The nonscientific aspect of a scientific expedition: The organization of the First Mongolian Paleontological Expedition, 1946, under the leadership of I.A. Efremov

This paper discusses the history of the organization of the First Mongolian Paleontological Expedition in 1941 and 1946 based on archives and publications. It describes the bureaucratic “red tape” at the time, the questions faced by the administration of the Paleontological Institute of the Academy of Sciences of the USSR and the head of the expedition, and how they were answered in order to facilitate an expedition at a time when the international affairs of the Academy of Sciences in the 1940s were strictly controlled by the Communist Party and the Soviet Government.     

The family Phryganeidae (Insecta,Trichoptera) from the Mesozoic and Cenozoic of Asia (with a brief worldwide overview of the fossil caddisfly fauna)

The following new taxa of the family Phryganeidae are described: Proagrypnia sinitsae gen. et sp. nov. from the Upper Jurassic or Lower Cretaceous of Russia (Chernovskie Kopi locality) and Baissophryganoides popovi sp. nov. from the Lower Cretaceous of Mongolia (Anda-Khuduk locality). A larval case of Folindusia (Acrindusia) phryganoides sp. nov. from the Paleocene of Russia (Arkhara–Boguchan brown coal field) is described. A worldwide overview of the records of fossil adult insects and larval cases of Phryganeidae is presented.     

Nuurcala obesa sp. n. (Blattida,Caloblattinidae) from the Lower Cretaceous Yixian Formation in?Liaoning?Province,China

Nuurcala obesa sp. n., in the cockroach family Caloblattinidae, is described from the Lower Cretaceous Yixian Formation (Liaoning Province, China) based on a combination of differential characters of fore- and hind wing venation, colouration and body structures. Systematically, Nuurcala (Vršanský, 2003), known from the Cretaceous sediments of Bon Tsagaan and Khurilt, Mongolia, is closely related to other genera of Caloblattinidae known from the Jurassic and Cretaceous localities in other parts of Asia.     

First record of fossil Mesozoic Ctenopoda (Crustacea, Cladocera)

Pre-Pleistocene representatives of the crustacean order Ctenopoda Sars, 1865 are unknown. Here we describe Mesozoic fossil specimens of ctenopods from two localities in Mongolia: Khotont (Jurassic/Cretaceous boundary, about 145 Mya) and Khutel Khara (Lower Cretaceous, about 129 Mya). All specimens apparently belonged to the tribe Latonini Korovchinsky, 1986 of the subfamily Sidinae Baird, 1850. At the Khotont site, ctenopods were the most numerous microscopic animal fossils. We assigned these cladocerans to a new genus and species Archelatona zherikhini gen. nov., sp. nov. Our findings support a pre-Cretaceous origin for cladocerans.  © 2006 The Linnean Society of London, Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society , 2006, 146 , 269–274.     

内蒙古查布地区下白垩统巨齿龙足印化石

内蒙古鄂尔多斯市鄂托克旗查布地区下白垩统中产有大量的蜥脚类和兽脚类恐龙足迹及鸟类足迹化石,作者对这个地区的足迹化石进行全面普查,发现许多新暴露出来的恐龙足迹化石,包括兽脚类恐龙足迹一新属新种Chapuslockleyiichnogen.etichnosp.nov.属于巨齿龙类(megalosaurid)所留。与兽脚类足迹保存在一起的蜥脚类足迹Brontopodusbirdi分布凌乱,反映了造迹恐龙搏斗的场面。通过测量连续的兽脚类足迹计算,Chapuslockleyi的造迹恐龙的行走速度为4.33km/h。通过足迹化石还识别出造迹恐龙的病态特征。     

中国石蚕巢化石(昆虫纲,毛翅目)的发现与初步研究

毛翅目昆虫幼虫俗称石蚕,大部分石蚕就地取材,构筑不同形状,不同质地的巢,多数为管状.石蚕巢化石是一类较重要的遗迹化石,在国外中、新生代报道较多,但在我国未见发表.本文根据作者十多年来在华北及东北地区的大量野外工作,报道了石蚕巢化石在我国的发现.介绍了石蚕巢在中侏罗世道虎沟动物群,早白垩世热河动物群及卢尚坟昆虫群中的类型与特征.石蚕巢是我国遗迹化石研究中的薄弱环节,实际上它们在中生代中期以后的陆相地层分布很广.由于这类昆虫对水质变化的敏感性和适应的相对狭隘性,可用于恢复古环境.一些特殊类型的出现,对地层对比也将起到作用.     

