Palaeontological Discoveries Research Articles

Educational potential of English-language extracurricular activities with elements of palaeontology at secondary school

Introduction. The relevance of the research is accounted for by the search of new pedagogical technologies for the formation, preservation and reproduction of traditional cultural values in the socio-cultural space. The aim of the article is to analyse the educational potential of extracurricular activities in the English language involving the elements of palaeontology for secondary school students. Materials and methods: 1) study of due normative documents and scientific methodological literature; 2) organisation of two expert interviews with worldclass palaeontologists; 3) questioning encompassing sixty-four 8th-year pupils of two schools of Karaganda region, Kazakhstan; 4) experimental work aimed at introduction of a series of extracurricular activities in the English language with elements of palaeontology; 5) methods of mathematical processing of research results: Yule’s coefficient of association (Q), Pearson’s contingency coefficient (Cc), Fisher’s angular transformation criterion (φ), McNemar test (χ2). Results. A number of factors were revealed testifying that the palaeontological discoveries on the territory of Kazakhstan represent a cultural component which heightens the interest to the history of the native land, develops patriotism, improves the quality of education, as well as draws attention to the problem of imbalance between the interest in palaeontological finds of Kazakhstan on the part of the world scientific community and the lack of knowledge in Kazakh young people about the richness of the country’s ancient flora and fauna. The study of the regulatory framework revealed some inconsistencies and gaps in the biology curriculum for 7th-9th year school learners, which were filled only with the help of extracurricular activities in the English language with the inclusion of elements of palaeontology. The cumulative assessment formed by the means of analysis of two expert interviews makes one conclude on the interest of the global palaeontological community in the ancient flora and fauna of Kazakhstan as well as on the motivational, educational and socio-cultural potential of palaeontological content in school’s educational activities. Some statistically significant differences were revealed in respect of preference of extracurricular activity types in 8th-year learners (χ2exp =7.719; p≤0.05), on the ways to increase motivation to participate in such extracurricular activities (φemp=2.353 with p≤0.05) and regarding the extension of vocabulary on palaeontology in English (χ2 = 9.524 with p≤0.05). Conclusions. The evidential base of the educational potential of palaeontological elements in extracurricular activities at classes of English at secondary middle school can be used in interdisciplinary extracurricular activities at all educational levels.

The reproductive biology of oviraptorosaurs: a synthesis

Abstract Among all of the dinosaurs, the Late Cretaceous oviraptorosaurs, in addition to troodontid dinosaurs, boast the best fossil records ranging from numerous eggs and embryos, seven clutch–adult associations, highly organized egg clutches, two gravid adults and possible colonial nesting grounds, to plenty of species described from skeletons from East Asia. These well-preserved fossils provided insights into the reproductive biology, ecology, behaviour and developmental biology of oviraptorid dinosaurs, contributing to several groundbreaking palaeontological discoveries in the last decade. Some of them received further support, while the others remain controversial, indicating that a comprehensive, rigorous re-examination using all available evidence is required. In a recent review, oviraptorosaurs were considered as an intermediate stage in moving towards the modern avian reproduction, whose reproductive biology can be inferred based on the avian model. With the new insights generated from the shell histology of several embryo-containing eggs and evidence from previous studies, this study offers a synthetic view of the reproductive biology of the Late Cretaceous oviraptorosaurs, illuminating the peculiar reproductive biology of oviraptorosaurs. In conclusion, oviraptorosaurs had an essentially unique reproductive biology lacking modern analogies. Thus, simply applying either avian or reptilian models to infer the biology of extinct animals appears inappropriate in the case of oviraptorosaurs.

