Article
Biology
Ben Thuy, Mats E. Eriksson, Manfred Kutscher, Johan Lindgren, Lea D. Numberger-Thuy, David F. Wright
Summary: This study reveals a rare case where the origin of a diverse animal group (the living Ophiuroidea) is linked to a single speciation event, rather than hypothetical ancestors. Through fossil records from the Silurian period in Sweden, the study discovers that the miniaturization of the brittle star group coincides with the global extinction and environmental perturbation known as the Mulde Event. This sheds light on the evolution of the modern brittle star body plan.
COMMUNICATIONS BIOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Marine & Freshwater Biology
Piotr Luczynski, Stanislaw Skompski, Mikolaj K. Zapalski
Summary: The Lower Silurian Visby Beds on Gotland Island in Sweden contain the oldest known MCEs. However, many questions about these ecosystems, including their extent, positioning, and their relationship with shallow water reefs, remain unanswered. This study describes a fossil depositional structure that connected shallow and deep-water reef environments during that time, suggesting that the development of mesophotic ecosystems may have involved redistribution of shallow water taxa during high-energy sedimentary events.
Article
Biodiversity Conservation
David F. Terrill, Emilia Jarochowska, Charles M. Henderson, Bryan Shirley, Oskar Bremer
Summary: Conodonts are a diverse and abundant vertebrate group found in marine Paleozoic and Triassic strata. This study tested the hypothesis that individual conodont taxa occupied different trophic niches, using Sr/Ca and Ba/Ca ratios preserved in dental elements.
Article
Paleontology
Daniel Vachard, Ioan I. Bucur, Axel Munnecke
Summary: A new genus of calcified codiacean alga (Vitinellopsis nov. gen.) is reported from the Silurian limestones of Gotland, Sweden. The well-preserved material provides insights into the calcareous wall and unique thallus structure of this taxon. The discovery suggests that Vitinellopsis nov. gen. may have potential applications in stratigraphy, facies, and paleobiogeographic studies.
Article
Geosciences, Multidisciplinary
Stephan C. Oborny, Bradley D. Cramer, Carlton E. Brett, Alyssa M. Bancroft
Summary: This study focuses on the Upper Silurian Salina Group in eastern North America and proposes a new chronostratigraphic correlation. By integrating geochemical and geophysical data, the research reveals significant changes in sedimentary environment and tectonic activity during the Silurian period, providing important insights into the geological history of the region.
Article
Geology
Tomasz Wrzolek, Michal Zaton
Summary: A rich collection of about 60 specimens of large rugose corals from the Silurian of Gotland, Sweden, was studied. The material, mostly fragmentary, provided reliable numerical data through the examination of growth lines. The analyzed parameters showed uniformity, indicating that all the material belonged to a single, variable species, Schlotheimophyllum patellatum.
ANNALES SOCIETATIS GEOLOGORUM POLONIAE
(2023)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Tetsuto Miyashita, Robert W. Gess, Kristen Tietjen, Michael Coates
Summary: The study found larval forms of four stem lampreys from the Palaeozoic era that lack the defining traits of modern lamprey ammocoetes, instead exhibiting features similar to adult lampreys. This suggests that ammocoetes may be a specialization of modern lamprey life history rather than relics of vertebrate ancestry. Phylogenetic analyses also indicate that the last common ancestor of hagfishes and lampreys was a predator without a filter-feeding larval phase, implying that `ostracoderms' might better represent the ancestor of all living vertebrates.
Article
Geology
Olof Taromi Sandstrom, Peter Dahlqvist, Mikael Erlstrom, Lena Persson, Steve Kershaw, Mikael Calner
Summary: The Hemse Group in Gotland, Sweden, is one of the least understood stratigraphic units in the Silurian sequence. New insights from ATEM measurements, along with field studies and geophysical investigations, reveal the development of carbonate platforms during the early to mid-Ludlow Hemse Group, including a transgressive phase and extensive reef growth during a highstand period. The Kuppen-Snabben Unconformity Complex marks a key transition in the stratigraphy from rampiform settings with reef biostromes to a more rimmed setting with patch reefs.
