Hostname: page-component-848d4c4894-m9kch Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-05-31T18:40:19.529Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Terlinguachelys fischbecki, a new genus and species of sea turtle (Chelonioidea: Protostegidae) from the Upper Cretaceous of Texas

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  20 May 2016

Thomas M. Lehman  and
Susan L. Tomlinson
Thomas M. Lehman
Affiliation:
Department of Geosciences, Texas Tech University, Lubbock 79409-1053
Susan L. Tomlinson
Affiliation:
Department of Geosciences, Texas Tech University, Lubbock 79409-1053
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

Remains of a large sea turtle, Terlinguachelys fischbecki n. gen. and sp., were recovered from paralic deposits of the Upper Cretaceous (Campanian) Aguja Formation in Big Bend National Park, Texas. T. fischbecki is a primitive protostegid that retains a constricted humerus, well ossified plastron and costals, prominent retroarticular process on the lower jaw, and long slender femora; however, it has some features, such as a prominent tubercle at the base of the scapular acromion process, found elsewhere only in derived leatherback sea turtles. The unique combination of primitive and derived traits in T. fischbecki illustrates further diversity among Cretaceous sea turtles and another case of parallelism common in sea turtle phylogeny.

Type
Research Article
Information
Journal of Paleontology , Volume 78 , Issue 6 , November 2004 , pp. 1163 - 1178
Copyright
Copyright © The Paleontological Society

