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Thursday, September 8th, 2022
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| 2:54a | [PaleoMammalogy • 2022] Enhydriodon omoensis • Lutrinae Bonaparte, 1838 (Carnivora, Mustelidae) from the Plio-Pleistocene of the Lower Omo Valley, southwestern Ethiopia: Systematics and New Insights into the Paleoecology and Paleobiogeography of the Turk
We describe otter remains (Lutrinae Bonaparte, 1838) from the Plio-Pleistocene of the Lower Omo Valley of southwestern Ethiopia. We report isolated lower and upper teeth of Torolutra sp. dated to c. 3.3 Ma, dental specimens and a femur of Enhydriodon Falconer, 1868, attributed to a new species, dated between c. 3.4 Ma and 2.5 Ma, as well as a humerus of Lutrinae indet. dated between c. 1.9 Ma and 1.8 Ma. The new species Enhydriodon omoensis n. sp. is the largest species of the genus discovered so far. It is even larger than its close relative E. dikikae Geraads, Alemseged, Bobe & Reed, 2011, a Pliocene lion-sized otter from the Afar region and potentially from eastern Turkana. Based on stable oxygen and carbon isotope analyses, we found that Enhydriodon from the Lower Omo Valley could have been terrestrial and fed on both aquatic and terrestrial prey, acquired by either hunting or scavenging. It filled a unique ecological niche in the past communities co-existing with australopithecines. Enhydriodon and Torolutra Petter, Pickford & Howell, 1991 went extinct in Africa around the Plio-Pleistocene transition, along with many large-sized and ecologically specialized carnivorans. This extinction event could be linked to the many geological, climate, and biotic changes occurring in the eastern African rift during this period, notably the incursion of early hominins into the carnivore guild. KEYWORDS: Otters, carnivorans, Africa, ecological niche, stable isotopes, new species  Enhydriodon omoensis n. sp. Etymology. — species name is derived from the lower Omo valley, where it has been recovered.
Camille GROHÉ, Kevin UNO & Jean-Renaud BOISSERIE. 2022. Lutrinae Bonaparte, 1838 (Carnivora, Mustelidae) from the Plio-Pleistocene of the Lower Omo Valley, southwestern Ethiopia: Systematics and New Insights into the Paleoecology and Paleobiogeography of the Turkana otters. COMPTES RENDUS PALEVOL. 21(30); 681-705. DOI: 10.5852/cr-palevol2022v21a30 phys.org/news/2022-09-ethiopia-scientis  Lutrinae Bonaparte, 1838 (Carnivora, Mustelidae) du Plio-Pléistocène de la basse vallée de l’Omo, sud-ouest éthiopien : systématique et nouvelles données sur la paléoécologie et la paléobiogéographie des loutres du Turkana Nous décrivons des restes de loutres (Lutrinae Bonaparte, 1838) du Plio-Pléistocène de la basse vallée de l’Omo, au Sud-Ouest de l’Éthiopie. Nous rapportons des dents inférieures et supérieures isolées de Torolutra sp., datées de c. 3,3 Ma, des specimens dentaires et un femur d’Enhydriodon Falconer, 1868, attribués à une nouvelle espèce, datés entre c. 3,4 et 2,5 Ma, ainsi qu’un humérus de Lutrinae indet., daté entre c. 1,9 et 1,8 Ma. La nouvelle espèce Enhydriodon omoensis n. sp. est la plus grande espèce du genre découverte à ce jour. Elle est encore plus grande que son proche parent E. dikikae Geraads, Alemseged, Bobe & Reed, 2011, une loutre pliocène de la taille d’un lion provenant de la région de l’Afar et potentiellement de l’Est du Turkana. Elle remplissait une niche écologique singulière dans les communautés du passé coexistantes avec les australopithécines. À partir des analyses des isotopes stables de l’oxygène et du carbone, nous avons mis en evidence qu’Enhydriodon de la basse vallée de l’Omo devait être terrestre et se nourrir de proies aquatiques et terrestres, acquises par la chasse ou le charognage. Enhydriodon et Torolutra Petter, Pickford & Howell, 1991 se sont éteintes en Afrique aux environs de la transition Plio-Pléistocène, à la même période que de nombreux carnivores de grande taille et spécialisés d’un point de vue écologique. Cet évènement d’extinctions pourrait être lié aux nombreux changements géologiques, climatiques et biotiques associés au rift est-africain durant cette période, notamment à l’incursion des hominines anciens dans la guilde carnivore. MOTS-CLÉS: Loutres, carnivores, Afrique, niche écologique, isotopes stables, espèce nouvelle | ||||||||
