Cretaceous

was based on isolated teeth from the Maastrichtian phosphatic deposits of Morocco. The recent discovery of new material, including skull and mandibular remains, improves our knowledge of this species. M. beaugei shares the following synapomorphies with the genus Mosasaurus: large teeth bearing two prominent carinae and with asymmetrical labial and lingual surfaces, the labial one being flattened and strongly facetted and the lingual one being convex; premaxillae with a small pointed rostrum and dentary without rostrum; palatal elements closely united; coronoid with very large ventromedial process overlying the prearticular. M. beaugei is characterised by the following autapomorphies: 12-13 maxillary teeth; marginal teeth bearing 3-5 prisms on the labial surface and 8-9 on the lingual one; palatine with posterior border concave and perpendicular to the long axis of the skull; splenial visible laterally on half of the dentary ventral surface; coronoid with anterior wing well developed and bearing two notches. M. beaugei is only known to date in the Maastrichtian phosphates of Morocco.

Although fossils of Trionychidae are found as far back as the Early Cretaceous, their evolutionary history, including the origin of the crown clade, is poorly understood. Here, we use a microCT scan of the skull of ‘Trionyx’ kyrgyzensis from the late Early Cretaceous (Albian) of Kyrgyzstan as the basis for a thorough redescription of the cranial morphology of this species. New information includes the pattern of cranial circulation, which is comparable to all extant trionychids. A unique combination of cranial and postcranial characters of ‘Trionyx’ kyrgyzensis allows us to establish for it a new genus Petrochelys gen. nov. The data regarding Petrochelys kyrgyzensis are incorporated into a phylogenetic analysis. When Petrochelys kyrgyzensis is analysed without including additional, extinct taxa, it is placed in a highly derived position within the extant Nilssonia. However, the addition of five Cretaceous–Palaeogene taxa breaks up hypothesized long branches and results in more basal positions for Petrochelys kyrgyzensis within recovered trees. All results support the hypothesis that Petrochelys kyrgyzensis is a crown trionychid and a member of Trionychinae. Our findings highlight the importance of including multiple extinct taxa in phylogenetic analyses prior to using any of those taxa as calibration points in divergence dating estimates. http://zoobank.org/urn:lsid:zoobank.org:pub:592B98BF-87DF-48A8-8AA2-543AAD21FC95

The origin of extensive oil staining, recorded over a 120 m interval of the Jurassic Pilliga Sandstone in the fully-cored Bellata-1 well, northern Gunnedah Basin, has been investigated using conventional organic geochemical techniques. The borehole intersects 451 m of Permian and Triassic strata, overlain by 640 m of Jurassic and Cretaceous sediments. Igneous intrusions occur mainly within the lower part of the Triassic Napperby Formation where the vitrinite reflectance profile shows the effect of significant local heating (R v up to 2.43% within the intruded interval). Lower reflectance values (R v =0.57-0.74%) occur in the unaffected parts of the Permian sequence, with even lower values in places due to either marine influence or liptinite-rich lacustrine organic facies. Hydrocarbon biomarkers in the oil stain in the Pilliga Sandstone indicate its derivation from a higher plant-rich, shaley source. A methylphenanthrene index of 1.48 (calculated vitrinite reflectance R c =1.29%) for the oil suggests expulsion from a late-mature source rock. None of the potential source rock samples analysed appear to have attained such a maturation level, except those from the lower part of the Napperby Formation affected by intrusions. Source-specific biomarkers from this formation show several parallels with those of the oil stain, but differ from those in the Permian Goonbri and Maules Creek Formations and the upper parts of the Napperby Formation. A Jurassic source can also be excluded based on the immaturity of that part of the section and the absence of Jurassic-specific biomarkers in the oil stain. #

Ticks are currently among the most prevalent blood-feeding ectoparasites, but their feeding habits and hosts in deep time have long remained speculative. Here, we report direct and indirect evidence in 99 million-year-old Cretaceous amber showing that hard ticks and ticks of the extinct new family Deinocrotonidae fed on blood from feathered dinosaurs, non-avialan or avialan excluding crown-group birds. A †Cornupalpatum burmanicum hard tick is entangled in a pennaceous feather. Two deinocrotonids described as †Deinocroton draculi gen. et sp. nov. have specialised setae from dermestid beetle larvae (hastisetae) attached to their bodies, likely indicating cohabitation in a feathered dinosaur nest. A third conspecific specimen is blood-engorged, its anatomical features suggesting that deinocrotonids fed rapidly to engorgement and had multiple gonotrophic cycles. These findings provide insight into early tick evolution and ecology, and shed light on poorly known arthropod-vertebrate inte...

