text]
  • Antartic Peninsula and Tierra Del Fuego: 100
    ANTARCTIC PENINSULA & TIERRA DEL FUEGO BALKEMA – Proceedings and Monographs in Engineering, Water and Earth Sciences Antarctic Peninsula & Tierra del Fuego: 100 years of Swedish-Argentine scientific cooperation at the end of the world Edited by Jorge Rabassa & María Laura Borla Proceedings of “Otto Nordenskjöld’s Antarctic Expedition of 1901–1903 and Swedish Scientists in Patagonia: A Symposium”, held in Buenos Aires, La Plata and Ushuaia, Argentina, March 2–7, 2003. LONDON / LEIDEN / NEW YORK / PHILADELPHIA / SINGAPORE Cover photo information: “The Otto Nordenskjöld’s Expedition to Antarctic Peninsula, 1901–1903. The wintering party in front of the hut on Snow Hill, Antarctica, 30th September 1902. From left to right: Bodman, Jonassen, Nordenskjöld, Ekelöf, Åkerlund and Sobral. Photo: G. Bodman. From the book: Otto Nordenskjöld & John Gunnar Andersson, et al., “Antarctica: or, Two Years amongst the Ice of the South Pole” (London: Hurst & Blackett., 1905)”. Taylor & Francis is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group, an informa business This edition published in the Taylor & Francis e-Library, 2007. “To purchase your own copy of this or any of Taylor & Francis or Routledge’s collection of thousands of eBooks please go to www.eBookstore.tandf.co.uk.” © 2007 Taylor & Francis Group plc, London, UK All rights reserved. No part of this publication or the information contained herein may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, by photocopying, recording or otherwise, without written prior permission from the publishers. Although all care is taken to ensure the integrity and quality of this publication and the information herein, no responsibility is assumed by the publishers nor the author for any damage to property or persons as a result of operation or use of this publication and/or the information contained herein.
    [Show full text]
  • Smithsonian Contributions to Paleobiology • Number 90
    SMITHSONIAN CONTRIBUTIONS TO PALEOBIOLOGY • NUMBER 90 Geology and Paleontology of the Lee Creek Mine, North Carolina, III Clayton E. Ray and David J. Bohaska EDITORS ISSUED MAY 112001 SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION Smithsonian Institution Press Washington, D.C. 2001 ABSTRACT Ray, Clayton E., and David J. Bohaska, editors. Geology and Paleontology of the Lee Creek Mine, North Carolina, III. Smithsonian Contributions to Paleobiology, number 90, 365 pages, 127 figures, 45 plates, 32 tables, 2001.—This volume on the geology and paleontology of the Lee Creek Mine is the third of four to be dedicated to the late Remington Kellogg. It includes a prodromus and six papers on nonmammalian vertebrate paleontology. The prodromus con­ tinues the historical theme of the introductions to volumes I and II, reviewing and resuscitat­ ing additional early reports of Atlantic Coastal Plain fossils. Harry L. Fierstine identifies five species of the billfish family Istiophoridae from some 500 bones collected in the Yorktown Formation. These include the only record of Makairapurdyi Fierstine, the first fossil record of the genus Tetrapturus, specifically T. albidus Poey, the second fossil record of Istiophorus platypterus (Shaw and Nodder) and Makaira indica (Cuvier), and the first fossil record of/. platypterus, M. indica, M. nigricans Lacepede, and T. albidus from fossil deposits bordering the Atlantic Ocean. Robert W. Purdy and five coauthors identify 104 taxa from 52 families of cartilaginous and bony fishes from the Pungo River and Yorktown formations. The 10 teleosts and 44 selachians from the Pungo River Formation indicate correlation with the Burdigalian and Langhian stages. The 37 cartilaginous and 40 bony fishes, mostly from the Sunken Meadow member of the Yorktown Formation, are compatible with assignment to the early Pliocene planktonic foraminiferal zones N18 or N19.
    [Show full text]
  • Billfish Challenge Bone Structure–Function Paradigms
    Remodeling in bone without osteocytes: Billfish challenge bone structure–function paradigms Ayelet Atkinsa,1, Mason N. Deanb,1, Maria Laura Habeggerc, Phillip J. Mottac, Lior Ofera, Felix Reppb, Anna Shipova, Steve Weinerd, John D. Curreye, and Ron Shahara,2 aKoret School of Veterinary Medicine, The Robert H. Smith Faculty of Agriculture, Food and Environment, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Rehovot 76100, Israel; bDepartment of Biomaterials, Max Planck Institute of Colloids and Interfaces, 14476 Potsdam, Germany; cDepartment of Integrative Biology, University of South Florida, Tampa, FL 33613; dDepartment of Structural Biology, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot 76100, Israel; and eDepartment of Biology, University of York, York YO10 5DD, United Kingdom Edited by David B. Burr, Indiana University School of Medicine, Indianapolis, IN, and accepted by the Editorial Board September 19, 2014 (received for review July 3, 2014) A remarkable property of tetrapod bone is its ability to detect and borders, heavily remodeled tissue, which forms particularly in remodel areas where damage has accumulated through prolonged situations of large load magnitudes and/or cyclic loading, bears use. This process, believed vital to the long-term health of bone, is a characteristic morphology of overlapping osteons (Fig. 1 C and D), considered to be initiated and orchestrated by osteocytes, cells a structural record of vigorous remodeling (ref. 2; SI Text). within the bone matrix. It is therefore surprising that most extant Considering the pivotal role of osteocytes in remodeling and fishes (neoteleosts) lack osteocytes, suggesting their bones are not that remodeling is believed to be essential for the proper long- constantly repaired, although many species exhibit long lives and term function of bone, it is surprising that the bones of almost all high activity levels, factors that should induce considerable fatigue members of the huge group of extant neoteleost fish—close to damage with time.