| 9:02a | [Paleontology • 2022] Tuebingosaurus maierfritzorum • A New Massopodan Sauropodomorph from Trossingen Formation (Germany) hidden as ‘Plateosaurus’ for 100 years in the Historical Tübingen Collection
Abstract A literature review showed that there is not a defined consensus on what specimens belong to Plateosaurus in current phylogenetic analyses, and after the assignation of SMNS 13200 as the neotype for Plateosaurus, the specimen composition of Plateosaurus as an operational taxonomic unit (OTU) needs to be addressed in further iterations of phylogenetic analyses. At least one of the specimens used to illustrate plateosaurian anatomy contains several characters identified in more derived sauropodomorphs commonly referred to as massopodans. This partial skeleton, traditionally known as specimen ‘GPIT IV’, was found in the lower dinosaur bone bed of the Obere Mühle, a Trossingen Formation outcrop, during an excavation in 1922 near the city of Tübingen, Germany. The holotype of Plateosaurus trossingensis and several other specimens referred to as this species were found in this level, which was initially interpreted as a synchronic deposit of animals. However, the current understanding of the Trossingen Formation indicates that this bed was probably a constant accumulation of carcasses through miring and transport down a river for hundreds of years. In this work, a framework to compare phylogenetic signals with morphological and histological data is provided to help in the species delineation of Plateosaurus, and support is found to refer the historic specimen ‘GPIT IV’ as a new genus and a new species. Keywords: Comparative anatomy, Late Triassic, Massopoda, phylogenetics, Sauropodomorpha
Systematic palaeontology Dinosauria Owen, 1842 Sauropodomorpha von Huene, 1932 Massopoda Yates, 2007 Tuebingosaurus gen. nov. Etymology: The genus name refers to the city of Tübingen, Germany. The holotype described here has been housed in the university's palaeontological collection since 1922, when it was discovered during an excavation of the nearby Trossingen Formation. Tuebingosaurus maierfritzorum sp. nov. Etymology: The species name refers to Uwe Fritz and Wolfgang Maier. The former is the editor-in-chief of the journal Vertebrate Zoology, and, in his journal, he facilitated the Festschrift edited by Ingmar Werneburg and Irina Ruf in honour of Wolfgang Maier. The latter was a professor of evolutionary zoology in Tübingen from 1987 to 2007, and the Festschrift was published on the occasion of his 80th birthday in 2022. Holotype: GPIT-PV-30787, specimen historically referred to as ‘GPIT IV’, comprising a complete pelvis (three sacral vertebrae, two ilia, two pubes, two ischia), five anterior caudal vertebrae, four chevrons, left femur, left tibia, left and right fibulae, left astragalus, left calcaneum, metatarsal I, pedal fingers 3 and 4 (Fig. 5). Diagnosis: Sauropodomorph with a unique combination of features: a fused pair of primordial sacrals; a robust and rugose expansion in the postacetabular process of the ilium; a pentagonal outline in the distal surface of the tibia, characterised by an additional posterior projection; a deep lateroventral fossa on the anterior margin of the astragalus; a ventrally directed heel with a lateral projection on the lateral articulation of the astragalus supporting the reduced calcaneum.
