Re: Hell Creek Vertebrates at Berkeley catalogue

[chartiem@ERE.UMontreal.CA (Chartier Michel)]

Hi everybody:

        I saw the post concerning Purgatorius last week, and wanted to
clarify a few things. I went out and got the original article describing
the specimens, so that I wouldn't make any false statement based on my
faulty memory. Check out Van Valen and Sloan in Science (1965, vol.150,
pp. 743-745). Stan and Tom were right in stating that the specific nomen 
referred, in the case of P. ceratops, to the presence of the animal in
the ceratopsian beds of the Hell Creek Fm. The specimen was recovered
from the same stream channel that yielded the skeleton of Triceratops,
that was exhibited at the AMNH when that article came out (specimen
no. 5033). 
        As for P. unio, the specific nomen refers to a genus of bivalve
that constitutes a clam bed in which P. unio was found (Tullock Fm.,
Puercan land mammal age, Early Paleocene).
        P. unio is known by numerous specimens (most of the dentition),
but that's it (no  cranial or post-cranial specimens). P. ceratops is
known by only a single lower molar. Some have suggested that the specimen
might have been redeposited from Early Paleocene sediments. Anyway, the
Upper Cretaceous occurence of the species is doubtful and will be until
we find more specimens. 
        I'll post another message concerning the primate status of 
Purgatorius this afternoon, since I have a class to go to and am already
late.

Mike