Discovery Of Fossils Research Articles

120-летие Густава Генриха Ральфа фон Кёнигсвальда и история биномена Homo erectus

Introduction. The appearance of Homo erectus binomial name is connected with the discovery and study of Pithecanthropus and Synanthropus by Eugene Dubois, Gustav Ralph von Koenigswald and Franz Weidenreich. Despite the well-known history of these discoveries, the origin of the term Homo erectus is still a subject of controversy. The study of the original publications of the authors of the discoveries of Asian ancient people helps to shed light on this issue. Another reason for the appearance of this article became the 120th anniversary of Gustav Heinrich Ralph von Konigswald, celebrated by the scientific community in 2022. Materials and methods. The author used the materials of scientific publications of the 30s-40s of the last century, biographical data and later memoirs. Comparative analytical methods of meaningful analysis of the text of the studied publications were used, as well as representations and methodological approaches of modern evolutionary anthropology. Results. The beginning of Ralph von Koenigswald's work in Java was associated with the study of paleontological finds. The most important paleoanthropological discoveries were made by him in Sangiran. A study of the publications of Ralph Koenigswald shows that the belonging of Pithecanthropus to the most ancient people did not cause him doubts. A joint study with Franz Weidenreich of Pithecanthropus and Synanthropus finds led both researchers to the conclusion that two groups were highly similar. Biographical data indicate that Ralph Koenigswald's break in working on Javanese finds was associated with his stay in captivity. Koenigswald is credited with the wartime preservation of fossil finds from Sangiran and Ngandong. Conclusion. The first mention of Homo erectus binomial name is contained in an article by Franz Weidenreich in 1940, and was noted and supported by T. Dobzhansky in 1944. Ernst Mayr's use of the term Homo erectus dates back to a later time. The role of Ralph von Koenigswald in the emergence of Homo erectus binomial name remains unknown.

The latest Miocene to Pliocene small-sized fossil turtles, Testudinidae and Geoemydidae, from Makrygialos, Thermaikos Gulf, Northern Greece.

Although the existence of fossil turtles in Makrygialos and the surrounding areas, on the west side of the Thermaikos Gulf in Northern Greece, has been known for almost two decades, it has not been studied so far in detail. Over the last 5 years, we have conducted systematic fieldwork and exploration, focusing on the discovery and recovery of fossils in the coastal broader area of Makrygialos. Eleven turtle specimens have been found so far, eight of which have been collected, on the outcrops of the beaches of Makrygialos and Agiannis. Their age is estimated between the latest Miocene and Pliocene. Four of these specimens are terrestrial giant tortoises, two of them are small tortoises which we identify as the species Chersine hermanni sensu lato, and the last two are freshwater turtles which we attribute to the genus Mauremys sensu lato. Here, we present our studies on the small-sized turtle species from this region. The fossil turtle fauna of Makrygialos is among the richest and most diverse in Greece, as in only a few other Greek localities at least three species of fossil turtles have been found. The C. hermanni specimens found in Makrygialos are probably the oldest fossils of the species found in Europe. The small-turtle faunal composition during the Neogene along the east and west sides of the Thermaikos Gulf was completely different.

Discovery of Early Cretaceous Sinuiju Biota in the Democratic People's Republic of Korea and comparison with Jehol Biota in China

In recent years, some important fossils of the Jehol Biota of Early Cretaceous age in north-eastern China have been recorded from the Lower Cretaceous Sinuiju Formation in the Sinuiju area (north-western part of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea. This discovery indicates that the biota from the Sinuiju Formation can be related to those from the Yixian Formation in western Liaoning Province, China. The palaeontological evidence in the Sinuiju Basin shows that the Jehol Biota is more widely distributed than previously thought and the fossils composing the Jehol Biota include a greater variety of animal and plant taxa than earlier known. In previous studies, the age of the Sinuiju Formation was considered to be Late Jurassic–earliest Cretaceous on the basis of limited fossil evidence. In contrast, it is now considered to be earliest Cretaceous based on the new fossil finds. During a recent field survey, abundant fossils were collected from the lacustrine deposits of this formation. The discovery of the Sinuiju Biota adds significant new data to the study of the geographical distribution and diversity of the Jehol Biota in north-eastern Asia.