On the types of mesozoic archostematan beetles (Insecta, Coleoptera, Archostemata) in the Natural History Museum, London

About 40 type specimens of archostematan beetles from the Jurassic, Lower Cretaceous, and Paleogene of England, named by P. Brodie, J.O. Westwood, C. Giebel, A. Handlirsch, F. Zeuner, P. Whalley, and R. Crowson and stored in the Paleontological Department of the Natural History Museum (London) are redescribed. Nine genera and 11 species are recognized, three genera are assigned to Archostemata for the first time. One new species, Tersus crowsoni (Schizophoridae), is described.     

Studies of fossil brachiopods of Mongolia: Ordovician,Silurian, Devonian,Carboniferous, and Permian

Fossil brachiopods from the Ordovician, Silurian, Devonian, Carboniferous, and Permian deposits of Mongolia have been studied for the last forty-five years by the Joint Soviet-Mongolian (later RussianMongolian) Paleontological and Geological Expeditions. New data on the taxonomic composition, stratigraphic and geographic distribution of the brachiopod assemblages have been obtained. The brachiopod systematics has been further refined and detailed, and the stratigraphic and correlation scales and biogeographic reconstructions have been elaborated for the Paleozoic of Mongolia.     

The first record of crawling water beetles (Coleoptera, Haliplidae) in the Lower Cretaceous of Mongolia

A new species of crawling water beetles (Coleoptera, Haliplidae), Haliplus (subgenus unclear) cretaceus sp. nov., is described from the Lower Cretaceous of Mongolia, Bon-Tsagan (Bööntsagaan) locality.     

New jewel beetles (Coleoptera: Buprestidae) and similar beetles from the Cretaceous and Early Paleogene of Asia

A new genus and two new species of jewel beetles are described, Andakhudukia ponomarenkoi gen. et sp. nov. from the Lower Cretaceous of Mongolia and Metabuprestium ustkivdense sp. nov. from the lowermost Paleogene of the Amur Region. In addition, four new monotypic genera that share some features with jewel beetles are described: Cretoelaterium kazanovense gen. et sp. nov. from the Lower Cretaceous of Eastern Transbaikalia and Cretopoena gratshevi gen. et sp. nov. from the Lower Cretaceous of Mongolia have been referred to the families Elateridae and Eucnemidae; Cretofalselaterium baiankhongoricum gen. et sp. nov. from the Lower Cretaceous of Mongolia and Cretogermen turonicum gen. et sp. nov. from the Upper Cretaceous of Kazakhstan have been erected for isolated elytra and placed in Coleoptera incertae sedis.     

Low diversity cockroach assemblage from Chernovskie Kopi in Russia confirms wing deformities in insects at the Jurassic/Cretaceous boundary