Evolutionary development of the cephalopod arm armature: a review

The cephalopod arm armature is certainly one of the most important morphological innovations responsible for the evolutionary success of the Cephalopoda. New palaeontological discoveries in the recent past afford to review and reassess origin and homology of suckers, sucker rings, hooks, and cirri. Since a priori character state reconstructions are still ambiguous, we suggest and discuss three different evolutionary scenarios. Each of them is based on the following assumptions: (1) Neocoleoidea uniting extant Decabrachia and Octobrachia is monophyletic (= proostracum-bearing coleoids); (2) extinct Belemnitida and Diplobelida are stem decabrachians; (3) proostracum-less coleoids (Hematitida, Donovaniconida, Aulacoceratida) represent stem-neocoleoids; (4) Ammonoidea and Bactritoidea are stem coleoids. We consider a scenario where belemnoid hooks derived from primitive suckers as well-supported. Regarding belemnoid hooks and suckers as homologues implies that belemnoid, oegopsid, and probably ammonoid arm hooks arose through parallel evolution. Our conclusions challenge the widespread opinion, whereupon belemnoid hooks evolved de novo, and instead support earlier ideas formulated by Sigurd von Boletzky.

The Wessex Formation (Wealden Group, Lower Cretaceous) of Swanage Bay, southern England

The Early Cretaceous Wealden Group of Swanage Bay, Dorset, southern England, comprises two formations, a lower Wessex Formation and an overlying Vectis Formation. Presently only part of the former is exposed and here its stratigraphy, sedimentology and palaeontology are redescribed. Recent work on the Wealden Group of the Wessex Sub-basin has focused either on the Barremian – earliest Aptian of the Isle of Wight, or on the Wealden Group of Dorset in a broader context. Consequently, the Wealden Group of Swanage Bay lacks detailed analysis and description. In the 200 years since the first account of the geology and stratigraphy of Swanage Bay, slumping and vegetation growth have dramatically concealed the upper part of the Group at this previously well-known locality. A stratigraphical framework with assigned marker beds is established here for the first time allowing for the precise placement of new palaeontological discoveries. Analysis of the palaeobotanical and microvertebrate remains recovered from the recorded section permits a more accurate reconstruction of the Early Cretaceous Wessex Formation ecosystem of east Dorset.

Chapter 3 Biostratigraphic age review of New Zealand's Permian–Triassic central terranes

Abstract This contribution considers the fossil content of the three Eastern Province ‘central’ terranes discussed within this Memoir, namely the Brook Street Terrane, the Dun Mountain–Maitai Terrane and the Murihiku Terrane, and reviews the evidence and/or arguments for the current interpretation of their age ranges as determined from fossils. It also briefly considers the Permian–Triassic record of the Western Province. There has been limited new palaeontological discovery in the past few decades but there has been significant new taxonomic and biostratigraphic analysis of New Zealand Permian faunas in light of new research in eastern Australia. This enables refinement of age correlations and greater confidence in the age significance of the New Zealand Permian record.

New fossils of the giant pholidosaurid genus Sarcosuchus from the Early Cretaceous of Tunisia

The Lower Cretaceous vertebrate assemblages from southeastern Tunisia contain one of the most diverse, unique and significant vertebrate faunas of this period in North Africa. The fossil record of crocodyliforms from these assemblages is becoming better understood with the increasing number of palaeontological discoveries that have been made over the past few years. However, very little data is available on the North Gondwanan pholidosaurid crocodyliform Sarcosuchus due to the paucity of material likely because of selective taphonomic factors. Here, I describe and figure new fossils of the pholidosaurid genus Sarcosuchus from Aptian-Albian deposits of the Tataouine Basin in southeastern Tunisia. These fossils include well-preserved dorsal osteoderms, which were found in anatomical connection, several isolated teeth and fragmentary remains mostly pertaining to the appendicular and axial skeletons. Anatomical studies and comparisons with other specimens have been performed, supporting the attribution of the material to the genus Sarcosuchus. I show that no attempt at a specific level can be made on the basis of the present fossils. The large size of the osteoderms and the stout conical teeth indicate that many Sarcosuchus individuals reached enormous body sizes.Sarcosuchus would have prospered in a flood dominated river-delta system that characterized the Tethyan margin of Gondwana by the end of the Lower Cretaceous. The abundant remains of diverse fish taxa including actinopterygians, sarcopterygians and chondrichthyans are indicative of a productive ecosystem, and further suggest that the diet of the Tunisian taxon included large bodied fish. This discovery provides a substantial addition to the extremely poor record of the North African crocodylomorphs with new insights into their palaeobiogeographic distribution, palaeoecology and extinction.