Biostratigraphic characteristics and correction of the boundary between Miocene and Oligocene sediments in the northern Malay - Tho Chu basin

Stratigraphic study in oil and gas wells is dependent on the research method and the characteristics of the collected samples, such as sample types and spaces between samples, that is why the stratigraphic boundary of the wells may fluctuate in a certain sedimentary range. Therefore, when re-evaluating the hydrocarbon potential or expanding the petroleum exploration targets of an area, we need to study additional evidence and geological events to correct the stratigraphic boundary of the well and correlate regional stratigraphy. These studies often use biostratigraphic and seismic stratigraphic methods.
 This paper provides evidence on biostratigraphy to correct the stratigraphic boundary between Miocene and Oligocene sediments in the northern Malay - Tho Chu basin and compares them with the general stratigraphy of the Malay basin. The research results determined that the top of the Oligocene sediment after correcting is higher than what was specified in the previous studies based on marker fossil findings in a palynomorph abundance cycle; and there are similar biostratigraphic characteristics between the studied area and the Malay basin.

Early Pleistocene banded iron-rich sedimentary rocks at Cape Vani, Milos Island, Greece: A modern analogue of Precambrian banded iron formations?

The genesis of banded iron formations is commonly associated with anoxic and iron-rich (ferruginous) marine conditions throughout the Archean to Palaeoproterozoic, and occasionally in the Neoproterozoic. In recent studies, ~2 million-year-old banded iron-rich sedimentary rocks with alternating Fe- and Si-rich bands occurring in the Cape Vani sedimentary basin on Milos island (Greece) were interpreted to be a modern analogue of Precambrian banded iron formations. This interpretation is mainly due to the discovery of photoferrotrophic-like filamentous fossils in massive iron-rich cherty beddings of another subbasin about 450 m to the south. In this study, we re-examined the stratigraphy and lithology of the Cape Vani basin, carried out detailed petrographic, mineralogical and geochemical investigations of the iron-rich sedimentary rocks, as well as volcaniclastic/volcanic conglomerates and banded hydrothermal veins that are in close spatial association with the iron-rich sedimentary rocks. The Fe2O3 content of the banded iron-rich sedimentary rocks ranges from 0.41 to 11.02 wt% (2.73 wt% on average), far lower than that required per definition for banded iron formations. In addition, the banded iron-rich sedimentary rocks contain substantial clastic materials. Samples with stronger silicification, however, usually contain less clastic materials. The non-clastic components occur as siliceous matrix comprising the same mineral assemblage as the banded hydrothermal veins. These components occur in the interspaces of the clastic materials, within cavities, microfractures and veins crosscutting the layers. Fe2O3, principally reflecting hematite, is intimately linked with the presence of non-clastic materials. Therefore, the non-clastic materials are interpreted as post-depositional products associated with silicification during later stage hydrothermal activities, rather than being syn-depositional as the minerals in Precambrian banded iron formations. Consequently, the Milos banded iron-rich sedimentary rocks cannot be an analogue of Precambrian banded iron formations, seeing their lithological and genetical differences.The geochemical results reveal that both the banded iron-rich sedimentary rocks and the massive iron-rich cherty beddings have the same clastic provenance as the volcaniclastics/volcanic conglomerates, but the massive iron-rich cherty beddings contain more hydrothermal contributions due to more intensive fluid-rock interaction. Thus, the two types of iron-rich sedimentary rocks are considered as clastic sedimentary rocks with varying degrees of hydrothermal overprinting. The massive iron-rich cherty beds were generally subjected to stronger hydrothermal overprinting, and, therefore, contain more siliceous matrix and Fe2O3. The enrichment of Fe is due to post-depositional hydrothermal fluid infiltration to the primary sediment piles. The primary layer planes of the banded iron-rich rocks, their interconnected pores and fractures provided preferential pathways for the hydrothermal fluids, and resulted in denser precipitation of Fe(III) (oxy)hydroxides and SiO2 cement therein. The alternating bands in the banded iron-rich sedimentary rocks, therefore, reflect cyclic permeabilities of the layers (i.e., primary sedimentary planes and porosities), rather than cyclic precipitation of Fe- and Si-minerals. This study also sheds light on an alternative formation mechanism for banded structures in Fe- and Si-rich sedimentary rocks similar to those of Precambrian banded iron formations.

