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Friday, July 25th, 2025
| Time | Event | ||||||
| 4:01a | [Paleontology • 2025] Direct Evidence of Trophic Interaction between a crocodyliform and a large terror bird in the Middle Miocene of La Venta, Colombia
Abstract Direct evidence of predation and other trophic relationships provide valuable information about trophic interactions between species in palaeo-communities. Data on ecological interactions amongst extant apex predators open a unique opportunity to better understand how sympatric apex predators coexisted or interacted with each other in the past. Here, we describe direct evidence of a predation or scavenging event in which we hypothesize that a medium-sized caiman (possibly Purussaurus neivensis) consumed (either through scavenging or through direct predation) a large terror bird. The distal part of a left tibiotarsus from a phorusrhacid had four pits inflicted on the cortical bone, and no signs of healing, suggesting it did not survive this trophic event. This record contributes to our current understanding of prey consumed by P. neivensis in the wetlands of the Pebas System of South America and indicates that large phorusrhacids might have had higher predation risk than previously expected. This study provides evidence of a trophic relation between apex predators and the complexity of trophic interactions in the diverse vertebrate palaeo-community of La Venta in the Middle Miocene of northern South America. Keywords: apex predators, Phorusrhacidae, Purussaurus, superpredation, taphonomy, Caimaninae, scavenging
 Andres Link, Jorge Wilson Moreno-Bernal, Federico Javier Degrange, Siobhan B. Cooke, Luis Gonzalo Ortiz-Pabon, Cesar Augusto Perdomo-Rojas and Rodolfo Salas-Gismondi. 2025. Direct Evidence of Trophic Interaction between a crocodyliform and a large terror bird in the Middle Miocene of La Venta, Colombia. Biol. Lett. 21; 20250113. DOI: doi.org/10.1098/rsbl.2025.0113 [23 July 2025] | ||||||
| 10:18a | [Mollusca • 2025] Bathylepeta wadatsumi • A New large-sized lepetid Limpet (Patellogastropoda: Lepetidae) from the Abyssal northwestern Pacific is the Deepest Known patellogastropod
Abstract True limpets in the gastropod subclass Patellogastropoda are familiar members of shallow-water rocky environments but are much rarer in the deep, with just three families adapted to bathyal depths or more. Of these, Lepetidae is the only one found on ambient seafloor habitats, and Bathylepeta is a very deep genus known from two species off Chile and Antarctica. Here, we report a giant Bathylepeta up to a shell length of 40.5 mm from 5922 m deep in the northwestern Pacific and name it Bathylepeta wadatsumi sp. nov. Phylogenetic reconstruction using the mitochondrial cytochrome c oxidase subunit I (COI) gene supports the placement of this new species in Bathylepeta. Our new species is most similar to B. linseae from the Weddell Sea but can be distinguished by its much more developed second lateral and marginal teeth, as well as a larger size. Bathylepeta wadatsumi sp. nov. also has slightly imbricating radular basal plates, a feature previously unknown from this genus; we therefore emend the genus diagnosis. Our finding not only extends the distribution of this enigmatic limpet genus to Japan but also marks the deepest bathymetric record for the entire Patellogastropoda. Key Words: COI mtDNA, Gastropoda, Lepetidae, Mollusca, morphology, new species, Patellogastropoda, phylogeny, taxonomy
Bathylepeta wadatsumi sp. nov. Diagnosis. A very large (at least up to 40.5 mm SL) Bathylepeta with about 80 clearly defined white radial streaks on the shell. When alive, ventral tissue generally pigmented reddish brown, oral shield greyish, oral lappets also reddish brown. Second lateral teeth very well-developed, each as large as the fused pair of first laterals. Basal plate rectangular, slightly overlapping. Marginal teeth also very well-developed, forming overhanging, spoon-like cusps larger in size than the laterals, edges smooth. Jaw strongly mineralised and reinforced. Genital papillae small, about 0.7 mm long when alive and contracted. Etymology. From ‘Wadatsumi’, god of the sea in Japanese mythology, alluding to its very deep habitat. It is also a reference to the fish-man character “Large Monk” Wadatsumi from Eiichiro Oda’s manga series "ONE PIECE" (Oda 2011), whose enormous body size is reminiscent of the large size that B. wadatsumi sp. nov. reaches for a deep-water patellogastropod. Used as a noun in apposition. Chong Chen, Miwako Tsuda and Yoshiyuki Ishitani. 2025. A New large-sized lepetid Limpet from the Abyssal northwestern Pacific is the Deepest Known patellogastropod. Zoosystematics and Evolution. 101(3): 1249-1258. DOI: doi.org/10.3897/zse.101.156207 | ||||||
