Article
Entomology
Andrew J. Ross
Summary: This article is a supplement to the Burmese amber checklist and bibliography, focusing on taxa described or recorded in 2021 and a few earlier records that were previously missed. By the end of 2021, a total of 2,198 species were recorded from Kachin amber, with 337 named in 2021. Five species were named or recorded from older Hkamti amber.
Article
Paleontology
John-Paul Zonneveld, Mohamed K. AbdelGawad, Ellen R. Miller
Summary: The paper describes borings and bite marks on fossil turtle carapaces and plastra from the Miocene Moghra Formation in northern Egypt. All fossil turtle material from Moghra displays ichnofossils related to activities of parasites and scavenging. The abundant and diverse invertebrate borings on aquatic turtle shells at Moghra reflect parasitism, while new trace fossils likely indicate bacterial or fungal infections in aquatic turtle shells that rarely dried out.
JOURNAL OF PALEONTOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Paleontology
Shuhei Yamamoto, Vitaly Yu Nazarenko, Dmitry V. Vasilenko, Evgeny E. Perkovsky
Summary: A new lymexylid fossil species, Raractocetus sverlilo Nazarenko, Perkovsky & Yamamoto, sp. nov., is described from late Eocene Rovno amber of Ukraine. This is the first member of the family Lymexylidae found in Rovno amber, and it is one of the smallest known atractocerines. The finding sheds light on the paleodiversity and distribution of atractocerine beetles during the Eocene.
Review
Paleontology
Geert-Jan A. Brummer, Michal Kucera
Summary: This paper reviews the taxonomy of living planktonic foraminifera, provides a comprehensive standard, evaluates 50 species and subspecies, and makes recommendations for name changes and type statuses. It also provides an annotated list of synonyms and other names, as well as recommendations for operational taxonomy.
JOURNAL OF MICROPALAEONTOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Plant Sciences
Lyudmila S. Shumilovskikh, Elena S. Shumilovskikh, Frank Schluetz, Bas van Geel
Summary: Non-pollen palynomorphs (NPPs) are biological remains found in palynological slides, including algae, fungi, shells, invertebrate resting stages, and eggs. The Non-Pollen Palynomorph Image Database (NPP-ID) aims to gather NPP knowledge to assist identification and paleoecological interpretation.
VEGETATION HISTORY AND ARCHAEOBOTANY
(2022)
Article
Paleontology
Gideon T. Haug, Carolin Haug, Serita van der Wal, Patrick Mueller, Joachim T. Haug
Summary: Nymphidae, a group of split-footed lacewings, is species-poor and currently found primarily in Australasia. Fossil evidence suggests that the group was more diverse in the past. Comparison of extant and fossil larvae morphology indicates a higher diversity in split-footed lacewing larvae in the past than present. This trend of decreasing diversity over time is also observed in other lacewing families.
Review
Biodiversity Conservation
Alan C. Love, Mark Grabowski, David Houle, Lee Hsiang Liow, Arthur Porto, Masahito Tsuboi, Kjetil L. Voje, Gene Hunt
Summary: This paper discusses the importance of evolvability in evolutionary biology and its application in paleontology. Despite challenges in applying tools from evolvability literature to the fossil record, the fossil record provides unique data sources that capture evolutionary patterns and assist evolutionary biologists in their research. Additionally, combining neontological and paleontological approaches is an important direction for future studies.
Article
Paleontology
Andrei A. Legalov, Vitaliy Yu Nazarenko, Dmitry V. Vasilenko, Evgeny E. Perkovsky
Summary: The beetle Ceutorhynchus is considered a proxy for Eocene core Brassicaceae, indicating its presence during this time period. Despite the scarce fossil record of Brassicaceae, the presence of Ceutorhynchus species-group and the discovery of the oldest Brassicaceae in Montana suggest an early Priabonian age for the core Brassicaceae.