“HEALING CRACKS” ON FOSSIL TEETH: IMPROVEMENT OF ODONTOLOGICAL STUDY METHODS IN PALAEONTOLOGICAL RESEARCH

Abstract. A significant part of fossil findings, which are objects in palaeontological and palaeoanthropological research, is represented by teeth. Even if compared with skeletal remains, they are composed of highly mineralised tissues. This fact considerably increases their potential for being preserved withstanding destructive environmental factors. Nevertheless fossilisation process is accompanied by various changes in teeth including over the centuries with regard to their integrity or deformations. Thus among palaeontological findings there is a noticeable share of fragmented teeth. However we will focus in the current paper on a special group of teeth, which have preserved their most essential morphological features, being at the same time on the way to their fragmentation - cracked teeth.Recent morphological and especially morphometric study methods applied to dental findings have been developed largely in line with high-resolution imaging techniques, such as microfocus x-ray tomographic scanning. They provide diversity of detailed digital reconstructions of teeth and application of image processing. This allows improvements of existing methods in odontological studies as well as and development of new as well, including those using automated algorithms, e.g. automated digital odontometry. This technique is sensitive to reconstructed surface quality, uninterrupted requiring surfaces as cracks hinder running the algorithms. Thus we propose method for reconstructing cracked teeth, which allows to obtain better results in morphological studies of teeth. The method proposed is based on consistent stages of surface curvature analysis and minimizing average distance between points opposing cracks surfaces.

Reconstruction of Caudipteryx robot to identify the origin of avian flapping flight

The origin of bird and avian flight is one of the most controversial debates since the fossil of Archaeopteryx was found in Germany. With the continuous discoveries of relative fossils of dinosaurs from all over the world, scientists have reached a consensus that the ancestors of bird might be small sized non-avian theropod dinosaurs. However, the disputation focus now remains in how the dinosaur learned to fly. Via analysis of kinematics and dynamics of reconstructed Caudipteryx robot on the test rig, we discovered that the flapping motion of the forearms of feathered dinosaurs was developed as they were only able to run on the ground when it was long before it could actually fly in the sky. This study supports the inferences that the performance of powered flapping flight was evolved long before the feathered dinosaurs could fly. This is a completely natural biophysical principle that provides a vital role to comprehend the evolution of avian flight.

Dominican amber net-winged beetles suggest stable paleoenvironment as a driver for conserved morphology in a paedomorphic lineage

Paedomorphosis is a heterochronic syndrome in which adult individuals display features of their immature forms. In beetles, this phenomenon occurs widely in the superfamily Elateroidea, including the net-winged beetles (Lycidae), and, due to the usual flightlessness of paedomorphic females, it is hypothesized to cause speciation rates higher than in non-paedomorphic lineages. However, some fossils of paedomorphic lycids do not support this with palaeobiological data. Discovery of new Lycidae fossils attributed to the West Indian extant paedomorphic genus Cessator Kazantsev in the Dominican amber also suggests morphological stasis within this genus in the Greater Antilles. We describe Cessator anachronicus Ferreira and Ivie, sp. nov. based on adult males, as well as the first ever recorded fossil net-winged beetle larva of the same genus. We propose that the relatively young age of the studied fossils combined with the stable conditions in the forest floor of the Greater Antilles through the last tens of million years could explain the exceptionally conserved morphology in the net-winged beetles affected by the paedomorphic syndrome.

Shrews of the Genus Chodsigoa (Soricidae, Lipotyphla) from the Pleistocene of Vietnam.

