New Late Cretaceous macrobaenid turtle with Asian affinities from the High Canadian Arctic: Dispersal via ice-free polar routes

Abstract

Research Article| February 01, 2009 New Late Cretaceous macrobaenid turtle with Asian affinities from the High Canadian Arctic: Dispersal via ice-free polar routes Deborah Vandermark; Deborah Vandermark 1Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of Rochester, Rochester, New York 14627, USA Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar John A. Tarduno; John A. Tarduno 1Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of Rochester, Rochester, New York 14627, USA 2Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Rochester, Rochester, New York 14627, USA Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Donald B. Brinkman; Donald B. Brinkman 3Royal Tyrrell Museum of Palaeontology, P.O. Box 7500, Drumheller, Alberta TOJ OYO, Canada Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Rory D. Cottrell; Rory D. Cottrell 1Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of Rochester, Rochester, New York 14627, USA Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Stephanie Mason Stephanie Mason 1Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of Rochester, Rochester, New York 14627, USA Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Geology (2009) 37 (2): 183–186. https://doi.org/10.1130/G25415A.1 Article history received: 19 Aug 2008 rev-recd: 06 Oct 2008 accepted: 13 Oct 2008 first online: 12 Oct 2017 Cite View This Citation Add to Citation Manager Share Icon Share MailTo Twitter LinkedIn Tools Icon Tools Get Permissions Search Site Citation Deborah Vandermark, John A. Tarduno, Donald B. Brinkman, Rory D. Cottrell, Stephanie Mason; New Late Cretaceous macrobaenid turtle with Asian affinities from the High Canadian Arctic: Dispersal via ice-free polar routes. Geology 2009;; 37 (2): 183–186. doi: https://doi.org/10.1130/G25415A.1 Download citation file: Ris (Zotero) Refmanager EasyBib Bookends Mendeley Papers EndNote RefWorks BibTex toolbar search Search Dropdown Menu toolbar search search input Search input auto suggest filter your search All ContentBy SocietyGeology Search Advanced Search Abstract A new turtle, Aurorachelys gaffneyi gen. et sp. nov., is described on the basis of a carapace and plastron of late Turonian–Coniacian age from Axel Heiberg Island in the High Canadian Arctic. This turtle is a member of the Macrobaenidae, a group that is thought to have originated in Asia. It differs from all other Late Cretaceous macrobaenids in its nearly circular shell. The earliest record of macrobaenids in North America documented by this specimen, together with the earliest records of other turtle clades that presumably originated in Asia, indicates that turtle dispersal was episodic, with most first occurrences of Asian taxa in North America clustering around the Turonian. The high global temperatures of the Turonian are interpreted as facilitating this episode of dispersal of Asian turtle groups into North America. Islands and seamounts in the young, volcanically active Arctic Ocean during the Late Cretaceous may have acted as an alternative to an Alaskan intercontinental route, and may have allowed macrobaenids to enter the part of North America east of the interior continental seaway. You do not have access to this content, please speak to your institutional administrator if you feel you should have access.