Interpretation biostratigraphique nouvelle de la formation des “argiles du sidi kralif” au Djebel Bou Hedma, (Tunisie centrale)

At the Djebel Bou Hedma, in the Southern Central Tunisia, the formation called “Argiles du Sidi Kralif”, attributed to Valanginian, is in fact, Tithonian.     

Nouvelles données paléontologiques,paléoécologiques et sédimentologiques sur le Berriasien de la région de Lamoricière (ouled Mimoun et E1 Rhoraf,Monts de Tlemcen,Algérie)

In the Western Algerian area, the Ouled Mimoun and El Rhoraf sections are particularly appropriate for the study concerning the berriasian formations.From tha lithostratigraphical point of view, the upper section of the carbonated platform corresponds to the lower Berriasian and a part of the middle Berriasian. The «Argiles de Lamoricière which dominate it belong to the middle and upper Berriasian. The subjacent detritic formation known as «Grès de Berthelot probably begins with the lower Valanginian. The stratigraphical results are based on an abundant fauna (ammonites, ostracods) collected in situ, the main species of which have been the subject of a paleontological review and abondantly illustrated.The studied series offer a good example of the evolution of sedimentary conditions which accompany the temporary opening of a carbonated platform towards the open sea.The variations in fauna composition are closely related to changes in environment. In particular, the presence of ammonites in the Boissieri zone can be connected to the highest point of marine advance, although the depth remained relatively shallow (an upper infratidal zone being likely). It is to note that during this period the low level of sedimentary activity favored the settling of some remarkable epilithic fauna.Above the «Argiles de Lamoricière, the massive detritic sedimentation (grès de Berthelot) could indicate an important paleogeographical change in the interior. In the area studied, the ostracods encountered in the basal section of the last formation still mean a shallow marine environment.     

Charles de Gerville et les premiers restes de Plesiosauria signalés dans le Jurassique inférieur de France (Hettangien,région de Valognes,Manche)

The historian, archaeologist, and naturalist Charles de Gerville (1769–1853) reported as early as January 1816 the presence of fossil bones in the quarries of the region of Valognes, in the department of Manche. These quarries exploited the “Calcaire de Valognes” and the underlying “Argiles et Calcaires d’Huberville”, both formations dated as Lower Hettangian (Lower Jurassic). De Gerville communicated to Jacques-Louis-Marin Defrance a watercolour drawing of one of these fossil bones, discovered in July 1820, in which it is possible to recognize a plesiosaur femur. This femur, as well as a fragment of rib and three vertebrae of Plesiosauria from de Gerville's collection, was then figured in a publication by Arcisse de Caumont, in 1825. The plesiosaur femur was later acquired by Pierre Tesson of Caen, who owned one of the most important collections of fossils in Normandy. The Tesson collection was later purchased in 1857 by the British Museum (now The Natural History Museum, London), where the femur has been rediscovered. This specimen is the first known plesiosaur specimen ever discovered in the Lower Jurassic of France, before the genus Plesiosaurus was established upon material from the Lias of southwestern England. One of the vertebrae figured by de Caumont has been rediscovered in the “Muséum Emmanuel-Liais” (Cherbourg-en-Cotentin), which had acquired part of de Gerville's collection. The interpretation of the “fossil bones of Valognes” by Georges Cuvier, Henri Marie Ducrotay de Blainville, Arcisse de Caumont, Jacques-Amand Eudes-Deslongchamps and Constant Duméril is revealed through unpublished documents.     

Sur la presence d'un riche microplancton siluro-devonien a Acritarches,spores et Chitinozoaires au sommet des schistes et quartzites de Plougastel (Rade de Brest-Finistere); son interet stratigraphique

The upper part of the “Schistes et quartzites de Plougastel” Formation reveals a rich assemblage of microplancton (spores, Acritarchs and Chitinozoans) of lower Lochkovian age. Preliminary studies show that this Formation was beginning within the silurian.     

Preliminary Report on the Courtedoux Dinosaur Tracksite from the Kimmeridgian of Switzerland

In 2002 a new dinosaur tracksite was discovered in calcareous laminites of early Late Kimmeridgian age along the future course of the “Transjurane” highway in Courtedoux, Canton Jura, Northern Switzerland. The site has an extraordinary scientific potential, as the laminites, which have been deposited in an intertidal to supratidal environment, contain at least 6 track-bearing levels in a total thickness of about 1 m. The laminites are being systematically excavated by the “Section de paleontologie” over an area of approximately 1500 m². So far the main track level has been uncovered over an area of about 650 m², which reveals 2 trackways of theropods and 17 trackways of sauropods. The sauropod tracks are the smallest known in the Kimmeridgian so far, and the trackways belong to the ichnogenus Parabrontopodus, which has been revealed for the first time in Switzerland. The tracksite belongs to the “Middle Kimmeridgian megatracksite” sensu Meyer (2000), and represents the most important dinosaur tracksite in Switzerland, perhaps with the potential for development into one of the world's largest sauropod tracksites. It will be protected in situ underneath an especially constructed highway-bridge, thus offering opportunities for future research and the development of an interpretative center for education and tourism.     