The Jurassic/Cretaceous (J/K) boundary is of great importance for the evolution of cockroaches as 6 (of the total of 27) families and orders of termites and mantodeans evolved from them during this interval. The Jurassic affinities of most taxa and a complete lack of any characteristic Cretaceous cockroach taxa combined with the presence of two termites indicate a position close to the J/K stratigraphic boundary for the locality Chernovskie Kopi in Transbaikalian Siberia. Among 41 specimens the dominant species was Blattula discors sp. n. (n = 14 (15?)) closely related to Blattula vidlickai Vr?anský, 2004 from the roughly coeval locality Shar-Teg in Mongolia. Rhipidoblattina lacunata sp. n. (Caloblattinidae; n = 10) and Archimesoblatta kopi sp. n. were common, while Mongolblatta sanguinea sp. n. (Mesoblattinidae; n = 6, 1) and Rhipidoblatta grandis sp. n. (Caloblattinidae; n = 2) were rare. Six specimens, all possibly representing an unknown genus of the family Liberiblattinidae remain indetermined. Such composition of an assemblage with a low diversity, resulting from a destabilized ecosystem resembles Early Jurassic assemblages from Mintaja, Australia and diverse Toarcian localities in Germany and England rather than Middle or Late Jurassic assemblages. The present samples also contain plant remains. The almost complete lack of bodies, pronota and hind wings suggest a significant transport prior to deposition. Twenty deformities distributed on nine wings amounting to 22.5% of wings support the occurrence of mass mutations near the J/K boundary.     

Dinosaurs of Switzerland

Until 1960, the record of dinosaurs was rather poor in Switzerland. Between 1960 and 1980, several new localities with plateosaurid remains as well as prosauropod and theropod tracks were found in Late Triassic sabkha and floodplain environments. The discovery of large surfaces with sauropod tracks in the Late Jurassic of the Jura Mountains in 1987 triggered a stream of new data. More than 20 new localities with tracks from both sauropod and theropod dinosaurs in different stratigraphic levels have been found since then. The latest discoveries include trackways of iguanodontids from the Early Cretaceous of the central Swiss Alps and a large Late Jurassic surface with trackways of small sauropods in the northernmost part of the Jura Mountains. The best skeletal record comes from the Late Triassic, with scattered data from the Late Jurassic. The track and trackway record appears to be best in the Late Jurassic. To cite this article: C.A. Meyer, B. Thüring, C. R. Palevol 2 (2003) 103–117.     

Biostratigraphy and Paleogeography of the Bazhenovo Formation (Upper Jurassic and Lower Cretaceous) Based on Radiolarians,Nannoplankton and Calcareous Dinocysts

Paleontological Journal - New data on the taxonomic diversity of radiolarians, calcareous dinocysts and nannoplankton associations in the Late Jurassic and Early Cretaceous of the Bazhenovo...     

New water scavenger beetles (Coleoptera: Hydrophilidae) from the mesozoic of Mongolia

A new genus and two new species of water scavenger beetles, Hydrophilopsia bontsaganica, sp. nov. and Prospercheus cristatus, gen. et sp. nov., are described from the Upper Jurassic and Lower Cretaceous of Mongolia. The systematic position of the new genus is discussed.     

A LATE MESOZOIC BIRD FROM INNER MONGOLIA

Otogornisgenghisigen.etsp.nov.HolotypePectoralgirdleandwingelements.(IVPPV96O7)HorizonandLocalityYijinhoIuoFormation(EarlyCretaceous);Chaibu-Sumi,otog-qi,Yikezhao-meng,InnerMongolia.DiagnosisAmedium-sizedbird.Longbonesthick-waIled.Acromionofscapulaprotrudingforward.Coracoidwithexpandedheadandbroadp1ate-shapeddistalend.Humerusrelativelystrongandshorterthanradiusandulna,pneumaticfossaabsent,capitalgrooveprominent,deltoidcrestnotdeve1oped,olecrana1fossasha1low,su1cusform.scapu1otricipit…     

Two new species of Paramesosciophilodes (Diptera,Nematocera, Mesosciophilidae) from the Middle Jurassic of China

Two new species, Paramesosciophilodes bellus sp. n. and Paramesosciophilodes rarissima sp. n., from the Jiulongshan Formation at Daohugou Village, Inner Mongolia, China, are described in the extinct family Mesosciophilidae. Altogether seven genera with 21 species of mesosciophilids have been described from the Jurassic of Siberia and Kazakhstan, the Lower Cretaceous of Transbaikalia, and the Middle Jurassic of Inner Mongolia. An emended generic diagnosis of Paramesosciophilodes and a list of known taxa of mesosciophilids are provided.     

