Article
Geography, Physical
Mingtao Yao, Zuoyu Sun, Qingqiang Meng, Jiachun Li, Dayong Jiang
Summary: The study revealed that the early Ladinian lacustrine ecosystem of the Ordos Basin is the earliest known Mesozoic-type, trophically multileveled lake ecosystem after the end-Permian mass extinction. Vertebrate coprolites from the Chang 7 Member showed evidence of piscivorous animals as producers, enriching the biodiversity of the ecosystem with large carnivorous predators. The presence of apex predators in a trophically multileveled lake ecosystem suggests the rebuilding of the top-predator trophic structure after the end-Permian mass extinction.
PALAEOGEOGRAPHY PALAEOCLIMATOLOGY PALAEOECOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Biology
Yi-Wei Hu, Jun Liu
Summary: A new morphotype of nothosaurs with distinct features has been discovered, providing valuable information for the study of sauropterygians' phylogeny.
HISTORICAL BIOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Geography, Physical
Xin Jin, Viktoria Baranyi, Marcello Caggiati, Marco Franceschi, Corey J. Wall, Guanglin Liu, Mark D. Schmitz, Piero Gianolla, James G. Ogg, Gang Lu, Zhiqiang Shi, Nereo Preto
Summary: The Yanchang Formation in the modern Ordos Basin was deposited during the Middle Triassic and is a key target for hydrocarbon exploration in Central China. The Chang 7 Member represents the maximum deepening phase of the lake system, but uncertainty remains about its chronostratigraphy. Marine influences in the Ordos Basin at that time suggest a possible global eustatic rise and highstand influencing lake-level variations.
GLOBAL AND PLANETARY CHANGE
(2021)
Article
Geography, Physical
Michal Matysik, Michal Stachacz, Dirk Knaust, Martin J. Whitehouse
Summary: This study describes the characteristics of different types of omission levels in Middle Triassic platformal carbonates in Upper Silesia, southern Poland, including firmgrounds, hardgrounds, and intraformational conglomerates.
PALAEOGEOGRAPHY PALAEOCLIMATOLOGY PALAEOECOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Geology
Domenico C. G. Ravida, Luca Caracciolo, Saturnina Henares, Meike Janssen, Harald Stollhofen
Summary: The study investigates the environmental response to external forcings on continental successions at the southeast margin of the Central European Basin System in Germany, integrating high-resolution core-logging and quantitative sedimentary petrography. Environmental changes are accentuated by variations in sediment composition, suggesting distinct drainage evolutions regulated by upstream climate and tectonic controls.
Article
Geosciences, Multidisciplinary
Kun Zhang, Rong Liu, Zhaojun Liu, Li Li
Summary: The study examines the impact of global and local humid climate events during the Middle-Late Triassic on paleontological evolution and mineral distribution. Analysis of the Yanchang Formation in the Ordos Basin reveals humid climate events during the Ladinian-Carnian period, leading to enhanced hydrological cycles.
MARINE AND PETROLEUM GEOLOGY
(2021)
Article
Geography, Physical
L. Caracciolo, D. C. G. Ravida, D. Chew, M. Janssen, N. K. Luensdorf, W. A. Heins, T. Stephan, H. Stollhofen
Summary: This study reconstructs the sedimentary response to climatic and tectonic perturbations in the Germanic Basin, showing changes in sediment flux across different periods and how they are influenced by regional extensional tectonics and climbing humidity. Through a multifaceted approach, the research sheds light on the interaction of climate, tectonics, and lithology on sediment production and drainage evolution.
GLOBAL AND PLANETARY CHANGE
(2021)
Article
Paleontology
Arnaud Brignon
Summary: Charles Antoine Gaillardot (1774-1833), a former military doctor in the French army, was the first to report the presence of bones in the Upper Muschelkalk of Rehainviller and Mont-sur-Meurthe, France. Georges Cuvier (1769-1832) described and illustrated these bones, attributing them to an unknown saurian with similarities to crocodiles, ichthyosaurs, plesiosaurs, monitors, and a large sea turtle. Forgotten for two centuries, the specimens are still preserved in the collections of the Museum national d'Histoire naturelle in Paris and have been presented for the first time since Cuvier's publication. The material represents the first sauropterygians discovered in the Triassic of France, including species such as Nothosaurus mirabilis and Simosaurus gaillardoti.
Article
Geography, Physical
Domenico C. G. Ravida, Luca Caracciolo, William A. Heins, Harald Stollhofen
Summary: This study presents a reliable workflow for estimating paleo-sediment fluxes and demonstrates changes in sediment load over different time intervals. The estimated values align with modern drainage systems, providing new insights into the evolution of continental sequences.
GLOBAL AND PLANETARY CHANGE
(2021)
Article
Ecology
Jun-ling Liao, Tian Lan, Guang-hui Xu, Ji Li, Yan-jiao Qin, Ming-sheng Zhao, Yu-lan Li, Yue Wang
Summary: This study provides new insights into the tooth implantation, histology, and replacement of the marine reptile Keichousaurus hui, revealing the tooth histology for the first time and categorizing tooth replacement as iguanid type. The research suggests that Keichousaurus may have primarily fed on small fish or juvenile fish and relatively soft-bodied invertebrates in the same ecosystem based on the morphology and structure of its teeth.