A number of motored auger holes have been drilled in 2002 and 2006 in four sand-clay deposits preserved in dissolution pockets within the Dinantian limestones of the watershed north of the Vesdre valley. These deposits of unknown age are currently classified as (Tertiary) SBL in the new geological map of Wallonia. We present detailed lithostratigraphic logs of the deposits and describe the results of sedimentological and mineralogical analyses. In particular, K-Ar dating of neoformed Mn oxides found at the base of one augerhole at Rechain yielded ages ranging from Cenomanian to Santonian, allowing us to place the Rechain and Andrimont deposits within the early Late Cretaceous. This is fully consistent with their topographic location very close beneath the trace of the pre-Cretaceous erosion surface and makes them the westernmost remains of the Hergenrath Member of the Late Cretaceous Aachen Formation. To the west, the Magnee deposit is more "typical SBL", probably correspo...

Pb/ 238 U ages Volcanic clasts Cenomanian a b s t r a c t Amber from northern Myanmar has been commercially exploited for millennia, and it also preserves the most diverse palaeobiota among the worlds' seven major deposits of Cretaceous amber. Recent estimated ages vary from Albian to Cenomanian, based on palynology, an ammonoid, and Mesozoic insect taxa preserved within the amber. The burmite-bearing rock is sedimentary and consists mainly of rounded lithic clasts (0.03 w 0.15 mm in diameter), with minor fragments of quartz and feldspar. Among the lithic clasts are mostly volcanic rocks. Zircons separated from the amber matrix form two groups: Group-I zircons are overgrown and have variable CL patterns, experienced slight geological disturbances after they formed, and their Ion microprobe 206 Pb/ 238 U ages fall into a very narrow range of w102 Maew108 Ma; Group-II zircons are typical magmatic ones with rhythmically flat zones, inferred to be derived from volcanic rock clasts, and yielded a concordia 206 Pb/ 238 U age of 98.79 AE 0.62 Ma. The dating on Group-I zircons is only for their interiors, thus hiding what age excursion might come from the overgrowth. Considering the nearshore marine environment and 1-m thickness of the burmite-bearing sediments, and the syn-and post-eruption deposition of volcanic clasts, the age of 98.79 AE 0.62 Ma therefore can be used as a maximum limit for the burmite (either at or after), establishing an earliest Cenomanian age for the fossilized inclusions. The age also indicates that volcanic eruption occurred at 98.79 AE 0.62 Ma in the vicinity of the Hukawng Valley.

Fierce debate surrounds the history of organisms in the southern hemisphere; did Gondwanan break-up produce ocean barriers that imposed distribution patterns on phylogenies (vicariance)? Or have organisms modified their distributions through trans-oceanic dispersal? Recent advances in biogeographical theory suggest that the current focus on vicariance versus dispersal is too narrow because it ignores 'geodispersal' (i.e. expansion of species into areas when geographical barriers disappear), extinction and sampling errors. Geodispersal produces multiple, conflicting vicariance patterns, and extinction and sampling errors destroy vicariance patterns. This perspective suggests that it is more difficult to detect vicariance than trans-oceanic dispersal and that specialized methods must be applied if an unbiased understanding of southern hemisphere biogeography is to be achieved.

The Early Cretaceous (late Berriasian-early Valanginan) locality of La Pedrera de Meià (Montsec, Catalonia, Spain) has yielded remains of at least two genera of lizards: Meyasaurus (including its synonym Ilerdaesaurus and possibly Rubiessaurus) and Eichstaettisaurus. A new lizard specimen is described and named here as Pedrerasaurus latifrontalis gen. et sp. nov., being sufficiently distinct from other known genera to warrant the erection of a new taxon. The results of phylogenetic analysis are equivocal but support the placement of the new genus within Scincogekkonomorpha. The new taxon resembles Meyasaurus, a genus widely distributed in the Lower Cretaceous of the Iberian Peninsula, in having bicuspid teeth but differs in lacking the characteristic fusion and constriction of the frontals. Pedrerasaurus and Meyasaurus may be related, but the support for this is not strong. Recognition of a clearly distinct form with bicuspid teeth is significant in terms of attribution of fragmentary material recovered from other Jurassic-Cretaceous localities.

