Vol. 29, Supplement to No. 3

Vol. 29, Supplement to No. 3, September 2009

University of Bristol Volume 29, Supplement to Number 3 September 2009 DETAIL MAP Program and Abstracts Avon Gorge Hotel Bristol/Pr B3129 A369 , via the Suspension Bridge Bu rwa Clifton Goldne Clifton Hill House T Bristol A38, A4 , aunton , lls M5

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Society of Vertebrate Paleontology ISSN 0272-4634 Poster Session III, (Friday) and thickening of the entire limb, reduction of the femoral medullary cavity, and distal SIGNIFICANT MID-LATITUDE ARIDITY IN THE MIDDLE MIOCENE OF EAST movement of the insertion point for the major limb retractor muscles. These patterns are AISA interpreted as indicative of an ontogenetic shift in locomotor strategy from more agile, LIU, Liping, Department of Geology, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland; ERONEN, cursorial juveniles to a more graviportal adult condition. Taken together, cranial and Jussi, Department of Geology, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland; FORTELIUS, hindlimb changes during the growth of Allosaurus suggest a shift in lifestyle from agile, Mikael, Department of Geology, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland generalist juveniles to graviportal, specialist adults.

The East Asian climate history during the Neogene is a complicated and contentious issue, in particular because of its bearing on the development of the East Asian monsoon and Poster Session II, (Thursday) Tibetan uplift chronology. Here we present a paleoprecipitaion analysis based on mean HISPANOMYS BIJUGATUS (RODENTIA, CRICETODONTINAE) FROM molar tooth height (hypsodonty) of large herbivorous mammals to investigate the spatial THE MIDDLE MIOCENE OF LA GRIVE-SAINT-ALBAN (FRANCE): pattern of climate zonation in East Asia during the middle Miocene. We show a generally BIOSTRATIGRAPHICAL IMPLICATIONS humid and uniform situation before the late middle Miocene, replaced by a mid-latitude arid LÓPEZ-ANTOÑANZAS, Raquel, Museo Nacional de Ciencias Naturales - CSIC , Madrid, belt from the late middle Miocene, into the earlier part of the late Miocene. These findings Spain; MEIN, Pierre, Université Claude Bernard - Lyon I, Villeurbanne , France are concordant with the global phenomena of the middle Miocene climate optimum and the subsequent cooling, and suggest that the predominant climate in East Asia for most of the La Grive-Saint-Alban is the name used to refer to various Upper Aragonian pits located Miocene was planetary rather than monsoonal. Our results support a late initiation of the on the territory of the municipality of Saint-Alban-de-Roche (Isère, France). All pits have East Asian summer monsoon, coincidentally with the beginning of eolian red clay deposition yielded micromammals, but remains of Hispanomys have been only recovered from La in the later late Miocene at 7-8 Ma. Grive L (pit Lechartier, with eight fissure-fillings numbered from L1 to L8) and La Grive M (pit Milliat). Two species of this genus have been identified at La Grive-Saint-Alban:H. bijugatus from La Grive L (fissures L3 and L5) and H. decedens from La Grive L (fissure L5 Poster Session III, (Friday) and maybe L7), La Grive M as well as from an unnamed fissure-filling.H. bijugatus shows ARE BIPEDOPUS, SEMIBIPEDOPUS, LACERTIPUS, NAVAHOPUS AND some of the typically primitive dental characters of the Aragonian species of Hispanomys, BRASILICHNIUM DISTINCT ICHNOGENERA? REEVALUATING JURASSIC such as the unreduced M3. However, it also presents progressive features: the absence of TRACKS FROM THE WESTERN USA labial and lingual cingula surrounding the upper and lower molar valleys respectively, the LOCKLEY, Martin, University of Colorado at Denver, Denver, CO, USA; TEDROW, Allen, increase of the number of roots on the second lower molar, and the lost of mesolophs on the Idaho Museum of Natural History , Pocatello, , ID, USA upper molars. All these characters are lacking in H. decedens. All in all, H. bijugatus appears as a relatively derived species with respect to the coeval congeneric species. The age of Bipedopus, Semibipedopus and Lacertipus are ichnogenera proposed for Lower Jurassic the different fissure-fillings of La Grive-Saint Alban is controversial. BecauseH. bijugatus vertebrate tracks from near Meeker, Colorado. The tracks, which occur in eolian facies and H. decedens are believed to be closely related species within the same lineage, the fact of the Navajo-Nugget Sandstone, are similar to the larger ichnogenus Navahopus and the that the former shows a more progressive dental morphology than the