记准噶尔巨犀(Dzungariotherium)一新种

本文记述了准噶尔巨犀(Dzungariotherium)的一个新种。标本为中苏古生物考察队1960年在内蒙古沙拉木伦地区额尔登敖包的早渐新世乌兰戈楚组内所采。由于这一新种的时代为早渐新世,因而有可能是发现于新疆的晚渐新世霍尔果断准噶尔巨犀(Dzungariotherium org-osensis)的祖先类型。     

New Insects (Insecta: Trichoptera,Reculida, Eoblattida) from the Mesozoic of Asia

New caddisflies, reculid and eoblattid insects from the Mesozoic of Asia are described. Caddisflies of the families Philopotamidae (Mesoviatrix paradoxa gen. et sp. nov. and Kempia piotri gen. et sp. nov.) and Polycentropodidae (Polylongevus eskovi gen. et sp. nov.) from the Upper Jurassic–Lower Cretaceous of the Kempendyai locality in Yakutia are described. A short review and comparison of fossil members in these families are provided. New Gryllones insects, Shurabia tanga sp. nov., Sauk batkenicus gen. et sp. nov. from the Sauk Tan’ga locality (Lower Jurassic of Kyrgyzstan), Say kirgizicus gen. et sp. nov. from the Shurab III locality (Reculida: Geinitziidae; Lower or Middle Jurassic of Kyrgyzstan) Griphopteron iya sp. nov. (Eoblattida: Blattogryllidae) from Iya locality (Middle Jurassic of Russia) are described.     

Late Triassic and Lower Jurassic Foraminifera of the carbonate platform of the Beyaz Aladağ Group (Eastern Taurus,Turkey): New stratigraphic implications

Foraminifera have proven to be reliable biostratigraphic indicators. Accordingly, Triassic and Early Jurassic benthic Foraminifera allow us to define a biostratigraphic zonation within the carbonate platform of Kayseri (Yahyal?), Göksun (Kahramanmara?) and Sivas (Delikta?) regions in the Eastern Taurus (Ceviz, Alada?, Kaman and Felfan Mountains). Seven new stratigraphic sections are described in detail and the first precise inventory and illustration of the benthic foraminifer assemblages from the Triassic successions are presented over a large geographic area. The stratigraphic and palaeontological features of the Lower Mesozoic carbonate units of these mountains include several synchronous transgressive–regressive events that suggest continuity of the Lower Mesozoic environments over a large parautochthonous Taurus zone. Palaeogeographic considerations about the Eastern Taurus carbonates are given, evidencing three stages of development underwent by the studied area: 1) a stable continental margin from Lower Triassic to Lower Cretaceous; 2) a dismantling of the continental margin and first emplacement of ophiolites in the Upper Cretaceous; and 3) a deformation of the continental margin and emplacement of the Peridotite Nappe in the uppermost Cretaceous (Maastrichtian).     

Biostratinomy of bivalves from Jurassic and Early Cretaceous lakes of NE China

Bivalves are comparatively rare elements of the benthic faunas of Jurassic and Early Cretaceous lakes of northeastern China. In the past, Arguniella and Sphaerium have been regarded as belonging to the communities that populated the offshore areas of lake Sihetun, represented by the Lower Cretaceous Yixian Formation of western Liaoning. A detailed biostratinomic analysis of these bivalves suggests, however, that they were introduced from marginal lake habitats where they were reworked by storms and occasionally were transported in suspension offshore. Some of these bivalves were dead and settled on the lake floor as single valves or articulated but opened valves (butterfly position). Others were transported alive but died on their arrival at the bottom due to inimical conditions caused by reduced oxygen levels. A similar interpretation is given for articulated valves of Ferganoconcha in thinly bedded siltstones of the Jurassic Daohugou Fossil Beds of Inner Mongolia, which were also carried alive by hyperpycnal flows to their burial site where they died due to lack of oxygen.