| 3:01p | [Ichthyology • 2025] Rypticus africanus • Integrative Taxonomy reveals A New Species of the Soapfish Genus Rypticus (Perciformes: Grammistidae) from the eastern Atlantic Ocean
Abstract A new species of the soapfish genus Rypticus is described based on 14 specimens from the eastern Atlantic Ocean. The new species was previously misidentified as the greater soapfish, R. saponaceus, due to their similar appearance. However, it differs from R. saponaceus in several key characteristics, including a comparatively shorter head, snout and upper jaw, and a deeper body. Molecular data, obtained from the mitochondrial cytochrome oxidase I gene, strongly suggest the monophyly of the new species and support its description as new. Keywords: Biogeography, cryptic species, DNA barcode, Gulf of Guinea, Isthmus of Panama, reef fish
Rypticus africanus Araujo, Sampaio, Rocha & Ferreira, new species English proposed common name: African soapfish. Portuguese (São Tome and Príncipe) proposed common name: Peixe sabão africano. Diagnosis: A species of Rypticus distinguished from its congeners by the following unique combination of characters: dorsal-fin spines always three vs. two/typically two in Rypticus bistrispinus (Mitchill 1818), Rypticus bornoi Beebe & Tee-Van 1928, Rypticus courtenayi McCarthy 1979, Rypticus maculatus Holbrook 1855, and R. nigripinnis, and almost always four in Rypticus carpenteri Baldwin & Weigt, 2012; head length 30.0%–35.3% of SL (average 33.5%) vs. 35.0%–39% (average 36.88%) in R. bicolor; body depth 34.2%–40.5% of SL (average 36.2%) vs. 26%–34% (average 30.0%) in Rypticus randalli Courtenay, 1967; body brown to dark grey, with the head and sides displaying numerous or sparse pale, spots of variable size vs. lighter background coloration with several widely scattered small dark spots; head shorter than body depth vs. head larger than body depth in R. saponaceus. Etymology: The specific name africanus is given for the known distribution of the new species and its probable widespread distribution off the coast of west Africa. Gabriel Soares Araujo, Cláudio L. S. Sampaio, Luiz A. Rocha and Carlos Eduardo Ferreira Leite. 2025. Integrative Taxonomy reveals A New Species of the Soapfish Genus Rypticus (Teleostei: Grammistidae) from the eastern Atlantic Ocean. Journal of Fish Biology. DOI: doi.org/10.1111/jfb.70132 [21 July 2025] | ||||||
| 3:23p | [Paleontology • 2025] Nektognathus evasmithae • A fossilized ventral ganglion reveals a chaetognath affinity for Cambrian nectocaridids
Abstract Nectocaridids are enigmatic Palaeozoic animals with a controversial phylogenetic position. Previous hypotheses have placed them in their own phylum, chordates, molluscs (specifically cephalopods), or radiodont panarthropods. We describe here a nectocaridid, Nektognathus evasmithae gen. et sp. nov. from the early Cambrian (~519 million years) Sirius Passet Lagerstätte of North Greenland. Key specimens preserve paired, phosphatized arcuate structures consistent with preservation of a ventral ganglion, a feature characteristic of extant and fossil chaetognaths, including the amiskwiid Timorebestia koprii also from Sirius Passet. Nektognathus shares a gnathostomulid-like jaw apparatus, lateral fins, subterminal anus, and large antennae with Timorebestia and Amiskwia, placing nectocaridids in the chaetognath stem lineage. The complex sensory anatomy of nectocaridids, which is partially shared with other extinct amiskwiids, highlights a more dynamic predatory lifestyle much higher in the trophic food chain during early chaetognath evolution.