latter suggests that the smaller South American ichnogenus Brasilichnium. Both names are presently applied to unnamed fissure-filling from La Grive and La Grive M (withH. decedens only) are older tracks from the Navajo Sandstone in southern Utah. However, the former three names, with than La Grive L3 (with H. bijugatus only). The coexistence of the two species at La Grive potential priority, have never been used, nor have detailed comparisons been made between L5 may indicate an intermediate age for this locality. Should the extremely low percentage these ichnogenera. Diagnostic track features are evaluated in order to determine whether: of H. decedens in the sample from L7 not be due to “contamination”, this locality may be 1) the track names are valid, 2) the named ichnogenera differ from one another, 3) the older than La Grive L3 and L5. ichnogenera suggest diagnostic track makers. Preliminary results indicate that Lacertipus is valid and different from the other ichnogenera due to its tetradactyl elongate track shape and large manus (slight heteropody). It is of probable lepidosaur affinity, but very similar to Technical Session V, Wednesday 2:15 Dolichopodus from the Permian. Bipedopus and Semibipedopus are short, wide tetradactyl HOMOLOGY OF THE INFRAORBITAL BONES AND THE MONOPHYLY OF tracks with pes larger than manus (moderate heteropody). They differ only in the sporadic SEMIONOTIFORMES presence of the smaller manus track. So Bipedopus could be an extra-morphological variant LÓPEZ-ARBARELLO, Adriana, Bayerische Staatssammlung fuer Palaeontologie und of Semibipedopus caused by pes on manus overprinting, or the consistently faint manus Geologie, Munich, Germany traces may indicate a trackmaker placing very little body weight on forelimbs. In the latter case Semibipedopus is a fair descriptor. Brasilichnium and Navahopus have pes tracks very The monophyly of Semionotiformes (including the gars, semionotids and macrosemiids) similar to Bipedopus and Semibipedopus (and the Permian ichnogenera Chelichnus and its is supported by several characters, in particular the presence of anterior infraorbital bones, junior synonym Laoporus). Navahopus is larger than Brasilichnium but both have a small which constitute a unique synapomorphy of this group. The term ‘anterior infraorbitals’ manus (strong heteropody). All are of probable synapsid affinity, althoughNavahopus refers to the infraorbital bones placed anterior to the anterior border of the orbit (preorbitals, has also been attributed to a prosauropod. Clear differentiation of manus and pes track lacrimals, or antorbitals of other authors). Similarly, the ‘toothed infraorbitals’, placed morphology and heteropody in well-preserved specimens are crucial for differentiating between the antorbital and the anterior infraorbitals, constitute a synapomorphy of the these ichnogenera both within the Jurassic and in Mesozoic-Paleozoic comparisons. Distinct Lepisosteidae. Postorbitals and suborbitals, subinfraorbitals and postinfraorbitals, and a patterns of heteropody may help reliably differentiate ichnotaxa. jugal have been identified among the series of dermal bones associated with the infraorbital sensory canal in actinopterygians. However, the number of infraorbital bones is highly variable and individual homologies cannot be established. The association of each of these Romer Prize Session, Thursday 8:30 bones with particular neuromasts of the infraorbital line does not provide a valid criterion FUNCTIONAL SHIFTS DURING GROWTH IN THE LATE JURASSIC of homology because the number of neuromasts in this sensory canal is variable between THEROPOD DINOSAUR ALLOSAURUS: THE IMPLICATIONS OF species of the same genus, between specimens of the same species, and sometimes even ONTOGENETIC VARIATION between the left and right sides of the same specimen. Nonetheless, developmental studies LOEWEN, Mark, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT, USA have shown that all the ossifications associated with the infraorbital line occur in connection with one or more neuromasts and through the same process. Therefore, serial homology can Paleobiological studies must often cope with small sample sizes, so for most taxa, it is be inferred for the whole series from the rostral to the dermosphenotic. Within the series of unclear what effect ontogeny and intraspecific variation have on functional morphology infraorbital bones in the Semionotiformes, the anterior infraorbitals and toothed infraorbitals during an organism’s lifetime. The large theropod dinosaur Allosaurus—known from can be distinguished clearly on the bases of their