Article
Geology
Ashley L. Ferguson, Leif Tapanila
Summary: This study describes a well-preserved clutch of turtle eggs in southern Utah. The characteristics of the eggshell and porosity suggest that these turtles nested in a humid environment. By extrapolating from the egg size, the researchers estimated the size of the adult turtle and the number of eggs in the clutch. A new species of turtle egg was named based on the unique attributes of the eggshell.
CRETACEOUS RESEARCH
(2022)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Oscar Castillo-Visa, Angel H. Lujan, Angel Galobart, Albert Selles
Summary: This study describes a new large marine turtle fossil, Leviathanochelys aenigmatica, which is likely to be as large as Archelon. The large body size of this species may have evolved to adapt to the unique habitat conditions of the European Cretaceous archipelago seas. Anatomical and histological evidence support the hypothesis that this species had an open marine pelagic lifestyle.
SCIENTIFIC REPORTS
(2022)
Article
Biodiversity Conservation
Adan Perez-Garcia
Summary: A new pleurodiran turtle, identified as attributable to Bothremydidae, is described from an Upper Cretaceous outcrop in Southwestern Niger. The unique features of Abalakemys chapmanae gen. et sp. nov. include an almost complete large shell, an exclusive ornamental pattern on the plate's outer surface, small fourth pleural scutes, and a noticeably wedged posterior plastral lobe. This turtle could belong to Nigeremydini, a poorly understood lineage of Bothremydodda that inhabited the African Trans-Saharan seaway, with limited shell information available.
Article
Geography, Physical
Gabriel Teofilo Guedes Silva, Diego Luciano Nascimento, Alessandro Batezelli, Francisco Sergio Bernardes Ladeira, Marcio Luiz Silva
Summary: Burrowing behavior is an important adaptation for animals in arid conditions. This paper describes turtle burrows from the Upper Cretaceous period in the Bauru Basin, Brazil. The burrows were preserved in fluvial sandstone and showed a J-shaped tunnel structure. Based on their morphology and features, it is suggested that these burrows were formed by turtles during aestivation.
PALAEOGEOGRAPHY PALAEOCLIMATOLOGY PALAEOECOLOGY
(2022)
Review
Entomology
Robert A. Coram, Edmund A. Jarzembowski
Summary: The Lower Cretaceous Purbeck and Wealden rocks in southern England provide an important record of insects that lived alongside dinosaurs, with most fossil remains belonging to adult insects alive today. The fossilized immature insects help shed light on local palaeoenvironments and the processes leading to insect fossilization, with aquatic immatures being more diverse than terrestrial ones. These fossils offer insights into the salinity of water bodies and habitat stability in different settings.
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Yann Rollot, Serjoscha W. Evers, Richard L. Cifelli, Walter G. Joyce
Summary: In this study, the skull of Lakotemys australodakotensis is described using micro-computed tomography. Preliminary comparisons show that it shares similar cranial anatomy with Arundelemys dardeni and possesses a combination of features found in both baenids and non-baenid paracryptodires. Furthermore, it is the only known baenid to possess a canal for the palatine artery.
Article
Paleontology
Hector D. Palma-Castro, Diego A. Combita-Romero, Edwin-Alberto Cadena, Monica R. Carvalho, Fabiany Herrera
Summary: In this study, two fossil specimens originally described as plants were reevaluated and identified as hatchling turtle carapaces. These specimens represent the first evidence of hatchling marine turtles from the Aptian of northwestern South America and provide insights into the exceptional preservation of the Marine Reptile Lagerstatte of Ricaurte Alto.
PALAEONTOLOGIA ELECTRONICA
(2023)
Article
Paleontology
Vikram Vakil, Gregory Webb, Alex Cook
Summary: This study presents a morphological and morphometric analysis of Australian Early Cretaceous plesiosaurs, comparing them with selected non-Australian elasmosaurids. Through biometric analysis and principal component analysis, potential hypotheses about their taxonomic classification are proposed for further testing.
PALAEONTOLOGIA ELECTRONICA
(2021)
Article
Geography, Physical
Seung Choi, Noe-Heon Kim, Hyo-Im Kim, Jin Jung Kweon, Sung Keun Lee, Shukang Zhang, David J. Varricchio
Summary: Turtles are the only amniotes that lay aragonitic eggs. A discovery in Montana, USA, confirmed the existence of aragonite in turtle eggs dating back to at least the Campanian period, around 76 million years ago. This finding supports the hypothesis that aragonitic eggshell is a unique feature of all turtles and suggests high-quality, unaltered paleoenvironmental information can be obtained from localities with aragonitic turtle eggs.
PALAEOGEOGRAPHY PALAEOCLIMATOLOGY PALAEOECOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Emily M. Carlisle, Melina Jobbins, Vanisa Pankhania, John A. Cunningham, Philip C. J. Donoghue
Summary: Experimental research on the decay of organelles in red and green algae suggests that chloroplasts are more resistant to decay than nuclei, while pyrenoids are unlikely to be preserved. This indicates potential differential organelle preservation in seed plants and prompts a reevaluation of the early eukaryotic fossil record.