Extensive field investigations along the Yarlung^Zangbo suture zone in southern Tibet reveal the presence of now fragmented remnants of a south-facing intra-oceanic subduction system. This system developed within Tethys during the Cretaceous. The associated arc, forearc ophiolite, and subduction complex were emplaced onto the leading edge of India at the end of the Cretaceous. Rapid sedimentation in oblique-slip basins and disruption of water-saturated sediments into mëlange was widespread and concomitant with ophiolite emplacement. We describe the tectonic entities that developed during this previously unrecognized phase of Tethys^Tibet evolution and present a new model for the evolution of this portion of Tibet. ß

The John Martin Reservoir tracksites from the Dakota Group of Bent County, in southeastern Colorado form part of the mid Cretaceous Dinosaur Freeway characterized by abundant ornithopod footprints (Caririchnium). Over 350 tracks (331 Caririchnium, 1 Magnoavipes, 22 crocodiles, and a few pterosaurs) were discovered at 10 new tracksites. All tracks were found as natural casts, including Caririchnium trackways that were still in-situ, parallel and regularly spaced, suggesting gregarious behavior. Most crocodile tracks are swimming tracks that consist of three or four scratch marks also with parallel orientations in many cases. A few pterosaur tracks consist of pes footprints and scratch marks suggesting swimming or floating activity in shallow water. This is the first pterosaur evidence from the Dakota Group. The Caririchnium size structure from John Martin Reservoir is consistent with the size structure tendency of the whole Dinosaur Freeway, which shows larger track size in the north. This tendency could be interpreted as evidence for more than one ornithopod species spread out across the Dinosaur Freeway. The alternative, that there was one ornithopod species that migrated north and south seasonally is less likely. The John Martin paleoecosystem is interpreted from the track evidence as a wellvegetated coastal plain environment with many ornithopods and a few theropods on land, crocodiles in the water, and pterosaurs in the skies and on the water.

Jordan is well known for its Cretaceous phosphorite deposits. These comprise the phosphorite-bearing sediments which overlie the main chert facies of the Amman Formation. Phosphorites have been mined since the 1950s in north and central Jordan. Tectonic 'windows' or 'inliers' reveal the Upper Cretaceous sequence in the SE desert of Jordan in several localities underlying the main chert facies. These newly discovered phosphorite deposits are sandy with P 2 O 5 ranging from less than 1% to more than 33%. They form a belt extending in a NE-SW direction for about 200 km, and into NW Saudi Arabia. The equivalent sequence in western Jordan is fully calcareous and devoid of phosphorites. The southern segment of this belt (about 80 km) may have as much as 4 billion tonnes of phosphorite containing more than 20% P 2 O 5. These phosphorites are postulated to have been deposited in a restricted nearshore environment by local upwelling around the Sirhan Arch, a mid Cretaceous positive feature in the study area which also served as the source for sand.

The data presented here comprise Ryazanian–Valanginian carbon isotope ratios analyzed from fossil wood and belemnites from the shallow marine Boyarka River succession in Siberia. Additional belemnite carbon isotope ratios from the Izhma River succession (also Ryazanian–Valanginian) in Russia are also presented. The wood-derived and belemnite-derived isotope ratios are considered to primarily reflct changes in the terrestrial and marine carbon isotope reservoirs respectively. The δ13Ccarb and δ13Cwood records reveal a distinct mid-Valanginian positive carbon isotope excursion, with the initiation occurring near the Boreal Russian michalskii–polyptychus zone boundary, which is broadly time-equivalent Tethyan campylotoxus–verrucosum boundary. The Ryazanian–Valanginian δ13Ccarb values fluctuate between c. –1 and +1.5‰ but reach a maximum of +4.1‰ in the Late Valanginian, whilst the δ13Cwood values fluctuate between c.–27 and –23.5‰ and reach a Late Valanginian maximum of –21.2‰. The excursion maximum in the Boreal Russian bidichotomus zones corresponds with the peak of the Tethyan marine carbonate excursion in the verrucosum–eperegrinus zones, the peak of a marine carbonate excursion recorded in the Argentinean atherstoni Zone and also with the peak of a terrestrial organic carbon isotope excursion in the Crimean trinodosum–ecallidiscus ammonite zones. The synchroneity of the positive carbon isotope event between the marine and terrestrial records and between the northern and southern hemispheres and Tethys, clearly indicates a strong coupling of the ocean-atmosphere system at this time and also confirms that this was a global event, which would have affected the total exchangeable carbon reservoir.

Iridescent feather colors involved in displays of many extant birds are produced by nanoscale arrays of melanin-containing organelles (melanosomes). Data relevant to the evolution of these colors and the properties of melanosomes involved in their generation have been limited. A data set sampling variables of extant avian melanosomes reveals that those forming most iridescent arrays are distinctly narrow. Quantitative comparison of these data with melanosome imprints densely sampled from a previously unknown specimen of the Early Cretaceous feathered Microraptor predicts that its plumage was predominantly iridescent. The capacity for simple iridescent arrays is thus minimally inferred in paravian dinosaurs. This finding and estimation of Microraptor feathering consistent with an ornamental function for the tail suggest a centrality for signaling in early evolution of plumage and feather color.