morphology and position. These bones numerous associated and articulated specimens and thousands of individual elements— complete the infraorbital series between the antorbital and the orbit and, although individual currently provides the best opportunity to address this critical, unresolved issue. I homologies cannot be proposed, the subseries of ‘toothed infraorbitals’ and ‘anterior focused my study on the skull and hindlimb, completing a morphometric analysis of over infraorbitals’ are shown to be homologous and uniquely derived in the Lepisosteidae and the 570 bivariate comparisons for 1,300 specimens. Analysis of the skull, combined with Semionotiformes respectively. stratigraphic assessments of individual specimens, indicates the presence of two temporally- separated species of Allosaurus in the Late Jurassic Morrison Formation: A. fragilis (Brushy Basin Member) and A. n. sp. (Salt Wash Member). Cranial elements reveal an increase in Poster Session I, (Wednesday) skull height vs. skull length during growth for both species, suggesting that these ontogenetic BIOTIC RESPONSE TO THE LATE GLACIAL MAXIMUM IN SOUTHERN trends are conservative across the two taxa. In A. fragilis, but not in A. n. sp., the caudal EUROPE portion of the skull exhibits extreme positive allometry, substantially increasing in transverse LÓPEZ-GARCÍA, Juan Manuel, Institut de Paleoecologia Humana i Evolució Social (CSIC breadth and ventrally displacing the jaw joint relative to the tooth row, an unusual condition associated unit), Tarragona, Spain; BLAIN, Hugues-Alexandre, Institut de Paleoecologia among theropods that mirrors the ontogenetic trajectory of T. rex. Significant increases in Humana i Evolució Social (CSIC associated unit), Tarragona, Spain; CUENCA-BESCÓS, skull height and breadth, as well as an overall increase in robustness and re-organization Gloria, Ciencias de la Tierra, Paleontologia, Universidad de Zaragoza, Zaragoza, Spain of skull architecture, are postulated to be functionally linked with heightened stress and loading associated with adult predation and feeding. Analysis of hindlimb allometry Until now, the biotic response to one of the harshest periods of the Pleistocene (called the reveals significant growth-related changes in both species, including: relative shortening Late Glacial Maximum = LGM) has been known in Europe from a few marine or lake 136A © 2009 by the Society of Vertebrate Paleontology palynological sequences. A number of caves in northern Spain provide new insights into Edwin H. and Margaret M. Colbert Poster Competition (Thursday) the continental sequences with a continuous record of small vertebrates, some of them with SOMATIC RESEGMENTATION ERROR: A CONGENITAL PHYSICAL ANOMALY pollen as well. The el Portalón cave in the Sierra de Atapuerca (Burgos, northwestern Spain) IN A SPECIMEN OF APATOSAURUS provides a long, continuous continental sequence divided into sixteen lithostratigraphical LOVELACE, David, University of Wisconsin - Madison, Department of Geology and sublevels (P16 to P1), with a set of radiocarbon dates from 30 kyr BP to 17 kyr BP. This Geophysics, Madison, WI, USA sequence has already yielded a rich assemblage of small-vertebrates (more than 18,000 bones), mainly composed of small-mammals, amphibians and squamate reptiles. The Physical anomalies in the fossil record, though rare, can lend insight into developmental and faunal list includes at least 25 species:4 amphibians (Alytes obstetricans, Bufo bufo, Bufo evolutionary histories. A recently discovered mid-caudal vertebra of Apatosaurus exhibits calamita and Rana temporaria); 3 squamates (an indeterminate lacertid, an indeterminate an unusual morphology consistent with a congenital anomaly associated with errors during colubrine and Vipera sp.); 6 insectivores (Sorex gr. coronatus-araneus, Sorex minutus, somatic resegmentation. The specimen exhibits two stunted neural arches fused to a single Neomys fodiens, Neomys anomalus, Talpa europaea and Galemys pyrenaicus); 2 chiropters vertebral body of normal (expected) size; a single stunted haemal arch is also present and (Myotis myotis and Myotis gr. myotis-blythi);10 rodents (Microtus arvalis, Microtus agrestis, fused to the mid-ventral surface of the vertebral body. Aside from the anomalous neural Microtus oeconomus, Iberomys cabrerae, Chionomys nivalis, Terricola duodecimcostatus, and haemal arch, the vertebral body does not differ appreciably from that of the expected Arvicola sapidus, Arvicola terrestris, Apodemus sylvaticus and Eliomys quercinus). Within condition. During embryogenesis the development of the axial column proceeds