Systematic Paleontology Spiralia Schleip, 1929 Chaetognathifera Bekkouche and Gąsiorowski, 2022 Phylum Chaetognatha Leuckart, 1854 (stem group) Family Nectocarididae Conway Morris, 1976 Diagnosis: Dorsoventrally flattened bilaterian with lateral fins supported by fin rays. The body is divided into a distinct head and trunk. The head is narrow and bears long frontal antennae and a pair of large, lateral eyes of camera type. A jaw apparatus flanks the digestive tract in the anteriormost part of the trunk, consisting of a bilateral set of very large, subtriangular elements and a basal, anterior, median plate. The tubular gut terminates subterminally anterior to the posterior fin region. Diagnosis was emended from Conway Morris (1976). Genera included: Nectocaris Conway Morris 1976, Nektognathus gen. nov. Genus Nectocaris Conway Morris 1976 Genus Nektognathus evasmithae gen. et sp. nov. Locality and horizon: The material was collected at locality 1 in Sirius Passet, 82°47.6′N, 42°13.7′W, Peary Land, North Greenland. Etymology: Nekto (Gr) for swimming and gnatha (Gr) meaning jaw. The species name is for Professor Emeritus Eva Smith in recognition of her enduring fight for impartial justice for everyone and holding politicians accountable. Diagnosis for species and genus: Nectocaridid with distinct, caudal fin-region lacking fin rays. The eye stalks are short or absent. Ventral ganglion forms distinct arcuate structures in the midbody that is ~25% the length of the trunk. Jakob Vinther, Luke A. Parry, Mirinae Lee, Morten Lunde Nielsen, Yeongju Oh, Changkun Park, Ji-Hoon Kihm, Giacinto DeVivo, David A. T. Harper, Arne T. Nielsen and Tae-Yoon S. Park. 2025. A fossilized ventral ganglion reveals a chaetognath affinity for Cambrian nectocaridids. Science Advances. 11(30); DOI: doi.org/10.1126/sciadv.adu6990 [23 Jul 2025] | ||||||
| 3:25p | [Paleontology • 2025] Astigmasaura genuflexa • Side by side with Titans: A New rebbachisaurid Dinosaur from the Huincul Formation (upper Cenomanian) of Patagonia, Argentina
Abstract Rebbachisaurids are medium to large-sized, non-selective and ground-level browser diplodocoid sauropods, and they are characterised by highly specialised skulls, widely pneumatized axial elements and gracile appendicular skeletons. Known from the Early Cretaceous to the early Late Cretaceous, the rebbachisaurid fossil record is particularly diversified in Gondwana, with several specimens found in North Africa and South America. Notably, Patagonia has yielded over more than half of all known Rebbachisauridae, including the most basal forms and the youngest rebbachisaurid remains to date. Herein, we describe a new species of Rebbachisauridae from the Huincul Formation (upper Cenomanian) of the Neuquén Basin (Patagonia, Argentina): Astigmasaura genuflexa gen. et sp. nov. New laboratory work provided the complete osteology of the specimen MAU-Pv-EO-629, complementing the previously published hind limb anatomy. Thus, the type material of Astigmasaura comprises the posterior portion of an articulated, postcranial skeleton of a single, morphologically adult individual. Astigmasaura shares different conditions with other Rebbachisauridae, including anterior caudal vertebrae with tall neural spines and tetraradiate neural laminae, asymmetric middle haemal arches, mediolaterally compressed proximal tibiae, and femur with medially inclined distal condyles. Furthermore, Astigmasaura shows a unique combination of diagnostic features that distinguish it from all other sauropods. This new record not only provides new morphological information about the caudal and pelvic girdle anatomy of Rebbachisauridae, which is poorly known to date, and suggests a greater taxonomic diversification within the family during the last stages of its evolutionary history than known before.  Systematic palaeontology Order Saurischia Seeley, 1887 Suborder Sauropodomorpha von Huene, 1932 Infraorder Sauropoda Marsh, 1878 Superfamily Diplodocoidea Marsh, 1884 (sensu Upchurch, 1995) Family Rebbachisauridae Bonaparte, 1997 Astigmasaura genuflexa gen. et sp. nov. Etymology. The generic name is derived from El Orejano, a locality in North Patagonia from which the new taxon was found. Orejano is a Spanish word denoting an animal without identification signs or owner, ...  Flavio Bellardini, Leonardo S. Filippi, José L. Carballido, Alberto C. Garrido and Mattia A. Baiano. 2025. Side by side with Titans: A New rebbachisaurid Dinosaur from the Huincul Formation (upper Cenomanian) of Patagonia, Argentina. Cretaceous Research. 176, 106188. DOI: doi.org/10.1016/j.cretres.2025.106188 https://www.conicet.gov.ar/descubren-en-n  |
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