Article
Biodiversity Conservation
Iliana Boncheva, Polina Andreeva, Valeri Sachanski, Marlena Yaneva, Stoyan Georgiev
Summary: Palaeozoic bedded cherts from the Balkan Terrane in western Bulgaria are found in three tectonic units and have been determined to be of Silurian and Devonian ages. The origin of silica in these rocks is mainly biogenic or both biogenic and terrigenous, based on the presence of radiolarian tests and geochemical data. They were formed in anoxic oceanic conditions and deposited in continental margin environments, most likely on the passive margin of northern peri-Gondwana.
PALAEOBIODIVERSITY AND PALAEOENVIRONMENTS
(2023)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Tom C. L. Bridge, Andrew H. Baird, John M. Pandolfi, Michael J. McWilliam, Mikolaj K. Zapalski
Summary: This study examines the changes in functional diversity of tabulate coral assemblages over a 35 million year period and the impact of the late Devonian extinction event. The collapse of the huge Devonian reef systems resulted in the extinction of photosymbiotic tabulate coral taxa and had long-lasting consequences for reef building and shallow marine ecosystems in the Palaeozoic.
SCIENTIFIC REPORTS
(2022)
Article
Paleontology
Mike Reich, Manfred Kutscher
Summary: A new species and genus of stem-group 'soft corals' are described in detail and compared to other species in the fossil record. Sueciatractos leipnitzae gen. et sp. nov. was discovered in the Upper Silurian Hemse beds of Sweden. This new taxon is unique in its fused sclerites that form a nearly solid skeleton or supporting layers.
Article
Computer Science, Artificial Intelligence
David Sosa-Trejo, Antonio Bandera, Martin Gonzalez, Santiago Hernandez-Leon
Summary: Since the 19th century, scientists have tried to quantify species distributions using techniques such as direct counting and microscopes. Automatic image processing and classification methods are now being utilized to avoid manual procedures for classifying marine plankton. This article summarizes the techniques proposed for classifying marine plankton from the beginning of this field to the present day, focusing on automatic methods that utilize image processing.
ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE REVIEW
(2023)
Article
Geology
Ian J. Glasspool, Robert A. Gastaldo
Summary: The earliest evidence of wildfire comes from Wales and Poland, with higher fire temperatures observed in older charcoal assemblages. Sustained burning requires a minimum oxygen concentration threshold of 16%.
Article
Geography, Physical
Eliott Capel, Christopher J. Cleal, Thomas Servais, Borja Cascales-Minana
Summary: The Silurian-Devonian plant radiation was triggered by the colonization of subaerial habitats. The diversity patterns of early land plants varied across different palaeogeographical units, with apparent events of diversification and extinction. Global diversity patterns are mostly similar to the historically best-sampled continent, but changes in floral composition through time reveal geographical disparities.
PALAEOGEOGRAPHY PALAEOCLIMATOLOGY PALAEOECOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Ecology
Katarina Kajan, Neven Cukrov, Nusa Cukrov, Renee Bishop-Pierce, Sandi Orlic
Summary: The study examined the microeukaryotic and prokaryotic community of anchialine caves in the Mediterranean region for the first time, revealing a wide diversity influenced by salinity gradients and differences between caves. Interestingly, the communities clustered into four groups based on location, indicating high microbial adaptation and endemism in sampled anchialine caves. The findings suggest that anchialine caves serve as reservoirs of new biodiversity, maintaining unique and complex microbial diversity influenced by biotic interactions and abiotic environmental conditions.
