Permian-Triassic Osteichthyes (bony fishes): diversity dynamics and body size evolution
The Permian and Triassic were key time intervals in the history of life on Earth. Both periods are marked by a series of biotic crises including the most catastrophic of such events, the end-Permian mass extinction, which eventually led to a major turnover from typical Palaeozoic faunas and floras to those that are emblematic for the Mesozoic and Cenozoic. Here we review patterns in Permian-Triassic bony fishes, a group whose evolutionary dynamics are understudied. Based on data from primary literature, we analyse changes in their taxonomic diversity and body size (as a proxy for trophic position) and explore their response to Permian-Triassic events. Diversity and body size are investigate…
Comment on the letter of the Society of Vertebrate Paleontology (SVP) dated April 21, 2020 regarding “Fossils from conflict zones and reproducibility of fossil-based scientific data”: Myanmar amber
Motivation for this comment Recently, the Society of Vertebrate Paleontology (SVP) has sent around a letter, dated 21st April, 2020 to more than 300 palaeontological journals, signed by the President, Vice President and a former President of the society (Rayfield et al. 2020). The signatories of this letter request significant changes to the common practices in palaeontology. With our present, multi-authored comment, we aim to argue why these suggestions will not lead to improvement of both practice and ethics of palaeontological research but, conversely, hamper its further development. Although we disagree with most contents of the SVP letter, we appreciate this initiative to discuss scien…
Comment on the letter of the Society of Vertebrate Paleontology (SVP) dated April 21, 2020 regarding “Fossils from conflict zones and reproducibility of fossil-based scientific data”: the importance of private collections
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Paleobiology and paleobiogeography of sclerorhynchid sawfishes (Chondrichthyes, Batomorphii)
Sclerorhynchid sawfishes are a monophyletic group of Cretaceous selachians. They resemble modern sawfishes in the outer morphology and by having a hypertrophic rostral cartilage armed with lateral rows of spines. Generally, sclerorhynchid sawfishes were inhabitants of warm, shallow tropical and subtropical marine environments. Teeth of the oldest sclerorhynchid sawfishes from Spain are presented. They belong to Onchopristis Stromer and come from the lower Barrernian of eastern Spain. The paleobiology and paleogeographic pattern of sclerorhynchid sawfishes is reviewed and discussed.