A.O. Averianov and J.D. Archibald (2017)Â
Therian postcranial bones from the Upper Cretaceous Bissekty Formation of Uzbekistan.
Proceedings of the Zoological Institute RAS 321(4): 433â484
http://www.zin.ru/journals/trudyzin/doc/vol_321_4/TZ_321_4_Averianov.pdf
The Upper Cretaceous (upper Turonian) Bissekty Formation of Uzbekistan produces the most diverse Cretaceous therian fauna including one stem marsupial and eleven stem placental taxa known from cranial and dental elements. Some isolated postcranial elements from the Bissekty Formation can be confidently attributed to some of these taxa based on morphology and size. The humeral fragments, astragalus, and calcanei attributed to the deltatheroidan Sulestes karakshi Nessov, 1985 are similar to these bones in other stem marsupials. Postcranial bones referred to Zhelestidae Nessov, 1985 and Asioryctitheria Novacek et al., 1997 possess plesiomorphic therian morphologies, which are also present in some stem marsupials. All fragments of scapula from the Bissekty Formation show a plesiomorphic morphology with a trough-like infraspinous fossa placed medially to the supraspinous fossa. Bones attributed to the stem placental Paranyctoides quadrans (Nessov, 1982) and to the zalambdalestid Kulbeckia kulbecke Nessov, 1993 indicate arboreal and cursorial specializations, respectively. In particular, Kulbeckia Nessov, 1993 is similar to Zalambdalestes Gregory et Simpson, 1926 in having long and distally fused tibia and fibula and a long calcaneal tuber. Its distal humerus has a deep trochlea, large medial trochlear keel, and large capitular tail separated from a cylindrical capitulum by a shallow groove. The upper ankle joint of Kulbeckia has the complete separation of medial and lateral astragalotibial articulations.
E.A. Zvonok and I.G. Danilov (2017)
A revision of fossil turtles from the Kiev clays (Ukraine, middle Eocene) with comments on the history of the collection of fossil vertebrates of A.S. Rogovich.
Proceedings of the Zoological Institute RAS 321(4): 485â516
http://www.zin.ru/journals/trudyzin/doc/vol_321_4/TZ_321_4_Zvonok.pdf
Â
The paper revises material of fossil turtles from the Kiev clays (Vyshgorod and Tripolye localities, Kiev Province, Ukraine; Kiev Formation, upper Lutetian â lower Bartonian, middle Eocene) from the 19th century collection of fossil vertebrates of the Russian naturalist A.S. Rogovich. In the course of more than a century this collection was divided into parts several times and stored in different institutions of Moscow, Saint Petersburg, and Kiev. The turtle material from Rogovichâs collection includes a partial skeleton and isolated shell fragments from Vyshgorod locality referred here to a pancheloniid sea turtle Argillochelys antiqua (Konig, 1825), a species formerly known only from the Paleogene of Western Europe, partial dentaries from Vyshgorod locality, belonging to âDollochelysâ rogovichi Averianov, 2002, a pancheloniid with unclear generic attribution, and sculptured shell fragments of Pan-Cheloniidae indet. from Tripolye locality, erroneously assigned to a crocodile by Rogovich. The material of A. antiqua unites some specimens previously described as Puppigerus sp. and Dollochelys rogovichi, as well as newly revealed specimens. According to our interpretation, parts of the skeleton of A. antiqua from Vyshgorod locality were stored in different institutions for a long time, sharing the fate of the whole Rogovichâs collection of fossil vertebrates. The attribution of the Vyshgorod material to A. antiqua is supported by phylogenetic analysis of pancheloniids. This analysis also demonstrates an Argillochelys clade (A. antiqua + A. cuneiceps [Owen, 1849]), and removes âA.â africana Tong et Hirayama, 2008 from this clade. Analysis of the geographic and stratigraphic distribution of the genus Argillochelys shows that it is restricted to the ?Thanetian â Priabonian of the Peri-Tethyan area (Western and Eastern Europe and Kazakhstan) and possibly also to eastern North America. In addition, our study shows that sculptured pancheloniids of unknown affinities are quite common in the middle Eocene of Eastern Europe and Central Asia.
================