The first finds of the fossil remains of the members of the genus Chodsigoa outside China are described from the Pleistocene of northern Vietnam. They are assigned to C. caovansunga Lunde, Musser et Son, 2003 (a maxillary fragment with A3-M3, an isolated M1, and a dentary with I1 and P4-M2) from the Middle Pleistocene of the Tham Hai cave (Lang Son Province) and C. hoffmanni Chen et al., 2017 (a maxillary fragment with P4-M2) from the Upper Pleistocene of the Lang Trang cave (Thanh Hoa Province). The described specimens are the first fossil finds of these species. They indicate that representatives of the genus Chodsigoa in Vietnam spread to the south much further in the Pleistocene than today.

Hominin evolution and diversity: a comparison of earlier-Middle and later-Middle Pleistocene hominin fossil variation in China.

Historical views of Asia as an evolutionary 'backwater' are associated with the idea that Homo erectus experienced long periods of stasis and ultimately went extinct. However, recent discoveries of well-dated Middle Pleistocene hominin fossils in China have considerably challenged these ideas and provide sufficient data to propose a testable model that explains the patterning of variation in Middle Pleistocene China, and why it changed over time. A series of hominin fossil studies comparing earlier-Middle and later-Middle Pleistocene groups confirm that the expressions of certain traits shift around 300 ka. Fossils from the later Middle Pleistocene are more variable with a mix of archaic traits as well as ones that are common in Western Eurasian early Homo sapiens and Neanderthals. The period around 300 ka appears to have been a critical turning point for later-Middle Pleistocene morphological changes in China. It coincides with a phase of climatic instability in the Northern Hemisphere between Marine Isotope Stages 12 and 10 that would have led to changes in gene flow patterning, and regional population survival/extinction. This localized and testable model can be used for future explorations of hominin evolution in later Pleistocene eastern Eurasia. This article is part of the theme issue 'The impact of Chinese palaeontology on evolutionary research'.

New insights into the South China Lower Devonian flora based on fossils from Hezhang, Guizhou Province.

The Early Devonian flora of South China is composed of many endemic members and has been studied mainly based on Yunnan materials. We in this study report a new Lower Devonian plant locality, recognize four sub-regions of the Early Devonian flora from South China and furthermore demonstrate these plants' distribution pattern and probable dispersal route. The new finds of plant fossils are from the Lower Devonian of Hezhang County, Guizhou Province, and include Zosterophyllopsida Demersatheca and Euphyllophytopsida Pauthecophyton. Demersatheca contigua, consisting of cylindrical strobili with four longitudinal rows of sporangia decussately arranged, shows great similarities to the plant from Yunnan and Guangxi localities. Pauthecophyton hezhangensis sp. nov. has distinct fertile units with grouped sporangia and each unit with two or three fusiform sporangia. The new locality belongs to the Guizhou sub-region and shares some taxa with the eastern Yunnan and Cathaysia sub-regional floras within South China, in which the shared plant members are distributed around the epicontinental sea. We suggest that the Guizhou sub-region might act as a bridge during plant dispersal from eastern Yunnan to Cathaysia Oldland in the Early Devonian. This article is part of the theme issue 'The impact of Chinese palaeontology on evolutionary research'.

Explore Paleoanthropology Fieldwork

This classroom exercise utilizes a free mobile virtual reality app to introduce students to (1) the process by which paleoanthropologists find and interpret fossils, (2) the importance of two recent hominin fossil finds in the Cradle of Humankind of South Africa, and (3) the variety of science careers that contribute to paleoanthropological research. Before their virtual field trip, learners are introduced to the Homo naledi and Australopithecus sediba discoveries and to some of the researchers from the team through a collection of online resources. In the app, learners explore and find fossils in the Dinaledi Chamber of Rising Star Cave in South Africa, where the first fossils of H. naledi were found. Postexploration analysis and reflection prompts encourage learners to consider how researchers decide how and where to excavate, which skills are needed to study our human origins, and why this research is important.