FRONTIERS IN ECOLOGY AND EVOLUTION
(2021)
Article
Geography, Physical
Runjian Chu, Huaichun Wu, Qiang Fang, Wentao Huang, Dongyang Liu, Rukai Zhu, Shihong Zhang, Tianshui Yang, Chengshan Wang
Summary: This paper presents geological evidence of nonlinearity in the greenhouse climate state, as exemplified by the Middle Triassic lacustrine-delta succession of the Ordos Basin. The lacustrine facies exhibit dominant precession cycles, while the deltaic facies show the influence of eccentricity and obliquity cycles. These diverse manifestations of orbital cycles in different environments can be explained by nonlinear feedbacks.
PALAEOGEOGRAPHY PALAEOCLIMATOLOGY PALAEOECOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Paleontology
Yu Pei, Jan-Peter Duda, Jan Schoenig, Cui Luo, Joachim Reitner
Summary: The study reveals that the 'stromatolites' in the Germanic Basin during the Middle Triassic should more accurately be referred to as microbe-metazoan build-ups. These build-ups were influenced by elevated salinities and were likely widespread during the Early to Middle Triassic times.
Article
Plant Sciences
Manuel Garcia-Avila, Raul De la Horra, Carlos de Miguel Chaves, Manuel A. Juncal, Adan Perez-Garcia, Francisco Ortega, Jose B. Diez
Summary: This study presents new palynological and sedimentological data concerning the Upper Triassic outcrop El Atance in Spain, revealing the unique concentration of reptile skeletons from the Late Triassic in the Iberian Peninsula. The study emphasizes the importance of understanding the sedimentary environment and precise age assignment of these fossils for comparing with remains from other areas in Europe.
REVIEW OF PALAEOBOTANY AND PALYNOLOGY
(2021)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Qiling Liu, Tinglu Yang, Long Cheng, Michael J. Benton, Benjamin C. Moon, Chunbo Yan, Zhihui An, Li Tian
Summary: A new specimen of the predatory marine reptile Diandongosaurus from the Middle Triassic Luoping Biota in southwest China is reported, indicating recovery from the Permian-Triassic mass extinction. The specimen, larger than most other known pachypleurosaurs, shows affinities with Diandongosaurus acutidentatus and was predated by an unknown hunter.
SCIENTIFIC REPORTS
(2021)
Article
Paleontology
Tea Kolar-Jurkovs, Carlos Martinez-Perez, Hazim Hrvatovic, Dunja Aljinovic, Spela Gorican, Ferid Skopljak, Bogdan Jurkovsek
Summary: Biostratigraphic examination of Triassic strata in the Drez ˇnica section, Bosnia and Herzegovina, reveals deep pelagic deposition of limestone and dolostone. The dominant conodont faunas, represented by Pseudofurnishius, allowed for the recognition of the huddlei (lower Longobardian) and murcianus (upper Longobardian-?Cordevolian) Zones, with the latter characterized by the presence of Budurovignathus and rare occurrences of Gladigondolella and Paragondolella. This study reports the first recovery of Pseudofurnishius in the region.
MARINE MICROPALEONTOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Biology
Felix J. Augustin, Andreas T. Matzke, Michael W. Maisch, Zoltan Csiki-Sava
Summary: New pterosaur specimens discovered in the Lower Cretaceous Lianmuxin Formation of the southern Junggar Basin suggest the presence of more than one dsungaripterid taxon in the local assemblage, expanding our understanding of pterosaur diversity in the region.
HISTORICAL BIOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Biology
Panagiotis Kampouridis, Georgia Svorligkou, Nikolaos Kargopoulos, Felix J. Augustin
Summary: Chilotherium is a characteristic rhinocerotid genus in the late Miocene of Eurasia, with eight species described in Europe, four of them having their type locality in Samos, Greece. This study revisited the type material of 'Chilotherium wegneri' and supported the proposed synonymy with Chilotherium schlosseri, also described from Samos. Additionally, an overview of the late Miocene record of Chilotherium in Europe is provided.
HISTORICAL BIOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Geography, Physical
Josephina Hartung, Felix J. Augustin, Panagiotis Kampouridis, Daniel J. Chure
Summary: This study describes a new trace fossil assemblage from the Upper Triassic Chinle Formation in the southwest USA, revealing support for rheotaxis behavior in notostracan crustaceans and indicating they lived in an environment dominated by sheet-flow events in ephemeral river systems.
PALAEOGEOGRAPHY PALAEOCLIMATOLOGY PALAEOECOLOGY
(2021)
Article
Geology
Felix J. Augustin, Andreas T. Matzke, Michael W. Maisch, Panagiotis Kampouridis, Zoltan Csiki-Sava
Summary: The article describes the first pterosaur remains found in the Lower Cretaceous Hutubei Formation of the southern Junggar Basin, consisting of a complete right ulna and a partial left wing metacarpal. These specimens are assigned to the Dsun-garipteridae, providing insight into the unique ecosystem preserved in this area.