through a this sequence, P6 to P3 sublevels are related with the LGM and are characterized by a number of steps that are not altogether understood; however, recent chimeric and molecular strong decrease in summer temperature with an important increase in winter precipitation studies have unambiguously demonstrated that a vertebra is composed of cells from two and a diminution of woodland areas. This period corresponds to the disappearance of adjacent somites (i.e. resegmentation). Cells from the leading somite contribute to the “thermophilous” and water-stream taxa such as I. cabrerae, T. duodecimcostatus, A. anterior portions of the neural arch, laminae, processes, and vertebral body, while the sapidus, N. fodiens and G. pyrenaicus as well as woodland-edge taxa such as E. quercinus, following somite contributes to the posterior portions of the same vertebra. It is hypothesized A. sylvaticus and M. myotis. Nevertheless, more than a decrease in biodiversity, this period that during this stage of development the somites - that contributed to the vertebra under is characterized by a very strong decrease in the number of individuals (i.e. biomass). The investigation - incompletely assimilated, leading to disordered vertebral segmentation (e.g. biotic response to this coldest period is analyzed separately for small-mammals, squamate block vertebrae). The only reported instance of block vertebrae in the fossil record was reptiles and amphibians permitting a scenario in accordance with their different ways of life observed in a Tyrannosaurus specimen. The presence of congenital physical anomalies in and biological plasticity. the axial column of Apatosaurus, a taxon that has greater than 80 caudal vertebrae, is not too surprising; however, physical anomalies such as this provide a unique window through which early development can be viewed. Poster Session IV, (Saturday) MONOSPECIFIC ASSEMBLAGES OF SMALL OVOID THEROPOD EGGS FROM THE UPPER CRETACEOUS OF THE AREN FORMATION (SOUTH CENTRAL Technical Session V, Wednesday 3:30 PYRENEES, LLEIDA, SPAIN) THE CRANIAL ANATOMY OF A NEW TETRAPODOMORPH FISH FROM THE LóPEZ-MARTíNEZ, Nieves, Universidad Complutense de Madrid, Madrid, Spain; LOWER DEVONIAN OF CHINA VICENS BATET, Enric, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Bellaterra, Spain LU, Jing, Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China; ZHU, Min, Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Small ovoid eggs with prismatic eggshells are recorded in two rich, monospecific Paleoanthropology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China concentrations from a correlated single level of upper Cretaceous (upper Camapanian- Maastrichtian) coastal deposits of the Aren Formation (South-central Pyrenees, Lleida, Previous studies have suggested that the divergence between dipnomorphs and Catalonia, Spain). Many other egg assemblages with different prismatic and tubospherulitic tetrapodomorphs occurred prior to the Lochkovian, however, the history of the latter can egg types appear in other levels of similar coastal facies in the Aren Fm and in other only be definitely traced back to the late Emsian withKenichthys . Here we report a new lithostratigraphic units of different facies in the Pyrenean and Provençal region as well; tetrapodomorph fish from the Pragian Posongchong Formation of Yunnan, southwestern however this new, isolated egg type has been only recorded up to now in these two sites. Its China that extends the earliest record of tetrapodomorphs to at least 10 million years earlier overall egg size and shape are similar to modern hen eggs, which is unusual in the egg world in the geological history. The new form agrees well with Kenichthys and ‘osteolepiforms’ record of this age. Its shape resembles to smaller Campanian avian eggs from the Bajo-de-la- in the pattern of neurovascular openings on the lateral wall of neurocranium, and the flat Carpa Formation (Argentina), however the new eggshell microstructure differs by having a parasymphysial dental plate. It bears the largest orbital notch relative to the parietal shield peculiar pattern of interlocking palisade prisms with an incipient squamatic texture, instead length and the most anteriorly positioned pineal foramen among basal tetrapodomorphs, and of the thick squamatic layer commonly present in true avian eggshells. A preliminary egg a large tusk on the parasymphysial dental plate. The new form resembles basal dipnomorphs morphospace analysis situates both fossil ovoid eggs midway between modern bird eggs (e.g. Youngolepis and Powichthys) and Styloichthys in a broad and elongate