A New Placodont from the Late Triassic of China

Wang, W., Li, C., Scheyer, T. M., and Zhao, L. 2019. A new species of Cyamodus (Placodontia, Sauropterygia) from the early Late Triassic of south-west China. Journal of Systematic Palaeontology. Link.Abstract - The Triassic eastern Tethyan faunas have continued to yield numerous specimens of marine reptile taxa in recent years. Nevertheless, compared...

Jan 2019

Platypus-like Hupehsuchian from Early Triassic of China

Cheng, L., Motani, R.,  Jiang, D., Yan, C., Tintori, A. and O. Rieppel. 2019. Early Triassic marine reptile representing the oldest record of unusually small eyes in reptiles indicating non-visual prey detection. Scientific Reports 9, number 152. DOI: 10.1038/s41598-018-37754-6Abstract - The end-Permian mass extinction (EPME) led to reorganization of...

Jan 2019

Histological Evidence of Trauma in Dicynodont Tusks

Whitney, M. R., Ting Tse, Y., and C. A. Sidor. 2019. Histological evidence of trauma in tusks of southern African dicynodonts. Palaeontologia Africana 53: 75-80. PDF.Abstract - Dicynodonts were a clade of globally-distributed therapsids known for their abundance in the fossil record and for surviving the Permo-Triassic mass extinction. The group had...

Jan 2019

Examining Functional Convergence Between Triassic Phytosaurs and Slender-Snouted Crocodylians

A new preprint in PeerJ.Lemanis R., Jones A.S., Butler R.J., Anderson P.S.L., and E.J. Rayfield. 2019. Comparative biomechanical analysis demonstrates functional convergence between slender-snouted crocodilians and phytosaurs. PeerJ Preprints 7:e27476v1https://doi.org/10.7287/peerj.preprints.27476v1Abstract - Morphological similarities between the extinct...

Jan 2019

Why are Temnospondyl Skulls Bumpy?

Today Bryan Gee at Temno Talk Blog discusses and evaluates the various hypotheses of why temnospondyl skulls (and other bones) have heavily ornamented, irregular surfaces.If you missed the link here it is again.

Jan 2019

Triassic Park is Temporarily Closed: What Happens at Petrified Forest During a Government Shutdown

[Disclaimer: I am a furloughed Federal employee and this is a personal blog. It is not my intent to take a political side or to make a a political statement here. I am simply explaining what a shutdown is for those who might not understand and its effects on a specific park and program].On December 22, 2018 funding appropriations for the U.S. National...

Jan 2019

Extinction and the Rise of Dinosaurs - What Will the Microvertebrates Tell Us?

Brian Switek has a great year end article (based mainly on the recent Allen et al., study in Palaeontology) regarding the loss of most pseudosuchian groups in the end-Triassic extinction and discussion on why the dinosaurs were mostly unaffected.According to their findings body size was not a factor; however, there are not too many data regarding Middle...

Jan 2019

New Blog TemnoTalk: A Blog About All Things Temnospondyl

Introducing a new blog by my friend and colleague Bryan Gee from the University of Toronto. Since his first find of half of a metoposaur skull in Petrified Forest National Park quite a few years back now Bryan has been obsessed with the fossil record of temnospondyls, a group with constituents that are not always well studied (e.g., Late Triassic North...

Jan 2019

New Osteological and Phylogenetic Review of the Triassic Loricatan Prestosuchus chiniquensis from Brazil

Roberto-Da-Silva, L., Müller , R. T., Gallo de França, M. A., Cabreira, S. F., and Dias-Da-Silva, S. 2018. An impressive skeleton of the giant top predator Prestosuchus chiniquensis (Pseudosuchia: Loricata) from the Triassic of Southern Brazil, with phylogenetic remarks. Historical Biology (Early Online).Abstract - In the present contribution, we aim...

Dec 2018

Ichnofossil Assemblages and Paleosols of the Upper Triassic Chinle Formation, South-Eastern Utah

Adding to our understanding of the understudied Chinle Formation fossils of Utah.Fischer, S. J. and S. T. Hasiotis 2018. Ichnofossil assemblages and palaeosols of the Upper Triassic Chinle Formation, south-eastern Utah (USA): Implications for depositional controls and palaeoclimate. Annales Societatis Geologorum Poloniae 88(2): 127–162.Abstract - The...

Dec 2018