The Upper Benue rift comprising the Gongola and Yola Basins in Nigeria consist of the Aptian-Albian Bima Formation, the Yolde Formation (Cenomanian-Turonian), Gongila/Pindiga/ Dukul Formation (Turonian-Coniacian) and Gombe Formation (Campanian-Maastrichtian). To evaluate the maturity and source rocks potential, vitrinite reflectance, Rock-Eval pyrolysis and infrared spectroscopy were carried out on 52 shale samples collected from boreholes, mine quarries and outcrop sections. In the Gongola Basin, mean random vitrinite reflectance (Rom) values range from 0.45% in the Gombe Formation to 0.69% in the Pindiga Formation and to 0.82% in the Bima Formation. Reflectance values in the Yola Basin also increase with stratigraphic age ranging from 0.73% in the Dukul Formation to 0.94% in the Yolde Formation and up to 1.37% in the Bima Formation. Total organic carbon (TOC) values in the Pindiga and Gongila Shales are between 0.4 to 2.4% averaging 0.75%. TOC contents from 0.10 to 12.9 averaging 1.2% are contained in the Yolde Formation of the Yola Basin. Tmax values from the pyrolysis of shales in the Gongola Basin range from 419 to 435°C whereas for shales in the Yola Basin they range from 431 to 442°C. Plots of HI vs Tma x for kerogen classification indicate the prevalence of Type III kerogens in the Gongila and Pindiga Shales although there are some indications of Type II-111 kerogens in the Yolde Shales of the Yola Basin. Our preliminary data suggest that Cretaceous successions in the Gongola Basin are thermally immature to marginally mature whereas source rocks in the Yola Basin are thermally mature with respect to hydrocarbon generation. The predominance of Type III kerogens in the Gongola Basin suggest their potential to generate gas in the deeply buried sections. The Dukul and Yolde formations with Type II-III kerogens may have generated some quantities of oil and gas in the deeper non-emergent sections.

a b s t r a c t Lower Cretaceous beetles belonging to the extinct tribe Brochocoleini (Coleoptera: Cupedidae: Ommatinae) are revised and five new species proposed in the extinct Eurasian genus Brochocoleus: Brochocoleus yangshuwanziensis sp. nov. (Yixian Formation, China); Brochocoleus crowsonae sp. nov., Brochocoleus keenani sp. nov., Brochocoleus tobini sp. nov. (Weald Clay Group, UK); and Brochocoleus maximus sp. nov. (Purbeck Limestone Group, UK). New morphological data is provided for Brochocoleus impressus and Brochocoleus sulcatus stat. nov. of which Brochocoleus angustus is considered a synonym (Yixian Fm.). The hindwing venation is described for the first time supporting the basal position of this tribe. A simple key is provided to all Cretaceous species of this presumably xylophagous, warm climate genus.

From one of the most complete Lower Cretaceous rock sequences in the world (in Villa de Leiva region, central Colombia), we describe a new genus and species of pliosaurid plesiosaur Stenorhynchosaurus munozi. Stenorhynchosaurus displays a series of features which differentiate it from all the other Cretaceous pliosaurid genera: the anterior of the vomer, in ventral view, posterior of the palatal premaxilla-maxilla suture, contacting the posterior palatal process of the premaxilla level with the third maxillary alveolus; rostrum narrow and elongated with straight sides in dorsal view; lacrimal forming the anterior border and greater part of the ventral border of the orbit and broadly borders the maxilla anteriorly; anterior interpterygoid vacuity present; internal nares located between vomer and maxilla at the level of 13 th-15 th maxillary alveoli; anterior of rostrum and mandible without lateral expansion or marked increase in size of the functional alveoli; penultimate premaxillary alveolus slightly larger than adjacent premaxillary alveoli; homodont maxillary functional alveoli, with fourth tooth positions very slightly enlarged with respect to the neighboring alveoli; homodont dentary dentition; and epipodials extremely short. Based on morphological analysis of phylogenetic characters, Stenorhynchosaurus most likely nests within the increasingly inclusive Pliosauridae and Pliosauroidea, however, as currently defined, firm inference for referral of Stenorhynchosaurus to Thalassophonea is much more problematic, but ultimately seems likely based on characters shared with Pliosaurus and Brachaucheninae. However, this uncertainty indicates Thalassophonea requires rigorous redefinition. As to whether Stenorhynchosaurus is a member of the currently exclusively Jurassic genus Pliosaurus, or the Cretaceous sub-family Brachaucheninae, remains equivocal.