Palaeolithic cave art from Crete, Greece

The earliest figural art known from Greece is dated to the Neolithic period (ca. 8,5 to 5thousandyears ago). A recent study of the petroglyphs at Asphendou Cave on the island of Crete, however, suggests that such art has a much longer history in the Aegean basin. First published over forty years ago, the debate concerning the petroglyphs' age has lain dormant for decades. In light of technological advances in digital imaging and recent archaeological and palaeontological discoveries on the island we re-assess the dating of the petroglyphs and prove that some were made in the Late Pleistocene, or Upper Palaeolithic. Comparison of the iconography to fossil data demonstrates that an extinct endemic deer (Candiacervus) is represented at Asphendou Cave. This is the earliest figural art yet discovered in Greece.

The Bargalló Teaching Methodology at the Early Twentieth Century: Contributions to Palaeontological Research and Geological Heritage

During the early twentieth century, the Professor Modesto Bargallo developed in Spain a teaching method that promoted the active participation of the students in their training, “discovering” the Nature by themselves, through practical field trips and classroom activities. His innovative methodology allowed not only the optimal training of several classes of future teachers at the Normal School of Guadalajara, but also the discovery of four new palaeontological sites: The Silurian graptolite site of Sierra Menera, the Eocene-Oligocene vertebrate site of Huermeces, and the Miocene mammal and turtle sites of Chiloeches. The scientific legacy of Bargallo is also directly related to his relationship with two of the most important Spanish naturalist institutions: The Royal Spanish Society of Natural History (Real Sociedad Espanola de Historia Natural), in whose proceedings he published his palaeontological discoveries, and the National Museum of Natural Sciences (Museo Nacional de Ciencias Naturales), to which he donated the fossil remains that were found in those sites. Another part of his rich geological heritage remained in Spain too, after his exile to Mexico (where he continued his intense teaching and scientific work), being nowadays held at the University of Alcala, in the so-called Bargallo Historical Collection.

The geological work of the Scottish National Antarctic Expedition, 1902 – 04

The Scottish National Antarctic Expedition (1902 – 04) made the first topographical survey and geological assessment of Laurie Island, one of the South Orkney Islands. The expedition's surgeon and geologist, J. H. H. Pirie, provided competent geological descriptions but these were largely overshadowed by his misidentification of an obscure plant fossil as a graptolite. Erroneous confirmation by eminent British palaeontologists led to Triassic rocks being regarded as Lower Palaeozoic for fifty years. The mistake arose from the familiarity of all concerned with the geology of the Scottish Southern Uplands: they were led astray by the preconception that, as in Scotland, deformed ‘greywacke–shale’ successions would contain Lower Palaeozoic fossils. Other, more successful aspects of the expedition's geological investigations are less well known. Fossils acquired in the Falkland Islands expanded that archipelago's poorly known Devonian brachiopod fauna, but arguably the most important palaeontological discovery lay unrecognized for ten years. A limestone block dredged from the bed of the Weddell Sea contained Early Cambrian archaeocyath fossils which, had they been promptly identified, would have been the first record of this important Antarctic palaeofauna. Instead, the Weddell Sea material complemented fossils recovered on the opposite, Ross Sea side of the Antarctic continent during Shackleton's British Antarctic Expedition (1907 – 09).

An unexpected journey: the fall and rise of Ichthyosaurus anningae, from fossil to plaster cast to holotype