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Baur, G. 1893. Notes on the classification of the Cryptodira. American Naturalist, 27:672–675.Google Scholar
Capellini, G. 1884. Il chelonio veronese (Protosphargis veronensis, Cap.) scoperto nel 1852 nel Cretaceo superiore presso Sant'Anna di Alfaedo in Valpolicella. Memoire della Classe di Scienze Fisiche, Matematichie, e Naturali Roma, series 3, 18:291–320.Google Scholar
Carr, A. 1952. Handbook of Turtles. Cornell University Press, Ithaca, New York, 542 p.Google Scholar
Case, E. C. 1898. Toxochelys . Kansas Geological Survey, 4(6):370–385.Google Scholar
Cifelli, R. L. 1994. Therian mammals of the Terlingua local fauna (Judithian), Aguja Formation, Big Bend of the Rio Grande, Texas. University of Wyoming, Contributions to Geology, 30(2):117–136.Google Scholar
Cobban, W. A., and Kennedy, W. J. 1992. Campanian ammonites from the Upper Cretaceous Gober Chalk of Lamar County, Texas. Journal of Paleontology, 66(3):440–454.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Cobban, W. A., and Kennedy, W. J. 1993. Middle Campanian ammonites and inoceramids from the Wolfe City Sand in northeastern Texas. Journal of Paleontology, 67(1):71–82.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Collins, J. I. 1970. The chelonian Rhinochelys Seeley from the Upper Cretaceous of England and France. Palaeontology, 13(3):355–378.Google Scholar
Cope, E. D. 1872. On the geology and paleontology of the Cretaceous strata of Kansas. U.S. Geological Survey, Fifth Annual Report, p. 323–335.Google Scholar
Elliot, D. K., Irby, G. V., and Hutchison, J. H. 1997. Desmatochelys lowi, a marine turtle from the Upper Cretaceous, p. 243–258. In Calloway, J. M. and Nicholls, E. L. (eds.), Ancient Marine Reptiles. Academic Press, New York.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Foster, D. E. 1980. Osteopygis sp., a marine turtle from the Late Cretaceous Moreno Formation of California. PaleoBios, Number 34, 13 p.Google Scholar
Gaffney, E. S. 1979. Comparative cranial morphology of Recent and fossil turtles. American Museum of Natural History Bulletin, 164(2):69–376.Google Scholar
Gaffney, E. S. 1981. A review of the fossil turtles of Australia. American Museum Novitates, Number 2720, 38 p.Google Scholar
Gaffney, E. S., and Meylan, P. A. 1988. A phylogeny of turtles, p. 157–219. In Benton, M. J. (ed.), The Phylogeny and Classification of the Tetrapods, Volume 1, Amphibians, Reptiles, Birds. Systematics Association Special Volume Number 35A. Clarendon Press, Oxford.Google Scholar
Hay, O. P. 1908. The Fossil Turtles of North America. Carnegie Institute of Washington, Publication Number 75, 568 p.Google Scholar
Hirayama, R. 1992. Humeral morphology of chelonioid sea turtles; its functional analysis and phylogenetic implications. Bulletin of the Hobetsu Museum, 8:17–57. (In Japanese)Google Scholar
Hirayama, R. 1994. Phylogenetic systematics of chelonioid sea turtles. The Island Arc, 3:270–284.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Hirayama, R. 1997. Distribution and diversity of Cretaceous chelonioids, p. 225–241. In Calloway, J. M. and Nicholls, E. L. (eds.), Ancient Marine Reptiles. Academic Press, New York.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Hirayama, R. 1998. Oldest known sea turtle. Nature, 392:705–708.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Hirayama, R., and Chitoku, T. 1996. Family Dermochelyidae (Superfamily Chelonioidea) from the Upper Cretaceous of North Japan. Transactions and Proceedings of the Palaeontological Society of Japan, 184:597–622.Google Scholar
Hooks, G. E. 1998. Systematic revision of the Protostegidae, with a redescription of Calcarichelys gemma Zangerl, 1953. Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology, 18(1):85–98.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Lehman, T. M. 1985. Stratigraphy, sedimentology and paleontology of Late Cretaceous (Campanian-Maastrichtian) sedimentary rocks in Trans-Pecos Texas. Unpublished Ph.D. dissertation, University of Texas, Austin, 299 p.Google Scholar
Lehman, T. M. 1989. Chasmosaurus mariscalensis, sp. nov., a new ceratopsian dinosaur from Texas. Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology, 9(2):137–162.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Lehman, T. M. 1997. Campanian dinosaur biogeography in the western interior of North America, p. 223–240. In Wolberg, D. and Stump, E. (eds.), Dinofest International, Proceedings of a Symposium Sponsored by Arizona State University. Philadelphia Academy of Natural Sciences Special Publication.Google Scholar
Leidy, J. 1865. Cretaceous reptiles of the United States. Smithsonian Contributions to Knowledge, 14, 135 p.Google Scholar
Macon, C. C. 1994. Facies analysis and sedimentology of transgressive shoreline deposits in the Aguja Formation (Upper Cretaceous), Trans-Pecos Texas. Unpublished M.S. thesis, Texas Tech University, Lubbock, 212 p.Google Scholar
Meyer, C. A. 1991. Burial experiments with marine turtle carcasses and their paleoecological significance. Palaios, 6(1):89–96.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Miles, E. 1993. Stray Tales of the Big Bend. Texas A&M University Press, College Station, 186 p.Google Scholar