Sequence stratigraphic models for thick fluvial successions continue to evolve to account for controlling factors other than base-level fluctuation.  For instance, many models place a sequence boundary at the base of amalgamated channel-belt deposits that cap coarsening-upward accumulations, relating this surface to a drop in base level.  However, this surface often demonstrates scouring that is no deeper than the thickness of a single channel-fill and may show interbedding between facies above and below, suggesting the surface might, instead, be associated with lateral channel-belt migration.  Additionally, these successions commonly develop significantly inland of likely influence by marine shoreline fluctuations and may not respond to eustatic base-level controls, particularly when factoring lag time for effects to propagate upstream. Furthermore, these deposits are typically found in settings of relatively continuous subsidence accompanied by high sedimentation rates, such as foreland basins, in which accommodation is produced proximal to the source, trapping much of the sediment before it reaches a position where it can be impacted by eustatic base-level controls.  Deposits that accumulate during early phases of foreland development do not have a connection to the marine realm, yet demonstrate similar patterns to those that do.  Other models suggest accommodation is produced by tectonically-induced subsidence, with filling in response to either a slowing of space production or to simple progradation, as coarser proximal deposits accumulate over finer distal deposits.  Other factors include variability in discharge relative to sediment supply and distributive vs. contributive channel patterns.  With each addition comes new terminology that, in the end, still ties successions to “sequence boundaries,” which, by definition, are “unconformities and their correlative conformities.”  Part of the complexity may arise from applying concepts where they don’t fit.  One model might work for passive margins, another for foreland basins, and another for rift basins, yet there will always be exceptions, even between one foreland basin and another or within the same basin.  Sequence stratigraphy is an effective tool for analyzing sedimentary basins, but we might be handicapping ourselves by forcing it into situations for which it was not designed.  It might be more effective to apply simpler, less restrictive terminology to describe and interpret thick fluvial successions.

The major states, in which Earth's climate operates, i.e., icehouse, greenhouse and hothouse, are epochs of tens of
millions of years. These states set long-termboundary conditions that need to be considered for climate and sea level interpretations. This paper summarizes the conceptual models for hydrological cycling derived from the characteristics of these three climate states. While glacio-eustatic forcing of sea-level changes under icehouse climate conditions is fairly well understood, the drivers of eustatic sea-level fluctuations under greenhouse conditions remain enigmatic. This lack of understanding may be related to incoherencies in the current ideas about the impact of accelerated hydrological cycling on sea level under greenhouse climate conditions.
As an example for a greenhouse climate, we review evidences that link proxies for climate and sea level for the intensely studied, but controversially discussed, mid-Cretaceous  sea-level history. Based on sequence stratigraphy and a recently published high-precision timescale, we demonstrate that the late Middle Turonian Pewsey δ13C isotope maximum represents a major transgression, not a regression as previously stated, which conflicts with the interpretation of a co-occurring δ18O maximum to reflect a short glacial episode. This contradiction can be solved by the concept, presented here, that dominance of aquifer-eustasy characterized sea-level forcing during the Turonian greenhouse climate, despite a possible, though contentious, sporadic presence of minor ice sheets. The effects of temperature and ice volume both lead to a pronounced δ18Ocarb maximum during glacio-eustatic regressions. In contrast, the opposing effects of temperature and groundwater volume on oxygen-isotope fractionation lead to a δ18Ocarb maximum during aquifer-eustatic transgressions. We suggest that, throughout Earth history, both aquifer-eustatic and glacio-eustatic forcing formed a combined sea-level response, with dominance of aquifer-eustasy being typical for the greenhouse climate mode. During the icehouse mode, aquifer-eustasy apparently remains active as a background process, but is outpaced by the glacio-eustatic effect.

Four juvenile specimens referable to Pinacosaurus grangeri (Ankylosauria: Dinosauria) are described from the Campanian (Upper Cretaceous) locality Bayan Mandahu in northern Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region (People’s Republic of China). All the specimens preserve the skulls as well as, in some cases, mandibles, postcrania, and osteoderm. They are not taphonomically deformed by expanding matrix distortion, unlike many Gobi specimens, including the holotype of P. grangeri. Bayan Mandahu is also the type locality for Pinacosaurus mephistocephalus. The proximity in space and time of these two closely related species warrants a generic and specific revision for Pinacosaurus. The distinction of the two species is based on characters of the squamosal dermal elaborations, cranial roof posterior to the orbits, premaxillary notch, and distal margin of the ilium. Although a relatively well-represented ankylosaur taxon, the phylogenetic position of Pinacosaurus has not been unequivocally resolved. A new analysis recovers Pinacosaurus as the most basal member of the Ankylosaurinae.