PROBLEMS IN USING ICHNOFACIES FOR DEPOSITIONAL ENVIRONMENT INTERPRETATION CASE STUDY: THE CISAAR FORMATION, SUNGAI CISAAR, SUMEDANG DISTRICT, WEST JAVA, INDONESIA

Although numerous researchers have used trace fossils method to determine depositional environment, this method is still considered less robust. This is due to the finding of several similar trace fossils in two or more diverse environments, leading to irrelevancy in environmental interpretation. Therefore, we conducted this study in order to verify how powerful the trace fossil analysis is, by applying this method to interpret the depositional environment of the Cisaar Formation in the Cihanyir Tonggoh area, Sumedang Regency, West Java. We combined trace fossil study with foraminiferal assemblage analysis and vertical succession of related sedimentary units. For this study, 19 rock samples that have been collected from outcrop along 16 m traverse and 14 m measured stratigraphic sections were examined.The result of the study shows that shallow marine trace fossils which were developed at the edge of the shelf, were transported into the basin by gravitational mass flow and re-deposited as deep marine turbidites. Trace fossils were generally found in sandstones, while planktonic foraminifers were found in claystones-sandstones interbeds. This study concludes that to avoid inconsistency in the interpretation of the depositional environment, performing trace fossils method must be integrated with other methods, e.g. analysis of lithofacies and biofacies.

Discovery and recovery of an exceptional accumulation of Carboniferous echinoids at Hook Head, Wexford

Geoconservation is a burgeoning area of activity within the Earth sciences and the preservation of significant fossil finds remains crucial for the advancement of palaeontological knowledge and protection of geoheritage. Here, we report on the discovery of an unusually large and remarkably well-preserved cluster of Carboniferous echinoids at Hook Head in County Wexford, Ireland. The fossil accumulation was located in the upper part of the Ballysteen Limestone Formation, which is Tournaisian in age and records sedimentation on a mixed carbonate-siliciclastic shelf/ramp. The fossil record of Paleozoic echinoids is generally poorly sampled; however, the fossil cluster from Hook Head includes at least 250 partially imbricated echinoid specimens in close association and preserves features such as the spines, Aristotle's lantern and peristomal plates. The fossil-bearing surface was precariously located on a coastal outcrop and at serious risk of being removed by storm activity, prompting an emergency rescue operation. The successful recovery of this important fossil find, which included securing official permission for extraction of the slab and its lodgement with the National Museum of Ireland, represents something of a first for Irish geological conservation.

Discovery and Recovery of an Exceptional Accumulation of Carboniferous Echinoids at Hook Head, Wexford.

Geoconservation is a burgeoning area of activity within the Earth sciences and the preservation of significant fossil finds remains crucial for the advancement of palaeontological knowledge and protection of geoheritage. Here, we report on the discovery of an unusually large and remarkably well-preserved cluster of Carboniferous echinoids at Hook Head in County Wexford, Ireland. The fossil accumulation was located in the upper part of the Ballysteen Limestone Formation, which is Tournaisian in age and records sedimentation on a mixed carbonate-siliciclastic shelf/ramp. The fossil record of Paleozoic echinoids is generally poorly sampled; however, the fossil cluster from Hook Head includes at least 250 partially imbricated echinoid specimens in close association and preserves features such as the spines, Aristotle’s lantern and peristomal plates. The fossil-bearing surface was precariously located on a coastal outcrop and at serious risk of being removed by storm activity, prompting an emergency rescue operation. The successful recovery of this important fossil find, which included securing official permission for extraction of the slab and its lodgement with the National Museum of Ireland, represents something of a first for Irish geological conservation.