An ichthyosaur specimen (DONMG:1983.98) in the palaeontology collection of Doncaster Museum and Art Gallery, England, comprises a nearly complete skeleton. Although the museum deliberately purchased the fossil as genuine in 1983 it was later mistaken for a plaster cast and used as such before being re-identified as real. Furthermore, it was recently recognised as a specimen new to science and is now the holotype of Ichthyosaurus anningae Lomax and Massare, 2015. To enable the taxonomic study of the specimen, a diverse range of work was required. This included: tracking down its provenance and age (Lower Jurassic, Pliensbachian) which had not been known when it was bought; cleaning, conserving and partially re-preparing the specimen so that it could be determined exactly which of the forefin bones were in situ and which had been artificially placed before the specimen was sold to the museum; and comparing the skeleton to hundreds of other ichthyosaur fossils before its final determination as a new species. Local media and public interest in the specimen was a constant feature of the project but the subsequent publication of the new ichthyosaur species engaged media attention worldwide and highlights the importance of communicating palaeontological discoveries to what is clearly a receptive audience. In the process, whilst the news media unexpectedly concentrated on the fact that the specimen had lain in a museum collection 'unrecognised' for 30 years, the relevance of museum collections was highlighted and their profile collectively raised, which further highlights the importance of communicating scientific research. This story also demonstrates the need for specialist input in museums at a time when the role of the specialist curator is under increasing threat.

The Lower Ordovician Fezouata Konservat-Lagerstätte from Morocco: Age, environment and evolutionary perspectives

The Lower Ordovician Fezouata Konservat-Lagerstätte from southern Morocco has been one of the major palaeontological discoveries of the last decade. It provides a unique insight into one of the most critical periods in the evolution of marine life: the Cambrian–Ordovician transition. However, its potential for deciphering key trends in animal diversification was hitherto largely limited by major uncertainties concerning its stratigraphic position, age and environmental setting. Based on extensive fieldwork, fossil evidence, and facies recognition, our study provides clarification on these three crucial issues. Exceptional preservation is limited to two intervals within the Fezouata Shale. Graptolites indicate a late Tremadocian age for the Fezouata Konservat-Lagerstätte as a whole, which is supported by biostratigraphical evidence provided by acritarchs. Sedimentological features and reconstructed patterns of relative sea-level changes indicate relatively shallow-water environmental conditions, under distal storm influence, in an offshore to lower shoreface siliciclastic ramp setting. The Fezouata Biota represents a unique and exceptional window into the palaeobiodiversity in open-marine conditions, thus contrasting with the other Ordovician Konservat-Lagerstätten presently known. In our analyses of this new set of data, we pave the way for accurate temporal, faunal and environmental comparisons with other Lower Palaeozoic Konservat-Lagerstätten, and unlock the full potential of the Fezouata Biota to better understand the processes and scenarios of early animal radiations.

The origin and early phylogenetic history of jawed vertebrates.

Fossils of early gnathostomes (or jawed vertebrates) have been the focus of study for nearly two centuries. They yield key clues about the evolutionary assembly of the group's common body plan, as well the divergence of the two living gnathostome lineages: the cartilaginous and bony vertebrates. A series of remarkable new palaeontological discoveries, analytical advances and innovative reinterpretations of existing fossil archives have fundamentally altered a decades-old consensus on the relationships of extinct gnathostomes, delivering a new evolutionary framework for exploring major questions that remain unanswered, including the origin of jaws.

The Middle Jurassic palynology of the Daohugou area, Inner Mongolia, China, and its implications for palaeobiology and palaeogeography

Although abundant palaeontological discoveries have been documented in the Daohugou area in Chifeng City, Inner Mongolia, China, no record of the palynoflora has been reported previously. We collected palynological samples from the same level as megafossil plants, and conducted a detailed taxonomic analysis of the pollen and spores in order to augment the megafossil record, to extend documentation of the Middle Jurassic palynoflora, and to examine implications for palaeogeography, palaeoecology and palaeoclimate in north China during the Jurassic. Forty-four genera and 87 species of palynomorphs were identified. Pollen of gymnosperms dominates numerically, followed by spores of pteridophytes. Most taxa, including bisaccate pollen of conifers, monosulcate pollen of Cycadales, Bennettitales or Ginkgoales, along with Cyathidites, Deltoidospora, Granulatisporites, Osmundacidites and Classopollis, are common elements known elsewhere during the Jurassic. Based on comparisons with similar palyno-assemblages in the Jurassic of China, the age of the Daohugou locality is interpreted to be late Middle Jurassic. According to the palaeobotanical and palaeopalynological information, the Daohugou flora is attributed to the warm-temperate to medium temperate zone with seasonal change. By studying the ecological and climatic preferences of the main plant groups, five types of palaeolandscape in the Jurassic of Daohugou are proposed: (1) mesic upland (Pinaceae, Podocarpaceae, Czekanowskiales and Bennettitales), (2) mesic lowland (Pinaceae, Podocarpaceae, Ginkgoales, Czekanowskiales and Cycadales, together with some hygrophilous bryophytes, lycophytes and ferns), (3) dry upland (Czekanowskiales), (4) dry lowland (Czekanowskiales and Cheirolepidiaceae) and (5) waterside (plants growing along streams or near lakes, including bryophytes, lycophytes, ferns and probably some pteridosperms). According to the plant assemblage, the Daohugou flora corresponds to that of the Middle Jurassic Northern Floristic Province of China, which experienced a transition from a humid, warm climate to a hotter climate with seasonal drought.