CRETACEOUS RESEARCH
(2022)
Article
Paleontology
Michael W. Maisch, Andreas T. Matzke
Summary: The translation introduces the discovery of a new ichthyosaur fossil, Magnipterygius huenei n. gen. n. sp., based on an almost complete articulated skeleton with partial soft-tissue preservation. The specimen exhibits the proportions of a subadult stenopterygiid, but is slightly larger than a newborn Stenopterygius. It differs from known Stenopterygius species in terms of skeletal structure and size. This fossil provides important clues for understanding the biological evolution of this species.
NEUES JAHRBUCH FUR GEOLOGIE UND PALAONTOLOGIE-ABHANDLUNGEN
(2022)
Article
Evolutionary Biology
Tobias Massonne, Felix J. Augustin, Andreas T. Matzke, Erich Weber, Madelaine Boehme
Summary: Maomingosuchus acutirostris is a new tomistomine crocodile discovered in northern Vietnam, with distinct features separating it from other species. Phylogenetic analysis suggests a close relationship between M. acutirostris, M. petrolicus, and Krabi-Maomingosuchus. This new finding also sheds light on the dispersal events of tomistomines from Europe to eastern Asia.
JOURNAL OF SYSTEMATIC PALAEONTOLOGY
(2021)
Article
Paleontology
Felix J. Augustin, Mihai D. Dumbrava, Dylan Bastiaans, Zoltan Csiki-Sava
Summary: This study re-describes two partial braincases from the Upper Cretaceous deposits of the Hateg Basin, originally assigned to Zalmoxes and re-assigns them to hadrosauroids, possibly Telmatosaurus. The comparison between hadrosauroids and rhabdodontids reveals important differences in the basicranium, enabling confident identification of isolated and incomplete specimens. The removal of the only basicranium referred to Zalmoxes shqiperorum also prompts a revised diagnosis of that species.
Article
Paleontology
Felix J. Augustin, Dylan Bastiaans, Mihai D. Dumbrava, Zoltan Csiki-Sava
Summary: In this study, a new rhabdodontid dinosaur, Transylvanosaurus platycephalus gen. et sp. nov., from the uppermost Cretaceous of the Haeg Basin in Romania, is described. Based on morphological comparisons and phylogenetic analysis, the researchers propose a close relationship between Transylvanosaurus and Rhabdodon from southern France, which suggests a more complex biogeographic history of the Rhabdodontidae than previously thought.
JOURNAL OF VERTEBRATE PALEONTOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Felix J. Augustin, Marton Rabi, Frederik Spindler, Panagiotis Kampouridis, Josephina Hartung, Raimund Albersdoerfer, Andreas T. Matzke
Summary: The Solnhofen limestones in Germany are renowned for their exquisite preservation of vertebrate fossils, particularly turtles. A new turtle specimen from the Torleite Formation in Painten is described and identified as Solnhofia parsonsi based on unique features. The specimen from Painten is significant as it is the first one to preserve complete and articulated limbs, providing insights into the turtle's marine lifestyle. The findings also challenge previous interpretations regarding the preservation of digits in laminated deposits.
Article
Zoology
Panagiotis Kampouridis, Josephina Hartung, Felix J. Augustin, Haytham El Atfy, Gabriel S. Ferreira
Summary: This study used micro-computed tomography (mu CT) to analyze the dental morphology of Qarunavus meyeri and investigate its relationship with other ptolemaiidans. The results confirmed that Q. meyeri is a distinct species and belongs to the family Ptolemaiidae. It exhibits unique dental traits and a late dental eruption sequence, supporting the hypothesis of Ptolemaiida belonging to Afrotheria.
ZOOLOGICAL JOURNAL OF THE LINNEAN SOCIETY
(2023)
Article
Evolutionary Biology
Tobias Massonne, Felix J. Augustin, Andreas T. Matzke, Madelaine Boehme
Summary: This study describes a new pan-trionychid species, Striatochelys baba gen. et sp. nov., from the middle-upper Eocene of the Na Duong Basin in northern Vietnam. It is one of the most well-documented and complete Palaeogene pan-trionychid species from Asia. The species is characterized by its small size, absence of preneural, well-developed ridges on the costals and neurals, stronger ridges posteriorly, and a bulge-shaped entoplastron callosity. Phylogenetic analysis places S. baba within Pan-Trionychinae, forming an unresolved polytomy with species of the Nilssonia genus. Comparison with other pan-trionychids and extant trionychids from Asia reveals a close resemblance to Nilssonia spp.
JOURNAL OF SYSTEMATIC PALAEONTOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Paleontology
Felix J. Augustin, Panagiotis Kampouridis, Josephina Hartung, Raimund Albersdoerfer, Andreas T. Matzke
Summary: This article describes the first record of Pterodactylus from the Kimmeridgian period in southern Germany, representing a complete, articulated, and well-preserved skeleton. The find significantly expands the temporal range of the taxon and represents one of the best-preserved specimens of the genus reported so far.