a b s t r a c t A significant part of the collection of mid-and Late Cretaceous (Cenomanian, Campanian and Maastrichtian) gastropods, bivalves and worms described and/or illustrated by de Ryckholt in his seminal work Mélanges paléontologiques between 1854 and 1862, has recently been retraced in the historical collections at Liège University. Of the original collection, more than 206 specimens, including 196 nominal types (lectotypes and genotypes), all considered lost, are now available. The genotypes of the gastropod genera Tudicula de Ryckholt, 1862a and Prosopostoma de Ryckholt, 1862a are photographically illustrated for the first time. Prosopostoma bucculans, from the Cenomanian Bernissart Formation (formerly 'Tourtia de Tournai'), is here chosen as the type species of the genus Prosopostoma, a possible stromboid. We also reassess the stratigraphic age of the type localities under the revised stratigraphic framework of Belgium and a detailed account on the research history of this material, in order to provide a thorough scientific background for future study of this formidable collection.

The rostrum fragment of an ichthyosaur from Northland in New Zealand is described. The specimen appears to belong to the genus Platypterygius. It is the first Mesozoic marine vertebrate fossil reported from Northland and the first cranial element of a Cretaceous ichthyosaur from New Zealand. The fragment is, unfortunately, of uncertain provenance and could have come from the widespread Northland Allochthon (Early Cretaceous–Oligocene) or the allochthonous Houhora Complex (late Early Cretaceous) or Whatuwhiwhi Formation (latest Early to Late Cretaceous), perhaps by way of initial erivation from the Early Miocene Omapere Conglomerate.

Tyrannosaurs, the group of dinosaurian carnivores that includes Tyrannosaurus rex and its closest relatives, are icons of prehistory. They are also the most intensively studied extinct dinosaurs, and thanks to large sample sizes and an influx of new discoveries, have become ancient exemplar organisms used to study many themes in vertebrate paleontology. A phylogeny that includes recently described species shows that tyrannosaurs originated by the Middle Jurassic but remained mostly small and ecologically marginal until the latest Cretaceous. Anatomical, biomechanical, and histological studies of T. rex and other derived tyrannosaurs show that large tyrannosaurs could not run rapidly, were capable of crushing bite forces, had accelerated growth rates and keen senses, and underwent pronounced changes during ontogeny. The biology and evolutionary history of tyrannosaurs provide a foundation for comparison with other dinosaurs and living organisms.

The Cretaceous-Paleogene boundary~ 65.5 million years ago marks one of the three largest mass extinctions in the past 500 million years. The extinction event coincided with a large asteroid impact at Chicxulub, Mexico, and occurred within the time of Deccan flood basalt volcanism in India. Here, we synthesize records of the global stratigraphy across this boundary to assess the proposed causes of the mass extinction. Notably, a single ejecta-rich deposit compositionally linked to the Chicxulub impact is globally distributed at the ...

During the evolution of the Calpionellidae , the calcite composition of their loricas , hitherto considered as one of the major taxonomic criteria of this family , changed several times. During periods of calcium carbonate hypersaturation of seawater , the calcite deposited in the walls of the lorica could replace their original chitinous composition. From this point of view , we regard chitinous Chitinoidella , Deflandronella and Praecolomiella or Parachitinoidella as direct relatives of calcareous 'true' calpionellids. Taking into consideration ecological aspects of the distribution of individual calpionellid forms , we have modified the model of their middle Tithonian to early Albian evolution , within the frame of which we have recognized five diversification stages. These are (1) chitinoidellid (tiny microgranular loricas) ; (2) crassicollarian (simple hyaline loricas) ; (3) remaniellid (advanced loricas with plicate collars) ; (4) praecolomiellid (reset of microgranular forms) ; and (5) colomiellid stage (hyaline forms with more or less articulated collars) .