Origin of the Human Soul: Making Sense of Emotional Fossils (trans. by Andrey Korchevskiy)

That humans evolved to be hyper-cooperative has always been problematic for the Darwinian view of evolution: a struggle among individuals for scarce resources. The most fundamental fossil findings are consistent with the proposal that the appearance of humans 6 million years ago represents a rare major biological transition. For the first time, individual mammals (humans) began dividing and coordinating their functional activities while assembling into organism-like groups. The refinement of this collective capacity for teamwork is the decisive human adaptation and constitutes our core human instincts evolved over millions of years, referred to as the “old mind.” Our own Homo sapiens species appeared 300,000 years ago. Because the evolutionary mechanisms of sexual selection and group selection became predominant, 1) cultural evolution, 2) the rise of economic behavior, 3) chronic war, and 4) mental illness resulted. The major mental illnesses are viewed as “emotional fossils” that provide insight into the evolutionary development of our emotions and motivations. The symptoms of bipolar disorder reflect the breakdown of instincts evolved by sexual selection for the benefits of cohesion among groups. The symptoms of schizophrenia reflect the breakdown of instincts evolved by group selection for the benefits of groups prevailing in competition with each other. These often-disruptive instincts constitute our “new mind” that seeks equilibrium with our old mind, which persists as the humanizing legacy of collective functioning refined through the ages by our hominin ancestors and now experienced as our innermost soul.

Indonesia’s contribution in tracing the human ancestor

Since Darwin’s postulated the origin of the human species from an ape-like ancestor, the search for the missing link between ape and human had begun. In 1887, Eugene Dubois traveled from the Netherlands to Indonesia to search for the missing link. He eventually discovered human fossils in Wajak, Kedungbrubus, and Trinil to which he named Pithecanthropus erectus. The research was then continued by Ter Haar (1931) in Ngandong, Dujfyes, and his assistant, Andoyo (1936) in Perning, Mojokerto, and Von Koenigswald (1936-1940) in Sangiran, who successfully discovered many Homo erectus fossils. Since the 1960s, Sartono (ITB), T. Jacob (UGM), and Geological Research and Development Centre (Indonesia) continue the study, adding the collection of the specimens. Collaboration with the National Museum of Science and Nature, Tokyo concluded that Indonesian Homo erectus went through local evolution instead of static evolution condition. Indonesia is rich in natural resources and environmental conditions that were suitable for the evolution of early humans as shown by the discovery of several Homo erectus skeleton fossils that were not found in most other countries. This is a blessing left by early humans to us.

An exquisitely preserved in-ovo theropod dinosaur embryo sheds light on avian-like prehatching postures

SummaryDespite the discovery of many dinosaur eggs and nests over the past 100 years, articulated in-ovo embryos are remarkably rare. Here we report an exceptionally preserved, articulated oviraptorid embryo inside an elongatoolithid egg, from the Late Cretaceous Hekou Formation of southern China. The head lies ventral to the body, with the feet on either side, and the back curled along the blunt pole of the egg, in a posture previously unrecognized in a non-avian dinosaur, but reminiscent of a late-stage modern bird embryo. Comparison to other late-stage oviraptorid embryos suggests that prehatch oviraptorids developed avian-like postures late in incubation, which in modern birds are related to coordinated embryonic movements associated with tucking — a behavior controlled by the central nervous system, critical for hatching success. We propose that such pre-hatching behavior, previously considered unique to birds, may have originated among non-avian theropods, which can be further investigated with additional discoveries of embryo fossils.

The first benthic insects (Ephemeroptera and Coleoptera) from the Upper Cretaceous of Colombia

The Upper Cretaceous fossil record of insects in northern South America is almost unknown. Here we describe two fossil insects from the Chipaque Formation of (Cenomanian–Santonian), from central Colombia, representing the first report of fossil arthropods for the Upper Cretaceous of Colombia, and the first fossil record of a mayfly and beetle for northern South America. Although the specimens lack key anatomical features for a high-resolution taxonomic identification, we were able to attribute one of the specimens to Ephemeroptera and a second specimen to Coleoptera. This fossil finding opens the possibility for future discoveries of additional insect fossils in northern South American rock sequences that could fill the extensive gap that exists in this paleontological field.

Mysteries of the bryophyte-tracheophyte transition revealed: enter the eophytes.

This article is a Commentary on Edwards et al. (2022a,b), 233: 1440–1455 and 1456–1465.