    [Show full text]
  • A Practical Key for the Identification of Large Fish Rostra 145-160 ©Zoologische Staatssammlung München/Verlag Friedrich Pfeil; Download
    ZOBODAT - www.zobodat.at Zoologisch-Botanische Datenbank/Zoological-Botanical Database Digitale Literatur/Digital Literature Zeitschrift/Journal: Spixiana, Zeitschrift für Zoologie Jahr/Year: 2015 Band/Volume: 038 Autor(en)/Author(s): Lange Tabea, Brehm Julian, Moritz Timo Artikel/Article: A practical key for the identification of large fish rostra 145-160 ©Zoologische Staatssammlung München/Verlag Friedrich Pfeil; download www.pfeil-verlag.de SPIXIANA 38 1 145-160 München, August 2015 ISSN 0341-8391 A practical key for the identification of large fish rostra (Pisces) Tabea Lange, Julian Brehm & Timo Moritz Lange, T., Brehm, J. & Moritz, T. 2015. A practical key for the identification of large fish rostra (Pisces). Spixiana 38 (1): 145-160. Large fish rostra without data of origin or determination are present in many museum collections or may appear in customs inspections. In recent years the inclu- sion of fish species on national and international lists for the protection of wildlife resulted in increased trading regulations. Therefore, useful identification tools are of growing importance. Here, we present a practical key for large fish rostra for the families Pristidae, Pristiophoridae, Xiphiidae and Istiophoridae. This key allows determination on species level for three of four families. Descriptions of the rostrum characteristics of the respective taxa are given. Tabea Lange, Lindenallee 38, 18437 Stralsund Julian Brehm, Königsallee 5, 95448 Bayreuth Timo Moritz, Deutsches Meeresmuseum, Katharinenberg 14-20, 18439 Stralsund; e-mail: [email protected] Introduction Polyodon spathula is equipped with a spoon-like rostrum which is used as an electrosensory organ Rostra are found in many fish species and can for locating plankton in water columns (Wilkens & be used for hunting (Wueringer et al.
    [Show full text]
  • The Sale of Sawfish Rostra on Ebay
    TheThe SaleSale ofof SawfishSawfish RostraRostra onon eBayeBay PreliminaryPreliminary ResultsResults Sawfish Recovery Team Meeting August 3 – 5, 2004 Matthew T. McDavitt 3371 Turnberry Cir. Charlottesville, VA 22911 434-973-0922 [email protected] TopicsTopics Purpose & design of study Methodology for distinguishing rostra to species Historical data on trade in sawfish saws? Results Implications BackgroundBackground Since 1999, I have observed sawfish rostra for sale on eBay I noticed that there were normally several rostra for sale on any day There is very little data available concerning trade in sawfish snouts PurposePurpose To quantify the scope of one regular source of trade in sawfish rostra To characterize the rostra being sold: Frequency of sale Avg prices Avg rostral lengths Species involved Source of rostra Characterize the buyers & sellers StudyStudy DetailsDetails Study Period: Feb 1, 2004 - July 31, 2004 182 days 6 mos Ongoing – will be 1 year MethodsMethods On bi-weekly basis, examined eBay listings for sawfish rostra internationally Using only publicly available information When auctions completed, listing information and photograph were saved Sale details were then recorded to a spreadsheet Examined listing photograph to determine species, where possible If species unclear and the photograph was taken straight-on, rostrum was measured using Adobe Photoshop to verify length / width proportions WhatWhatWhat isisis eBay?eBay?eBay? eBay is the world’s largest online auction house Registered users can
    [Show full text]
  • Introduction and Bibliography
    Downloaded from http://sp.lyellcollection.org/ by guest on October 3, 2021 Introduction and bibliography MIKE SMITH*, ZERINA JOHANSON, PAUL M. BARRETT & M. RICHTER Department of Earth Sciences, Natural History Museum, Cromwell Road, London SW7 5BD, UK *Corresponding author (e-mail: [email protected]) Arthur Smith Woodward (1864–1944) was ac- Wegener was proposing his theory of continental knowledged as the world’s foremost authority on drift. It would be almost half a century before fossil fishes during his lifetime and made impor- his theory gained widespread acceptance. Hallam tant contributions to the entire field of vertebrate (1983, p. 135) wrote in Great Geological Contro- palaeontology. He was a dedicated public servant, versies that ‘The American palaeontologist G. G. spending his whole career at the British Museum Simpson noted in 1943 the near unanimity of (Natural History) (now the Natural History Museum, palaeontologists against Wegener’s ideas’. Smith NHM) in London. He served on the council and as Woodward certainly fell into this camp but was president of many of the important scientific socie- more inclined to note that no certainty could yet be ties and was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society attached to the palaeontological evidence (Wood- in 1901. He was knighted on retirement from the ward 1935). Scientific theories that we accept today Museum in 1924. were still controversial and intensely debated while Smith Woodward was born on 23 May 1864 in Smith Woodward was alive. Macclesfield, an industrial town in the north Mid- A book that celebrates the life and scientific lands of England.