Three-dimensional seismic mapping of interpretative sub-surface time slice sections, incorporating age data and detailed structural observations places constraints on the structural architecture and stratigraphic evolution of the Icotea pull-apart basin in the central Maracaibo basin, Venezuela. All four fault-bounded sides of the Icotea basin, its ,3-km-thick Eocene basin fill of clastic sediments and faults pre-dating the opening of the basin can be mapped in three dimensions. The development of the Icotea basin provides an excellent observational basis for understanding the structural history of three sets of regionally extensive faults and testing two models for the formation of pull-apart basins in general. Three main fault trends produced at different periods in the formation of the Cretaceous-Recent Maracaibo basin are mapped using 3D seismic data in the central part of the basin: (1) N-NE-striking normal faults, including the Icotea fault; these faults formed originally during Late Jurassic-Early Cretaceous rifting and reactivated as left-lateral strike-slip faults during late Paleocene-Eocene convergent deformation between the Caribbean and South American plates; (2) NW striking faults formed by late Paleocene-Eocene overthrusting of the Caribbean plate and downward flexure of the South American plate to create a major foreland basin depocenter; and (3) NE-striking normal faults, of pre-Cretaceous age, were reactivated during late Paleocene-Eocene plate convergence. Three-dimensional architecture of the Icotea basin interpreted from five time slices through the basin and its flank areas supports the simple pull-apart model for the Eocene opening of the Icotea basin. The amount of extension across the suite of normal faults ranges between 0.8 and 2.25 km. This range of offset is consistent with some previous estimates of minor left-lateral displacement along the Icotea fault but is inconsistent with either low-angle or high-angle thrusting during Eocene time, as inferred from previous interpretations of widely spaced two-dimensional seismic lines. The normal faults that formed the pull-apart basin reactivated pre-existing faults due to plate flexure.

The chemical and isotopic characterization of formation water from 18 oil production wells, extracted from 5200 to 6100 m b.s.l. at the Jujo-Tecominoacán carbonate reservoir in SE-Mexico, and interpretations of historical production records, were undertaken to determine the origin and hydraulic behavior of deep groundwater systems. The infiltration of surface water during Late Pleistocene to Early Holocene time is suggested by 14 C-concentrations from 2.15 to 31.86 pmC, and by 87 Sr/ 86 Sr-ratios for high-salinity formation water (0.70923-0.70927) that are close to the composition of Holocene to modern seawater. Prior to infiltration, the super-evaporation of seawater reached maximum TDS concentrations of 385 g/ L, with lowest d 18 O values characterizing the most hypersaline samples. Minor deviations of formation water and dolomite host rocks from modern and Jurassic 87 Sr/ 86 Sr-seawater composition, respectively, suggest ongoing water-rock interaction, and partial isotopic equilibration between both phases. The abundance of 14 C in all sampled formation water, 87 Sr/ 86 Sr-ratios for high-salinity water close to Holocene -present seawater composition, a water salinity distribution that is independent of historic water-cut, and a total water extraction volume of 2.037 MMm 3 (1/83-4/07) excludes a connate, oil-leg origin for the produced water of the Jurassic-Cretaceous mudstone-dolomite sequence. Temporal fluctuations of water chemistry in production intervals, the accelerated migration of water fronts from the reservoir flanks, and isotopic mixing trends between sampled wells confirms the existence of free aquifer water below oil horizons. Vertical and lateral hydraulic mobility has probably been accelerated by petroleum extraction.

2013.33 These maps (rectilinear projection) are from the PALEOMAP PaleoAtlas for ArcGIS (Scotese, 2013a-f).  This is a digital atlas of plate tectonic, paleogeographic, and paleoclimatic reconstructions designed for use with the GIS software, ArcMap (ESRI).  Table 1 lists the various types of maps that comprise the PALEOMAP PaleoAtlas.  The maps included in this folio are highlighted in bold text (Table 1).
The last map in each folio is a rectilinear graticule that can be overlain on the maps to provide a geographic reference frame.  A rectilinear projection was used because it can be easily georeferenced in ArcMap and transformed into a variety of other map projections.  The rectilinear, or plate caree map projection can also be directly “wrapped” onto a spherical projection, like the oneused by Google Earth. A set of Google Earth paleoglobes has made from the maps in this folio. These Google Earth paleoglobes can be downloaded at: www.globalgeology.com. 
If the map you need is missing, or if there doesn’t seem to be a map folio for the exact time interval of interest, please contact me ([email protected]). Table 2 lists all the time intervals that comprise the PALEOMAP PaleoAtlas for ArcGIS. The PaleoAtlas contains one map for every stage in the Phanerozoic, as well as 6 maps for the late Precambrian.  Eventually, Map Folios, like this one, will be published for every time interval in the PALEOMAP PaleoAtlas.  The following section is a brief description of the maps that makeup the Map Folio.