parasphenoid. and non-avian theropod eggs. This new egg type is attributed to a small theropod, probably Characters shared with Styloichthys, Youngolepis, Kenichthys and Thursius wudingensis owing a single oviduct like birds and having a mosaic distribution of primitive and derived include the infraorbital sensory canal following the premaxillary suture, and a compound features between non-avian theropods and birds, which adds more arguments for supporting cheek bone plate with three pits. The unique character combination of the new form further the close phylogenetic relationships between both groups. bridges the gap between tetrapodomorphs and dipnomorphs, and provides a novel insight into the character acquisition sequence of stem tetrapods. High-resolution CT scan data of an anterior cranial portion of the new fish have been acquired via the scanning facilities Poster Session I, (Wednesday) at the Australian National University, Canberra. The scanning and digital imaging offer RECONSTRUCTION OF PLEISTOCENE SOUTHEAST ASIAN ENVIRONMENTS an opportunity to depict a complete three-dimensional ethmosphenoid region from a very THROUGH MEGAFAUNA COMMUNITY ANALYSIS early tetrapodomorph, and allow for detailed comparisons between the neurocrania of basal LOUYS, Julien, Liverpool John Moores University, Liverpool, United Kingdom; tetrapodomorphs and other sarcopterygians. MEIJAARD, Erik, The Nature Conservancy, Balikpapan, Indonesia

Megafauna (large-bodied species) are the most frequently recovered mammals from Poster Session III, (Friday) Pleistocene sites in Southeast Asia. Although environmental inferences have been made in VERTEBRATE FAUNA, STRATIGRAPHY AND AGE OF THE WHITAKER the region on the basis of individual species, the scarcity of micromammals from most sites QUARRY (GHOST RANCH, NEW MEXICO), THE RICHEST UPPER TRIASSIC has hampered multivariate environmental reconstructions. We reconstructed the habitat types DINOSAUR QUARRY IN THE WORLD of 30 Pleistocene sites in Southeast Asia through synecological (community) analysis. This LUCAS, Spencer, New Mexico Museum of Natural History, Albuquerque, NM, USA; method specifically targets large-bodied mammals, and as such can be applied widely in HECKERT, Andrew, Appalachian State University, Boone, NC, USA; RINEHART, Larry, the region. Ecological variables were chosen such that these can be directly assessed from New Mexico Museum of Natural History, Albuquerque, NM, USA; SPIELMANN, Justin, species lists. The method allows the reconstruction of fossil sites as closed (continuous New Mexico Museum of Natural History, Albuquerque, NM, USA; JASINSKI, Steven, tree cover), mixed (heterogeneous tree cover) and open (limited to no tree cover). Four State Museum of Pennsylvania, Harrisburg, PA, USA Pleistocene sites can confidently be assigned to one of the three habitat types.Tam Hang, a Middle Pleistocene site from Laos, is classified as mixed. Ban Fa Suai, a Middle Pleistocene The Whitaker quarry at Ghost Ranch, Rio Arriba County, New Mexico, USA, is one site from Thailand, is also classified as mixed. Trinil, a Middle Pleistocene site from Java, is of the most extensive Late Triassic bonebeds known, yielding hundreds of skeletons of classified as open. Lastly Hang Hum II, a Late Pleistocene site fromVietnam, is classified the theropod dinosaur Coelophysis bauri. The quarry also yields the following tetrapod as open. Insufficient numbers of fauna are present in the remaining sites to allow strictly taxa: the sphenodont Whitakersaurus, at least two drepanosaurid taxa, the sphenosuchian confident habitat assignment. Nevertheless, conditional habitat assignments can be achieved, Hesperosuchus, a rauisuchian (cf. Postosuchus), the archosaurs Vancleavea and Shuvosaurus and are largely congruent with other paleoenvironmental data obtained from the literature. (= Effigia) and the phytosaur Redondasaurus. The Whitaker quarry is an unusual Late The analyses suggest that through most of the Pleistocene, Southeast Asia was composed of Triassic paucispecific tetrapod assemblage representing a mass kill of dinosaurs and a mixed habitats, and that the widespread distribution of rainforests, such as found today, is a limited number of specimens of other tetrapod taxa. Notable is the absence of metoposaurs relatively rare phenomenon. and aetosaurs, common constituents of Upper Triassic tetrapod assemblages in the American Southwest. Strata that include the Whitaker quarry have been assigned by various workers to the Petrified Forest, Owl Rock or Rock Point formations of the Chinle Group or to the

JVP 29(3) September 2009—ABSTRACTS 137A