Conclusions: Based on our phylogenetic analysis, the new species Tuebingosaurus maierfritzorum is positioned as the earliest massopodan discovered in the Trossingen beds (Fig. 19). It displays some characters traditionally considered plateosaurian, like the heel-like projection in the posterior part of the ischiadic peduncle of the ilium and a straight lateral margin in metatarsal II. The fact that it has been illustrated since the early 20th century as part of Plateosaurus may suggest that some noise has been introduced into the phylogenetic analyses of the past decade by assuming all the medium to large-sized sauropodomorphs from Germany belonged to the same species. It is also clear that there is no consensus, in phylogenetic terms, on plateosaurian features and massopodan features since, through the literature, two incompatible overall topologies have been produced. Through comparative anatomy and the evidence from our phylogenetic analysis, Tuebingosaurus displays several derived features consistent with the position among massopodans and hints to an early diversification of Sauropodomorpha as they occupied the vacant niches in Pangaea left by rhynchosaurs and aetosaurs (Barrett et al. 2010). A rapid disparification event could explain the contradictory phylogenetic signals discussed in the literature. Many cranial characters that support one group could be a product of convergence as the animals adopted similar feeding strategies in different parts of Pangaea. Furthermore, a thorough revision needs to be done to the material referred to as P. trossingensis or Plateosaurus that was not obtained from the Obere Mühle outcrop, and the hypothesis that these are different species needs to be tested with morphometric, specimen-level phylogenetic, and stratigraphic analyses. Nevertheless, restricting P. trossingensis to SMNS 13200, GPIT-PV-30784, AMNH FARB 6810, and all Seemann’s material stored in Stuttgart should remove any noise that may have been added by using the literature in which all specimens were considered Plateosaurus. SMNS 13200, GPIT-PV-30784, AMNH FARB 6810, and all Seemann’s material specimens come from the lower dinosaur bone bed in Obere Mühle and are likely to represent different individuals that died at different times, but that can be referred to as part of the same chronospecies. Omar Rafael Regalado Fernández and Ingmar Werneburg. 2022. A New Massopodan Sauropodomorph from Trossingen Formation (Germany) hidden as ‘Plateosaurus’ for 100 years in the Historical Tübingen Collection. [Festschrift in Honour of Professor Dr. Wolfgang Maier; Edited by Ingmar Werneburg & Irina Ruf] Vertebrate Zoology. 72: 771-822. DOI: 10.3897/vz.72.e86348 | ||||||||
| 2:27p | [Botany • 2022] Ficus motuoensis (Moraceae) • A New Species from southwest China
Abstract A new climbing species, Ficus motuoensis Zhen Zhang & Hong Qing Li in Moraceae from southwest China has been described and illustrated in this paper. The new species resembles F. disticha, F. diversiformis and F. hederacea, but differs from these in the medium-sized acrophylls, shorter peduncle, as well as larger and spotted syconium. According to the morphological traits and phylogenetic placement, the new species belongs to Ficus subg. Synoecia sect. Apiosycea. Besides, the new species deviates from the common distribution pattern compared to the other members of sect. Apiosycea, indicating that it could be very useful for exploring the biogeography of sect. Apiosycea. Keywords: climbing figs, fig tree, new taxon, Rosales, Sino-Himalaya
  Ficus motuoensis Zhen Zhang & Hong Qing Li, sp. nov. Diagnosis: Ficus motuoensis is similar to F. disticha in the shape and texture of the bathyphylls, but differs from the latter by its larger acrophylls (4.5–6.5 cm in F. motuoensis versus 2.5–5 cm in F. disticha) and larger syconia (8–10 mm in F. motuoensis versus 3–6 mm in F. disticha). The new species also resembles F. hederacea and F. diversiformis in the aspect of the acrophylls, but can be distinguished from these by its globose and spotted syconia (versus without spots in F. hederacea and F. diversiformis) with a shorter peduncle (1–2 mm in F. motuoensis versus 10–12 mm in F. hederacea and 3–12 mm in F. diversiformis).  Zhen Zhang, Mei-Jiao Zhang, Jian-Hang Zhang, De-Shun Zhang and Hong-Qing Li. 2022. Ficus motuoensis (Moraceae), A New Species from southwest China. PhytoKeys. 206: 119-127. DOI: 10.3897/phytokeys.206.89338 |
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