Ammonites phylogenetic analysis: state of the art and new prospects
Abstract Two main types of data are available to resolve phylogenies using fossils data: (1) stratigraphic ordering of taxa, and (2) morphological characters. In most phylogenetic studies dealing with ammonites, authors have given priority to the stratigraphic distribution of taxa. This practice is classically justified by the fact that the ammonite fossil record is frequently outstandingly good. In practice, the level of integration of stratigraphic and morphologic information in a single analysis depends on the confidence that authors have in the quality of data. Besides, many evolutionary concepts, which could differ over time and between authors (e.g. anagenesis, cladogenesis, iterative…
Tendencies in paleontological practice when defining species, and consequences on biodiversity studies
The exploration of evolutionary patterns over geological time has recently received new impetus from the development of morphological disparity as a new biodiversity metric alongside taxonomic diversity. Clade dynamics can be analyzed by comparing and contrasting these two metrics. Like any metrics based on sampling, quantification, and naming, taxonomic diversity and morphological disparity are not free from bias. The long use of taxonomic diversity has prompted many studies of bias and its effects, whereas bias affecting morphological disparity has only been summarily explored. This is particularly so for the effect of the growth of knowledge over paleontographical time (i.e., historical …
Distribution of clay minerals in Early Jurassic Peritethyan seas: palaeoclimatic significance inferred from multiproxy comparisons.
13 pages; International audience; A set of published, unpublished, and new clay mineral data from 60 European and Mediterranean localities allows us to test the reliability of clay minerals as palaeoclimatic proxies for the Pliensbachian–Toarcian period (Early Jurassic) by reconstructing spatial and temporal variations of detrital fluxes at the ammonite biochronozone resolution. In order to discuss their palaeoclimatic meaning, a compilation of low-latitude belemnite δ18O, δ13C, Mg/Ca, and 87Sr/86Sr values is presented for the first time for the whole Pliensbachian– Toarcian period. Once diagenetic and authigenic biases have been identified and ruled out, kaolinite content variation is cons…
Adaptive radiation in the fossil record: a case study among Jurassic ammonoids
15 pages; International audience; Evolutionary radiations have been extensively studied especially in the fossil record and in the context of postcrisis recoveries. The concept of adaptive radiation that emerges from this very broad topic explicitly involves the effect of adaptation driven by ecological opportunity and is considered to be of the foremost importance. It is essential to be able to detect adaptive radiation because it points up factors that predispose a clade to radiate. Adaptive radiation has received much attention in recent decades based mostly on studies dealing with recent clades, but data from the fossil record are still scarce. This study begins to fill this gap with th…
Apparition d'une morphologie scaphitomorphe par miniaturisation chez une ammonite oxfordienne : Scaphitodites scaphitoides ()
The pyritized fossil-bearing marls of the Jura (Lower Oxfordian) contain an ammonite that is remarkable because of its tiny adult size (less than 16 mm) and of the scaphitoidal coiling of its body chamber, which is similar to that of certain Cretaceous Scaphitaceae. Anatomical and ontogenetic analysis demonstrates that these individuals, which are ascribed to Scaphitodites scaphitoides (Coquand, 1853), formed a single species. We argue that the genus Scaphitodites derived from Taramelliceras by a complex process of progenesis (sensu Landman et al., 1991).
Les Oppeliidae (Ammonitina) de l'horizon à Collotiformis (Callovien supérieur, zone à Athleta) de la région dijonnaise (Côte-d'Or, France)
Abstract In the Dijon area, the top of the Athleta zone contains rich ammonite fauna dominated quantitatively by two families: Perisphinctidae and Oppeliidae. The Oppeliidae are diversified and make up a numerically larger proportion of the ammonite fauna than in the underlying strata (up to 57 %). The exceptional state of preservation of the ammonites has permitted a precise study to be made of ontogenesis and intraspecific variability. Four sub-families are found (Oppeliinae, Hecticoceratinae, Distichoceratinae and Taramelliceratinae), within which sexual dimorphs have been recognised. One small form, characterized by lappets and a body chamber with ellipticoidal-trending coiling, is inte…