JOURNAL OF PALEONTOLOGY
(2022)
Review
Geography, Physical
Yanyan Zhao, Wei Wei, M. Santosh, Jun Hu, Haotian Wei, Jun Yang, Sheng Liu, Guanglu Zhang, Dandan Yang, Sanzhong Li
Summary: Rare earth element and yttrium concentrations in carbonates serve as proxies for tracing geochemical processes, but may be contaminated by non-carbonate phases. This review examines the controlling factors of REY signatures, including non-carbonate contamination and post-depositional modifications. Different analytical methods and dissolution processes can help minimize these influences and retrieve accurate REY signatures for geological studies.
PALAEOGEOGRAPHY PALAEOCLIMATOLOGY PALAEOECOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Geography, Physical
George Kontakiotis, Geanina A. Butiseaca, Assimina Antonarakou, Konstantina Agiadi, Stergios D. Zarkogiannis, Emilija Krsnik, Evangelia Besiou, Willem Jan Zachariasse, Lucas Lourens, Danae Thivaiou, Efterpi Koskeridou, Pierre Moissette, Andreas Mulch, Vasileios Karakitsios, Iuliana Vasiliev
Summary: This study describes the hydroclimate evolution of the eastern Mediterranean Basin during the early Messinian time interval. The results reveal a negative water budget and strong hydrologic and climate variability during this period, with three distinct phases identified. The study provides important data for temperature and salinity estimates during the Mediterranean Messinian, complementing existing modeling assessments.
PALAEOGEOGRAPHY PALAEOCLIMATOLOGY PALAEOECOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Geology
D. Moyano-Paz, S. Rozadilla, F. Agnolin, E. Vera, M. D. Coronel, A. N. Varela, A. R. Gomez-Dacal, A. M. Aranciaga-Rolando, J. D'Angelo, V. Perez-Loinaze, S. Richiano, N. Chimento, M. J. Motta, J. Sterli, M. Manabe, T. Tsuihiji, M. P. Isasi, D. G. Poire, F. E. Novas
Summary: The Chorrillo Formation deposits in southern Patagonia, Argentina, accumulated during a 'continental window' in the Late Cretaceous, with new vertebrate and plant fossils described. Analysis identified five architectural elements, separated into channelized and non-channelized units, representing a fine-grained dominated fluvial depositional system. The fossils include new taxa such as frogs, snakes, turtles, dinosaurs, and birds, shedding new light on the faunistic composition and paleobiogeography of Gondwana's high-latitude biotas.
CRETACEOUS RESEARCH
(2022)
Article
Geosciences, Multidisciplinary
Shugang Kang, Xulong Wang, Ning Wang, Yougui Song, Weiguo Liu, Duo Wang, Jun Peng
Summary: Based on the analysis of loess sections in the Yili Basin, the study presents a reconstruction of the dust mass accumulation rate (MAR) over the past 30,000 years. The results show significant variations, which are modulated by changes in the Siberian High intensity.
PALEOCEANOGRAPHY AND PALEOCLIMATOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Geography, Physical
Russell D. C. Bicknell, James D. Holmes, Stephen Pates, Diego C. Garcia-Bellido, John R. Paterson
Summary: The Cambrian explosion marked the rapid development of complex marine ecosystems on Earth due to predator-prey interactions, which led to the evolution of biomineralised exoskeletons and shell-crushing predators. Injured trilobite specimens from Kangaroo Island, South Australia show evidence of attacks mostly on the posterior thorax, suggesting predators attacked from behind. Larger individuals were more likely to survive attacks and exhibit healed injuries, indicating smaller individuals were likely consumed during an attack.
PALAEOGEOGRAPHY PALAEOCLIMATOLOGY PALAEOECOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Geography, Physical
Suo Wang, Tianshui Yang, Feng Gao, Weiwei Bian, Jingjie Jin, Wenxiao Peng, Xianwei Jiao, Jiahui Ma, Shihong Zhang, Huaichun Wu, Haiyan Li, Liwan Cao
Summary: By studying the Risong Formation redbeds and volcanic rocks in the western Lhasa terrane, it was determined that the Risong Formation redbeds were formed during the Early Cretaceous, contrary to previous assignments to the Late Jurassic. Through paleomagnetic records and geochronological analysis, it was confirmed that the Lhasa-Qiangtang collision occurred as early as the Early Cretaceous.