Article
Plant Sciences
David M. Kroeck, Andres Pardo-Trujillo, Angelo Plata Torres, Millerlandy Romero-Baez, Thomas Servais
Article
Plant Sciences
Navid Navidi-Izad, Hossein Hashemi, Borja Cascales-Minana, Sylvie Regnier, Charles H. Wellman, Thomas Servais
Review
Geosciences, Multidisciplinary
Zhen Shen, Claude Monnet, Borja Cascales-Minana, Yiming Gong, Xianghong Dong, David M. Kroeck, Thomas Servais
EARTH-SCIENCE REVIEWS
(2020)
Article
Geosciences, Multidisciplinary
David A. T. Harper, Borja Cascales-Minana, Thomas Servais
GEOLOGICAL MAGAZINE
(2020)
Article
Geosciences, Multidisciplinary
Shucan Zheng, Qinglai Feng, Nicolas Tribovillard, Thomas Servais, Yan Zhang, Bo Gao
JOURNAL OF EARTH SCIENCE
(2020)
Article
Paleontology
Kui Yan, Thomas Servais, Longlong Shan, Jun Li
NEUES JAHRBUCH FUR GEOLOGIE UND PALAONTOLOGIE-ABHANDLUNGEN
(2020)
Article
Plant Sciences
Navid Navidi-Izad, Hossein Hashemi, Sylvie Regnier, David Kroeck, Kui Yan, Thomas Servais
REVIEW OF PALAEOBOTANY AND PALYNOLOGY
(2020)
Article
Plant Sciences
Amalia Spina, Simonetta Cirilli, Mansour Ghorbani, Roberto Rettori, Andrea Sorci, Thomas Servais
Summary: A detailed palynological study was conducted on the lower Palaeozoic Mila and Ilbeyk formations in the Zagros Basin of southwestern Iran, establishing three palynozones and providing valuable correlations for age determination of Cambrian successions in southern Iran. The close affinities of the Cambrian assemblages with microfloras from peri-Gondwana and Baltica suggest they were part of the same large bioprovince as indicated by current palaeogeographical maps.
Review
Plant Sciences
Shucan Zheng, Sebastien Clausen, Qinglai Feng, Thomas Servais
REVIEW OF PALAEOBOTANY AND PALYNOLOGY
(2020)
Article
Paleontology
Houcine B. Benachour, Kaddour Mebarki, Mustapha Bensalah, David M. Kroeck, Navid Navidi-Izad, Sylvie Regnier, Thomas Servais
NEUES JAHRBUCH FUR GEOLOGIE UND PALAONTOLOGIE-ABHANDLUNGEN
(2020)
Article
Plant Sciences
David M. Kroeck, Mathilde Blanchon, Axelle Zacai, Navid Navidi-Izad, Houcine B. Benachour, Claude Monnet, Elena Raevskaya, Zbigniew Szczepanik, Thomas Servais
REVIEW OF PALAEOBOTANY AND PALYNOLOGY
(2020)
Article
Plant Sciences
Wenhui Wang, Shijia Gao, Thomas Servais, Birendra P. Singh, Paul Myrow
Summary: The Pin Formation in the northern Indian Himalaya may contain a record of the late Katian warming event, with palynological samples indicating a Late Katian age. The study of acritarchs and chitinozoans from this formation provides insights into Upper Ordovician biostratigraphy in the region, highlighting the need for further detailed studies with more samples to refine the understanding.
Article
Biology
Chikh Younes Mahboubi, Barbara V. Radulovic, Abdelkader Ouali Mehadji, Wagih Ayoub-Hannaa, Axel Munnecke
Summary: The Upper Jurassic rocks in the El Bayadh Area of Algeria have been studied and divided into five new formations, with the discovery of brachiopod faunas at two levels leading to a reevaluation of the age of the stratigraphic section. Dinosaur footprints were also found within the nearly barren succession between the two levels, leading to a new age attribution based on the brachiopod faunas.
HISTORICAL BIOLOGY
(2021)
Article
Plant Sciences
David M. Kroeck, Mats E. Eriksson, Anders Lindskog, Axel Munnecke, Michel Dubois, Sylvie Regnier, Thomas Servais
Summary: Studies on peteinoid acritarchs from the Middle Ordovician strata of oland, Sweden showed continuous variability in morphology, making it difficult to distinguish different taxa. These findings challenge the current classification system based on differentiation into three genera and multiple species, suggesting that the observed morphologies may be produced by a few highly variable phytoplanktonic organisms or even a single species.
Article
Geochemistry & Geophysics
Mingyang Wei, Zhidong Bao, Axel Munnecke, Wei Liu, G. William M. Harrison, Hua Zhang, Demin Zhang, Zongfeng Li, Xiting Xu, Kai Lu, Zheng Shen
Summary: This study analyzed two wells in the central uplift of the Tarim Basin to investigate the relationship between total organic carbon (TOC) and paleoenvironmental parameters. It was found that paleosalinity, redox, paleoclimate, paleo-seawater depth, and paleoproductivity jointly control the organic matter enrichment of shallow water source rocks in the evaporite series. The degree of organic matter enrichment in shallow water source rocks first increases and then decreases with the increase in paleosalinity.