Moody, R. T. 1997. The paleogeography of marine and coastal turtles of the North Atlantic and Trans-Saharan regions, p. 259–278. In Calloway, J. M. and Nicholls, E. L. (eds.), Ancient Marine Reptiles. Academic Press, New York.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Nicholls, E. L. 1992. Note on the occurrence of the marine turtle Desmatochelys (Reptilia: Chelonioidea) from the Upper Cretaceous of Vancouver Island. Canadian Journal of Earth Sciences, 29:377–380.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Nicholls, E. L., Tokaryk, T. T., and Hills, L. V. 1990. Cretaceous marine turtles from the Western Interior Seaway of Canada. Canadian Journal of Earth Sciences, 27:1288–1298.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Nielsen, E. 1964. On the post-cranial skeleton of Eosphargis breineri Nielsen. Meddelelser fra Dansk Geologisk Forening, Kobanhavn, 15(3):281–313.Google Scholar
Parham, J. F., and Fastovsky, D. E. 1997. The phylogeny of cheloniid sea turtles revisited. Chelonian Conservation and Biology, 2(4):548–554.Google Scholar
Parham, J. F., and Stidham, T. A. 1999. Late Cretaceous sea turtles from the Chico Formation of California. PaleoBios, 19(3):1–7.Google Scholar
Rhodin, A. G. 1985. Comparative chondro-osseous development and growth of marine turtles. Copeia, 1985(3):752–771.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Rowe, T., Cifelli, R. L., Lehman, T. M., and Weil, A. 1992. The Campanian Terlingua local fauna, with a summary of other vertebrates from the Aguja Formation, Trans-Pecos Texas. Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology, 12(4):472–493.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Tomlinson, S. L. 1997. Late Cretaceous and early Tertiary turtles from the Big Bend region, Brewster County, Texas. Unpublished Ph.D. dissertation, Texas Tech University, Lubbock, 194 p.Google Scholar
Tong, H., and Hirayama, R. 2002. A new species of Tasbacka (Testudines: Cryptodira: Cheloniidae) from the Paleocene of the Ouled Abdoun phosphate basin, Morocco. Neues Jahrbuch fur Geologie und Palaontologie Monatschefte, 2002(5):277–294.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Volker, H. 1913. Uber das Stamm-, Gliedmassen-, und Hautskelet von Dermochelys coriacea L. Zoologische Jahrbucher, 33:431–552.Google Scholar
Walker, W. F. 1973. The locomotor apparatus of Testudines, p. 1–100. In Gans, C. (ed.), Biology of the Reptilia, Volume 4, Morphology D. Academic Press, New York.Google Scholar
Weems, R. E. 1974. Middle Miocene sea turtles (Syllomus, Procolpochelys, Psephophorus) from the Calvert Formation. Journal of Paleontology, 48(2):278–303.Google Scholar
Weems, R. E. 1980. Syllomus aegyptiacus, a Miocene pseudodont sea turtle. Copeia, 1980(4):621–625.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Weems, R. E. 1988. Paleocene turtles from the Aquia and Brightseat Formations, with a discussion of their bearing on sea turtle evolution and phylogeny. Proceedings of the Biological Society of Washington, 101(1):109–145.Google Scholar
Wieland, G. R. L. 1902. Notes on the Cretaceous turtles Toxochelys and Archelon, with a classification of the marine Testudinata. American Journal of Science, series 4, 14:95–108.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Wieland, G. R. L. 1906. The osteology of Protostega . Carnegie Museum Memoirs, 2:279–298.Google Scholar
Wieland, G. R. L. 1909. Revision of the Protostegidae. American Journal of Science, series 4, 27:101–130.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Williston, S. W. 1898. Desmatochelys lowii . Kansas Geological Survey, 4(6):353–368.Google Scholar
Wood, R. C., Johnson-Gove, J., Gaffney, E. S., and Maley, K. F. 1996. Evolution and phylogeny of leatherback turtles (Dermochelyidae), with descriptions of new fossil taxa. Chelonian Conservation and Biology, 2(2):266–286.Google Scholar
Zangerl, R. 1953. The vertebrate fauna of the Selma Formation of Alabama, Parts III and IV, the turtles of the family Protostegidae and family Toxochelyidae. Fieldiana, Geology Memoirs, 3:59–277.Google Scholar
Zangerl, R. 1958. Die oligozanen meerschildkroten von Glarus. Schweizerische Palaeontologische Abhandlungen, 73:1–56.Google Scholar
Zangerl, R. 1960. The vertebrate fauna of the Selma Formation of Alabama, Part V, an advanced cheloniid sea turtle. Fieldiana, Geology Memoirs, 3:283–312.Google Scholar
Zangerl, R. 1969. The turtle shell, p. 311–339. In Gans, C. (ed.), Biology of the Reptilia, Volume 1, Morphology A. Academic Press, New York.Google Scholar
Zangerl, R. 1980. Patterns of phylogenetic differentiation in the toxochelyid and cheloniid sea turtles. American Zoologist, 20:585–596.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Zangerl, R., and Sloan, R. E. 1960. A new specimen of Desmatochelys lowi Williston, a primitive cheloniid sea turtle from the Cretaceous of South Dakota. Fieldiana, Geology, 14(2):7–40.Google Scholar
Zangerl, R., and Turnbull, W. D. 1955. Procolpochelys grandaeva (Leidy), an early carettine sea turtle. Fieldiana, Zoology, 37:345–382.Google Scholar
Zangerl, R., Hendrickson, E. P., and Hendrickson, J. R. 1988. A redescription of the Australian Flatback Sea Turtle, Natator depressus. Bishop Museum Bulletins in Zoology, 1, 69 p.Google Scholar