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Yann Rollot, Serjoscha W. Evers, Stephanie E. Pierce, Walter G. Joyce
Summary: This study utilizes micro-computed tomography to analyze the skull of an Early Cretaceous baenid turtle, providing new insights into its cranial anatomy and the evolutionary relationship with other baenid and paracryptodire species.
Article
Geology
A. Guerrero, F. Ortega, A. Perez-Garcia
Summary: Shell pitting is a relatively common phenomenon in extinct turtles, but its characteristics and causes are still unclear. Previous interpretations of shell pitting in turtle fossils were often speculative or lacked sufficient justification. In this study, a mark found on the carapace of a bothremydid turtle from a fossil site in Spain was analyzed using physical examination and computerized axial tomography scan. The possible etiology, pathogenesis, and healing stages of the mark were discussed, and an ectoparasitic origin was suggested as the most likely explanation. This study provides the first report of a pathology of ectoparasitic origin in the shell of a bothremydid turtle.
CRETACEOUS RESEARCH
(2022)
Article
Geology
A. Guerrero, A. Perez-Garcia
Summary: The British taxon Pleurosternon bullockii is the best represented member of Pleurosternidae, and a detailed study of its shell morphology revealed significant shape variability, including both polymorphisms and sexual dimorphism. This study proposes an amended diagnosis for the reference taxon of the clade Pleurosternidae based on the comprehensive analysis of shell characters.
CRETACEOUS RESEARCH
(2021)
Article
Geology
Do Hyeon Kim, Yuong-Nam Lee, Hyejin Ko, Jin -Young Park, Su-Hwan Kim, Sungjin Lee, Seung-Ho Jung, Dal-Yong Kong
Summary: The first occurrence of Adocidae in South Korea was found, representing a new taxon named Proa-docus hadongensis. This new species has both ancestral and derived characteristics of adocids and shows implications for the origin and early evolution of Adocidae in East Asia during the Early Cretaceous.
CRETACEOUS RESEARCH
(2023)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Milan Chroust, Martin Mazuch, Martin Ivanov, David M. Alba, Angel H. Lujan
Summary: The taxonomy of the soft-shell turtle Rafetus bohemicus is revised based on new and previously mentioned material from the Early Miocene sites of the Most Basin. The study focused on the cranial material and combined it with previously published data on postcranial elements. The results provide the first complete skull description of R. bohemicus and allow for an emended diagnosis of the species.
Article
Anatomy & Morphology
Jordan Gonet, Jeremie Bardin, Marc Girondot, John R. Hutchinson, Michel Laurin
Summary: The water-to-land transition of the first tetrapod vertebrates is a crucial stage in their evolution. Through the study of bone microanatomy in reptiles, we can gain insights into the mechanisms behind their locomotor and postural diversity. We have developed a model to infer locomotion in extinct reptiles based on microanatomical parameters and have applied it to 7 taxa with debated locomotion strategies.
JOURNAL OF ANATOMY
(2023)
Article
Evolutionary Biology
Jordan Gonet, Jeremie Bardin, Marc Girondot, John R. Hutchinson, Michel Laurin
Summary: Mammals have a long evolutionary history and are now one of the most diverse groups of tetrapod vertebrates. This diversity is reflected in their postural variations and microanatomical differences in the bones. The study shows how these anatomical parameters can be related to posture and provides a model that can be used to infer the posture of extinct synapsids.
JOURNAL OF MAMMALIAN EVOLUTION
(2023)
Correction
Evolutionary Biology
Jordan Gonet, Jeremie Bardin, Marc Girondot, John R. Hutchinson, Michel Laurin
JOURNAL OF MAMMALIAN EVOLUTION
(2023)
Article
Zoology
Jordan Gonet, Jeremie Bardin, Marc Girondot, John R. Hutchinson, Michel Laurin
Summary: Reptiles, including lizards, turtles, crocodiles, and birds, exhibit a diverse range of locomotion and limb bone microstructure. This study quantitatively examines the relationship between angular microanatomical parameters of reptilian femoral cross-sections and locomotion using elliptic Fourier transforms and statistical analyses. Results show that while phylogeny plays a significant role, a functional signal exists, with bipeds showing a craniolateral-caudomedial deficit in bone compactness, and quadrupeds showing a dorsoventral deficit. These findings provide insights into the complex interplay between phylogeny, femoral cross-sectional microanatomy, and locomotion in reptiles.
ZOOLOGICAL JOURNAL OF THE LINNEAN SOCIETY
(2023)
Article
Ecology
Jordan Gonet, Michel Laurin, John R. Hutchinson
Summary: Extant amniotes exhibit diverse postures. Limbs with erect or crouched postures are found in different taxa based on their locomotion and body mass. The postural transition from sprawling to erect limbs occurred in both reptiles and synapsids during the Mesozoic Era. This study examines the link between femoral posture and trabecular architecture using phylogenetic analysis, revealing conflicting results regarding the evolution of posture in amniotes.
JOURNAL OF EVOLUTIONARY BIOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Paleontology
Jordan Gonet, Michel Laurin, Marc Girondot
Summary: Bone sections have been widely used in studying life history traits of vertebrates, and bone compactness is an important characteristic. Researchers have improved the methods of quantitative analysis of bone sections using statistical tools and developed the BoneProfileR software as an aid.
PALAEONTOLOGIA ELECTRONICA
(2022)