PALAEOGEOGRAPHY PALAEOCLIMATOLOGY PALAEOECOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Biodiversity Conservation
Caleb M. Brown, Nicolas E. Campione, Gregory P. Wilson Mantilla, David C. Evans
Summary: Research shows that small-bodied dinosaurs and mammals in the Hell Creek and Lance Formations are less complete, less likely to be articulated, and described later compared to their large-bodied counterparts. The abundance of family-level taxa is strongly tied to body mass, and the relative abundance of juveniles of large-bodied taxa is also underrepresented, potentially impacting our understanding of speciation and extinction dynamics across the K/Pg boundary.
Article
Paleontology
Eva-Maria Sadowski, Alexander R. Schmidt, Lutz Kunzmann
Summary: Baltic amber is an important Cenozoic fossil Lagerstatten, containing numerous fossils including invertebrates. However, the identity of the amber-producing conifers and the specific habitat and climate conditions under which the resins were exuded are not well known. This study revises and analyzes conifer inclusions in Baltic amber, identifying five families, 17 genera, and 26 fossil species of conifers. The results reveal a hyperdiversity of conifer taxa and suggest that the Baltic amber forest grew under a warm-temperate and humid palaeoclimate.
PALAEONTOGRAPHICA ABTEILUNG B-PALAEOPHYTOLOGIE PALAEOBOTANY-PALAEOPHYTOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Biology
Dmitry Telnov, Evgeny E. Perkovsky, Robin Kundrata, Kristaps Kairiss, Dmitry V. Vasilenko, Andris Bukejs
Summary: The beetle family Ptilodactylidae is reported for the first time from Rovno amber in Ukraine, with two new species described and illustrated using X-ray micro-computed tomography. The findings suggest a diverse presence of ptilodactylids in Eocene Europe, as supported by recent discoveries in Baltic amber and Bembridge Marls.
HISTORICAL BIOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Geology
Cosme F. Rombola, Carlos D. Greppi, Roberto R. Pujana, Juan L. Garcia Massini, Eduardo S. Bellosi, Sergio A. Marenssi
Summary: This study describes two silicified fossil woods from the Cerro Fortaleza Formation in Santa Cruz Province, Argentina, identifying them as a new species of the fossil genus Brachyoxylon. The anatomical characteristics of these specimens indicate distinct growth ring boundaries, absence of axial parenchyma, uniseriate rays, and other features typical of this genus. This record contributes fresh evidence to the prevalence and widespread distribution of Cheirolepidiaceae in the Cretaceous of Patagonia.
CRETACEOUS RESEARCH
(2022)
Article
Biodiversity Conservation
Xiaokang Liu, Shouyi Jiang, Rui Wu, Wenchao Shu, Jie Hou, Yongfang Sun, Jiarui Sun, Daoliang Chu, Yuyang Wu, Haijun Song
Summary: The rapid and accurate taxonomic identification of fossils is significant in various fields. This study utilized deep learning to support taxonomic identification, collecting a large dataset of fossil images and training convolutional neural networks. The identification accuracies varied among different clades, and there were similarities between machine classifiers and taxonomists. Future developments may replace image-based systematic taxonomy with machine-aided classification.
Article
Paleontology
Daniel Schwarze, Danilo Harms, Jorg U. Hammel, Ulrich Kotthoff
Summary: This study describes the first fossil species of the pseudoscorpion family Pseudotyrannochthoniidae, providing new insights into the range shifts in European invertebrate biota. The discovery of two new species in Baltic and Bitterfeld amber supports the idea of lineage extinction in Europe and survival in refugia. The fossils also suggest morphological and potentially ecological stasis in major pseudoscorpion lineages over long periods of time.
