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[dinosaur] Spain: Eosauropterygian fossils from Middle Triassic + Camerochelys and dortokid turtle from Cretaceous




Ben Creisler
bcreisler@gmail.com


New papers (these will be open access when published in final form):



C. de Miguel Chaves, F. Ortega & A. Pérez-García (2017)
The eosauropterygian fossils from the Middle Triassic of Canales de Molina (Guadalajara, Spain).
Journal of Iberian Geology (advance online publication)
DOI: 10.1007/s41513-017-0011-9
https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s41513-017-0011-9

Purpose

Abundant isolated remains of vertebrate fossils were recovered in 1980 in Middle Triassic strata (Muschelkalk Facies) of Canales de Molina (Guadalajara, Spain). However, none of them was figured or described in detail. The careful study of these fossils is performed here.

Methods

The eosauropterygian remains from Canales de Molina are described and figured in detail, and compared with the Iberian record of Eosauropterygia.

Results

The study of these elements allows us to identify abundant eosauropterygian remains, including vertebrae, teeth, femora, and a partial humerus. This humerus presents a combination of characters traditionally considered as exclusive affinity of the genus Nothosaurus. Other relatively large elements from this site are also compatible with the bones of this genus. Isolated teeth and a neural arch are identified as belonging to indeterminate nothosaurs. The other elements studied here are poorly informative, and can be only assigned to indeterminate members of Eosauropterygia of small to medium size.

Conclusions

The presence of Nothosaurus or a related form is confirmed in Canales de Molina. Other fossils from the site do not allow to assess if more taxa are present.

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A. Pérez-García, F.-R. Sáez-Benito & X. Murelaga (2017)
New information on the anatomy and systematics of the Spanish Lower Cretaceous Camerochelys vilanovai (Testudines, Pan-Cryptodira).
Journal of Iberian Geology (advance online publication)
DOI: 10.1007/s41513-017-0014-6
https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s41513-017-0014-6

Purpose

Camerochelys vilanovai is a Spanish Lower Cretaceous pan-cryptodiran turtle. Although it was defined by several specimens, the fragmentary state of these plates and partial shells only provided poor information about the anatomy and systematics of this taxon.

Methods

A new specimen of C. vilanovai, from the type area and horizon (the Enciso Group, in La Rioja), is presented and analyzed here. It corresponds to a relatively complete and articulated shell.

Results

Several characters hitherto unknown for C. vilanovai are described. In addition, some characters previously considered in the diagnosis of this form are reinterpreted, and the known range of intraspecific variability is expanded. Therefore, the diagnosis of C. vilanovai is amended.

Conclusion

Camerochelys vilanovai is recognized as a taxon closely related to the European members of Xinjiangchelyidae (i.e. Brodiechelys brodiei, Brodiechelys royoi and Larachelus morla), the new character states recognized here being compared with those present in these taxa.


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A. Pérez-García, A. Cobos & R. Royo-Torres (2017)
The oldest evidence of a dortokid turtle (stem Pleurodira) from the uppermost Hauterivian-basal Barremian El Castellar Formation (Teruel, Spain).
Journal of Iberian Geology (advance online publication)
DOI: 10.1007/s41513-017-0013-7
https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s41513-017-0013-7

Purpose

Dortokidae is a poorly understood group of pan-pleurodires, exclusive to the European record. Dortokidae is one of the few defined clades of the stem group of Pleurodira, grouping all the forms of this stem described in the post-Jurassic record of Laurasia. Despite this clade has a relatively wide temporal distribution, only three valid forms of Dortokidae are currently known: one from the late Barremian (Early Cretaceous) of Morella (Spain), Eodortoka morellana; another from the uppermost Cretaceous of Spain and probably southern France, Dortoka vasconica; and the last one from the Paleogene of Romania, Ronella botanica. The oldest of these taxa is synchronous with the findings of Dortokidae indet. from the Spanish fossil locality of Vallipón, Vallipón and Morella being the only two localities where Lower Cretaceous material of this clade was so far known. Dortokidae is recognized in this paper for the first time in El Castellar Formation, by a partial xiphiplastron. This finding comes from the El Castellar locality (Teruel, Spain).

Methods

The plate from El Castellar is compared with the xiphiplastra of all so far valid representatives of Dortokidae, and with the indeterminate form from Vallipón. A phylogenetic hypothesis on the members of this clade is proposed.

Results

The specimen studied here is identified as the oldest known evidence of Dortokidae, being recognized as Dortokidae indet.

Conclusions

This new remain of a dortokid expands the known temporal range of distribution for this clade, being recognized from the uppermost Hauterivian-basal Barremian levels.
Keywords