The geology and palaeoecology of the newly discovered Cretaceous neosauropod hydrothermal nesting site in Sanagasta (Los Llanos Formation), La Rioja, northwest Argentina

The recent discovery of the Cretaceous Sanagasta geothermal nesting site in the Los Llanos Formation, La Rioja Province, northwestern Argentina, has shed light on new and unexpected neosauropod reproductive behaviours. Here we recapitulate the palaeontological discovery at Sanagasta and the oological characterization of the nesting site (reported in 2010). In addition, we describe in detail the geology, sedimentology, petrology, and geochemistry of the nesting site with the goals of assessing the palaeoenvironment of the Los Llanos Formation at this site. The Sanagasta Geologic Park, where the nesting site is located, represents a local expression of a geothermal process that occured in the Sierras Pampeanas during the Cretaceous Period. This geothermal cycle allows for the first time an Early Cretaceous dating (Hauterivian–Aptian) for the Los Llanos Formation, which is further supported by the occurrence of notosuchians, and ornithopod, sauropod and theropod dinosaurs in other exposures of the same formation in La Rioja Province. As such, in addition to shedding light on neosauropod palaeobiology and their nesting environment, this investigation clarifies longstanding geological issues pertaining to the sedimentary basins in the Sierras Pampeanas Orientales (central-west Argentina).

On the ‘imperfection of the geological record’: Recent palaeontological discoveries to delight Darwin

On the ‘imperfection of the geological record’: Recent palaeontological discoveries to delight Darwin

A Cretaceous terrestrial snake with robust hindlimbs and a sacrum

It has commonly been thought that snakes underwent progressive loss of their limbs by gradual diminution of their use. However, recent developmental and palaeontological discoveries suggest a more complex scenario of limb reduction, still poorly documented in the fossil record. Here we report a fossil snake with a sacrum supporting a pelvic girdle and robust, functional legs outside the ribcage. The new fossil, from the Upper Cretaceous period of Patagonia, fills an important gap in the evolutionary progression towards limblessness because other known fossil snakes with developed hindlimbs, the marine Haasiophis, Pachyrhachis and Eupodophis, lack a sacral region. Phylogenetic analysis shows that the new fossil is the most primitive (basal) snake known and that all other limbed fossil snakes are closer to the more advanced macrostomatan snakes, a group including boas, pythons and colubroids. The new fossil retains several features associated with a subterranean or surface dwelling life that are also present in primitive extant snake lineages, supporting the hypothesis of a terrestrial rather than marine origin of snakes.

Neogene vertebrates from Urumaco, Falcón State, Venezuela: Diversity and significance

Synopsis The first palaeontological discoveries in Urumaco were made more than half a century ago. Several research groups have worked in the region, but new vertebrate fossils are still being found in this area of northwestern Venezuela. The most conspicuous elements of the fauna are reptiles, because of their size and abundance, although fishes are by far the most diverse group. Among South American Neogene assemblages the whole fauna is most similar to those of Acre in Brazil and Entre Rios in Argentina. The crocodile fauna includes at least 12 species representing diverse ecomorphological types; most of them lived sympatrically, a unique case in worldwide crocodylomorph assemblages. At least four turtle species provide unique palaeobiogeographical or palaeobiological information. Several freshwater species, including Serrasalminae fish, thorny catfishes, silver croaker, redtail catfishes, matamata turtle, river dolphin and probable sirenians, are consistent with the hypothesis that a tributary and/or delta of the Orinoco existed in this area of north‐western Venezuela during late Miocene times.