Late Cretaceous echinoids of Jamaica are moderately diverse, but specimens are rare. The upper Santonian Clifton Limestone Member (Mount Peace Formation) of the Lucea Inlier (western Jamaica) includes common tests of Nucleopygus cubensis Weisbord preserved in oosparites. This species was previously reported from Cuba. The test is ovate, rounded anteriorly and rounded to more truncate posteriorly, moderately high domed, highest posterior to the apical system; the posterior sulcus is deep, narrow and short; and the ambulacral petals are open, but closing. The local accumulation of this echinoid is interpreted as a habitat preference for this echinoid, which is unknown from other lithofacies. It is commonly preserved as a complete test, suggesting it was particularly robust by analogy with material from other echinoid ''conglomerates''.

New studies show evidence of repetitive upwelling events taking place in the southwestern margin of Thetys from the Turonian through the Maastrichtian. Based on comparative analyses of sedimentological and biotic characteristics, Zones II and III of the upwelling model (Jones et al., l983) are interpreted in seven subcropping sections analyzed along the northern border of the Barinas Basin, southwestern Venezuela.

Two specimens of Thysanoptera with forked sensilla on third and fourth antennal segments were described from the Lebanese Neocomian and the Spanish Albian ambers, and attributed to the new genus Tethysthrips n. gen. in the family Thripidae Stevens 1829. One specimen with a tubular tenth abdominal segment was also discovered in the Lebanese Neocomian amber, and attributed to the new genus Rohrthrips n. gen. belonging to the family Phlaeothripidae Uzel 1895. Thripidae and Phlaeothripidae are nowadays the most species-rich families of Thysanoptera. The present discoveries of Early Cretaceous fossils show how diversifi ed these families and thrips already were at that time. Moreover, this tubuliferan Rohrthrips specimen has plesiomorphies no longer present in the recent genera, in particular on the wings. Therefore it brings new insight in the evolution of Tubulifera.

The superfamily Portunoidea including extinct lineages is herein evaluated via cladistic analysis of adult morphological characters and traditional systematics. Nearly every fossil species has been examined via type material, or if this was not possible, through illustrations and original descriptions. The analyses indicate that the superfamily is much more diverse at the family level than has previously been recognized, and three subfamilies, Catoptrinae, Carcininae, and Macropipinae, are herein elevated to family status. One new family, Longusorbiidae; two new genera, Euronectes and Viaophthalmus; and two nomen nova are named herein in addition to the recognition of seven new combinations. The fossil record of each of the resulting families is evaluated and summarized, indicating that the superfamily extends into the Cretaceous but that many of the families are indeed much younger lineages.

Les causses du Quercy sont des plateaux calcaires qui présentent des morphologies karstiques caractéristiques : dolines (cloups), grottes (crozes), gouffres (igues), réseaux de vallées sèches sillonnant la surface du plateau et buttes isolées (pechs). D'une altitude moyenne de 350 mètres, ils sont incisés par deux vallées principales : la Dordogne au nord, séparant le Causse de Martel et le Causse de Gramat, et le Lot au sud, entre le Causse de Gramat et le Causse de Limogne (fig. 1). La confluence des cours du Célé et du Lot isole un quatrième plateau, beaucoup plus petit : le Causse de Gréalou. De part et d'autre des Causses du Quercy, deux régions naturelles contrastent avec les paysages caussenards : la Bouriane à l'ouest et le Limargue à l'est. La première est constituée de terrains argilo-sableux (crétacés et tertiaires) et supporte une végétation à dominante silicicole (châtaigniers, pins). Le Limargue est une étroite bande de calcaires marno-argileux du Lias, aux sols profonds et aux paysages bocagers, coincée entre les ségalas sur roche cristallophyllienne et le causse calcaire.

The late Early Cretaceous Santana Formation fossil Lagerstätte of north-east Brazil's Araripe Basin is known for its diverse aquatic vertebrate assemblage, but little is known of the palaeoenvironment of the surrounding hinterland of the basin. Isolated gymnosperm tracheids in acid-resistant residues from concretions of Romualdo Member of the Santana Formation are composed of fusain consistent with a wildfire origin. Fusain debris probably entered the Araripe Basin as fallout from wind-blown ash. A wildfire origin for the organic debris is consistent with palaeoclimatic interpretations that indicate an arid hinterland for the Araripe Basin during the mid Cretaceous.

Ptychodus mortoni Mantell is a Late Cretaceous shark that possessed pavement-like tooth plates that were used to feed on hard-shelled macroinvertebrates (durophagy). Here, we describe a new specimen of P. mortoni from the Fort Hays Limestone Member of the Niobrara Chalk in Kansas, USA, that consists of associated teeth, placoid scales, and a portion of the right upper jaw. Although the specimen is fragmentary, this fossil supports the previously proposed contention that P. mortoni was a gigantic animal that likely reached at least 10 m in total body length with an estimated jaw length of nearly 1 m.