    [Show full text]
  • GEOLOGY Taxonomy and Morphological Study on The
    DJS Vol. 38 (2017) 219- 233 Delta Journal of Science Available online at https://djs.journals.ekb.eg/ Research Article GEOLOGY Taxonomy and morphological study on the vertebrate remains of Shark and rays fauna from the Middle and Late Eocene succession, Fayoum Depression, Egypt Abdelfattah A. Zalat, Hamza M. Khalil, Mohamed S. Fathy and Rana M. Tarek Department of Geology, Fac. of Science, Tanta University, Tanta, Egypt (E-mail: [email protected]) Abstract: Well preserved vertebrate remains of Shark and ray fauna from the Middle and Late Eocene succession of Fayoum depression, at Gebal Qasr El-Sagha area have been documented and studied in details. Four stratigraphic sections are measured, described and sampled in the field at Hussein Wally Village, Birket Qarun, Qasr el-Sagha and Wadi el- Afreet. Lithostratigraphically, the studied succession is divided into three formations arranged from base to top into Gehannam, Birket Qarun and Qasr el-Sagha formations. This Eocene sequence provides by far the most complete view of the endemic African vertebrate fauna. Identification of the basic pattern of fish remains and taxonomic evaluation revealed that the recorded shark and rays taxa belong to 3 classes, 7 orders, 12 families, 18 genera, and 21 species. The identified taxa are macro-scale, collected on the surface, and known either from teeth or rostral remains. A taxonomic account and detailed morphologic description of the fossils shark, rays and bony fish teeth have been achieved. The depositional environments in the studied Middle-Late Eocene age sequence are interpreted. The abundance of recognized vertebrate fauna indicates environments varying from open marine shelf with low energy conditions to restricted marine shallow water conditions.
    [Show full text]
  • (Ypresian, Eocene) of the Cucullaea I Allomember, La Meseta Formation, Seymour (Marambio) Island, Antarctica
    Rev. peru. biol. 19(3): 275 - 284 (Diciembre 2012) © Facultad de Ciencias Biológicas UNMSM Weddellian marine/coastal vertebrates diversity from Seymour Island,ISSN Antarctica 1561-0837 Weddellian marine/coastal vertebrates diversity from a basal horizon (Ypresian, Eocene) of the Cucullaea I Allomember, La Meseta formation, Seymour (Marambio) Island, Antarctica Diversidad de vertebrados marino costeros de la Provincia Weddelliana en un horizonte basal (Ypresiano, Eoceno) del Alomiembro Cucullaea I, Formación La Meseta, isla Seymour (Marambio), Antártida Marcelo A. Reguero1,2,3,*, Sergio A. Marenssi1,3 and Sergio N. Santillana1 Abstract 1 Instituto Antártico Argentino, Ce- rrito 1248, C1010AAZ Ciudad Au- The La Meseta Formation crops out in Seymour/Marambio Island, Weddell Sea, northeast of the Antarctic tónoma de Buenos Aires, Argentina. Peninsula and contains one of the world's most diverse assemblages of Weddellian marine/coastal verte- 2 División Paleontología de Verte- brates of Early Eocene (Ypresian) age. The La Meseta Formation is composed of poorly consolidated, marine brados, Museo de La Plata, Paseo sandstones and siltstones which were deposited in a coastal, deltaic and/or estuarine environment. It includes del Bosque s/n, B1900FWA, La Plata, Argentina. marine invertebrates and vertebrates as well as terrestrial vertebrates and plants. The highly fossiliferous basal 3 Consejo Nacional de Investi- horizon (Cucullaea shell bed, Telm 4 of Sadler 1988) of the Cucullaea I Allomember is a laterally extensive shell gaciones Científicas y Técnicas, bed with sandy matrix. The fish remains, including 35 species from 26 families, of the YpresianCucullaea bed Argentina (CONICET). represent one of the most abundant and diverse fossil vertebrate faunas yet recorded in southern latitudes.
    [Show full text]