In the shadow of the modern synthesis? Alternative perspectives on the last fifty years of paleoanthropology

In a recent article in Evolutionary Anthropology, Tattersall1 discussed the development of human evolution in the last 50 years, specifically in the context of the history of evolutionary theory over the same time. His paper was rich in ideas and information, all clearly and elegantly stated, even if his admiration for most palaeoanthropologists’ grasp of issues in evolutionary theory was somewhat restrained. His summary of many issues in the complex world of fossil hominins cut a swathe through much that is often obscure. Furthermore, the paper was clearly meant to be provocative, and in this it is a masterly success. At the risk of oversimplification, Tattersall can be said to have made two main points. The first is that the last fifty years of palaeontological discovery and analysis have swept away the last vestiges of the unlinear and anagenetic models of human evolution and replaced them with a series of radiations and a pattern of diversity similar to that known for many other organisms. His second point is that this evidence should be seen as grounds for also clearing away the modern synthesis, which he sees as underlying a unilineal model. Multiple species, adaptive radiations, and diversity are taken to be evidence for macroevolutionary mechanisms and the dominance of a punctuated equilibrium process of evolutionary change. Indeed, it can really be claimed that these two points are, in his mind, merely the two sides of the same coin, inseparable and indivisible. Multiple species and complexity cannot be accommodated within the modern synthesis, a theory of evolutionary change that Tattersall clearly sees as the crusty port of the biological establishment, ritually and uncritically passed from one select person to another, gradually deadening their senses. His article left me in a dilemma. As someone who has championed the idea of multiple species, cladogenesis, adaptive radiations, and for well over a decade,2–5 I nodded wisely and cheered happily as he listed the fossil discoveries that have sealed, nail by nail, the coffin of unilinealism. But I am also a paid-up member of the modern synthesis, one who thinks that microevolutionary and adaptive processes account for the pattern we can see in the fossil record. If Tattersall were right, then I obviously could not have my evolutionary cake and eat it too. I would have to choose whether to sink all those wonderful hominin species together and champion a grand Darwinian unilinealism or else keep the species but throw away the theoretical glue that I saw holding them together. Which was it to be? Of course, the question is, does it have to be either/or? What I want to do in this paper is to challenge the dichotomous equations that Tattersall has set up: multiple species 5 macrovolution; the modern synthesis 5 unilinealism. On these sets of equivalence hang his whole thesis, and therefore his reading of the past and vision for the future of palaeoanthropology. I shall do this in three sections. The first will be historical. I shall argue that paleoanthropology, rather than being shackled for the last 50 years by the modern synthesis, has in fact remained blithely innocent of most theoretical issues, and that this, rather than rigid dogma, was the central problem. Second, I shall suggest that there is much within the classic microevolutionary synthesis that predicts the pattern we see. Much of Tattersall’s outline of what falls within the modern synthesis is a simplification of a far more diverse field, one to which macroevolutionary theory has added little of substance. Third, I suggest that the future of paleoanthropology lies in a very different direction from the one Tattersall marks out, a direction that is less tied to the earth sciences but more integrated into the life sciences, particularly evolutionary genetics and evolutionary ecology.

New palaeontological discoveries in some Early Permian sequences of Sardinia. Biostratigraphic and palaeogeographic implications

New palaeontological material was collected during recent extensive fieldwork in the Early Permian Perdasdefogu and Escalaplano basins (SE Sardinia). For the first time, an accurate biostratigraphic position can be assumed for the sediments of these two basins, on the basis of their fossiliferous content (floras; ostracods). Regional and inter-regional correlations are proposed and palaeogeographical implications are analysed.

Mammalian phylogeny: shaking the tree.

Recent palaeontological discoveries and the correspondence between molecular and morphological results provide fresh insight on the deep structure of mammalian phylogeny. This new wave of research, however, has yet to resolve some important issues.