Mise en évidence de la zone à Platynota (Kimméridgien inférieur) dans le Massif du Montejunto (Portugal); conséquences stratigraphiques et paléontologiques

The section has been logged on the southern slope of the Montejunto Mountain, near Cabanas de Torres (North of Tage River, Portugal). Typical ammonites of the Platynota zone with species-index Sutneria platynota (Reinecke) have been found in the lower part of the «Marnes d'Abadia formation. Orthosphinctes and Desmoides subzones of early Kimmeridgian are paleontologically well characterized. Unlike what is usually thought, the lower Kimmeridgian does occur. More fossiliferous beds of the «Marnocalcaires de Tojeira formation are coincident with Upper Oxfordian (Planula zone and Upper part of the Bimammatum zone). They yield Ardescia gr. enayi Atrops which appear earlier in Portugal than in South-eastern France.     

Famennian (Late Devonian) ammonoids from the Ouarourout section (Saoura Valley,Algeria)

In North Africa, the ammonoids constitute an important part of the Devonian marine macro-invertebrates. New material has been recently collected in the ‘Argiles de Marhouma’ Formation from several sections located near Béni-Abbès in the Saoura Valley (Ougarta Mountains, Algerian Sahara). Red nodular limestones (i.e., ‘griotte’ facies) characterize this formation rich in ammonoids. The assemblages from the Ouarourout section are composed of Goniatitida and Clymeniida constituting 30 species and 19 genera belonging to 11 families, with Cyrtoclymenia, Erfoudites, Kosmoclymenia, Planitornoceras, Platyclymenia, and Prionoceras, as the most abundant genera. The taxonomic comparison and the biostratigraphic correlations are made by considering the assemblages recorded in the Anti-Atlas of Morocco, which are very close to those observed in Algeria. In the Ouarourout area, the ‘Argiles de Marhouma’ Formation contains middle and late Famennian ammonoid assemblages and three biostratigraphic intervals can be identified: Planitornoceras, Platyclymenia and Medioclymenia.     

Pendular activity of human upper limbs during slow and normal walking

When walking at normal and fast speeds, humans swing their upper limbs in alternation, each upper limb swinging in phase with the contralateral lower limb. However, at slow and very slow speeds, the upper limbs swing forward and back in unison, at twice the stride frequency of the lower limbs. The change from “single swinging” (in alternation) to “double swinging” (in unison) occurs consistently at a certain stride frequency for agiven individual, though different individuals may change at different stride frequencies. To explain this change in the way we use our upper limbs and individual variations in the occurrence of the change, the upper limb is modelled as a compound pendulum. Based on the kinematic properties of pendulums, we hypothesize that the stride frequency at which the change from “single swinging” to “double swinging” occurs will be at or slightly below the natural pendular frequency (NPF) of the upper limbs. Twenty-seven subjects were measured and then filmed while walking at various speeds. The mathematically derived NPF of each subject's upper limbs was compared to the stride frequency at which the subject changed from “single swinging” to “double swinging.” The results of the study conform very closely to the hypothesis, even when the NPF is artificially altered by adding weights to the subjects' hands. These results indicate that the pendulum model of the upper limb will be useful in further investigations of the function of the upper limbs in human walking. © 1994 Wiley-Liss, Inc.     

Serological Comparison of Antigens Related to Local Virus and Bacterial Infections and Aspecific Stresses in Tobacco Leaves

Two “new” precipitin bands (antigens) detected by the immunodiffusion test were demon strated in leaf extracts of tobacco inoculated with tobacco mosaic virus (TMV), Pseudomonas tabaci or treated with mercuric chloride, sodium azide or sodium hypochlorite. One of the precipitin bands was stronger, than the other, These antigens were also detected in the upper, non-infected leaves of tobacco plants when the lower leaves were locally stressed (necrotized) either by TMV or by chemical injury. The “new” antigens formed in the upper leaves were detected even if the TMV-inoculated lower leaves were removed one day after inoculation. The “new” antigens were identical both in the lower and upper leaves and their induction was independent from the stress whether pathogenic or chemical. A coincidence exists between the appearance of “new” antigens and acquired resistance, but this does not mean necessarily a cause-and-effect relationship between the two phenomena. Our experiments indicate that the induction of the synthesis of “new” stress proteins in tobacco is aspecific and the proteins formed are related to the aspecific stress itself rather than to pathogenesis.     

Les kystes de dinoflagellés des Argiles Ostréennes du Bassin de Paris, France

Palynological studies realized from a borehole drilled on the site of ANDRA (Agence Nationale pour la gestion des Déchets RAdioactifs; Aube Centre near Soulaines, Paris Basin, France) show a sedimentary discontinuity between, on one hand, the Argiles à Plicatules (lower Aptian in age) and Argiles Ostréennes (Lower Barremian/Upper Barremian in age) and, on the other hand, between these same Argiles Ostréennes and the Calcaire à Spatangues (Lower Hauterivian). These conclusions argue against the chronostratigraphical subdivision recently proposed on the basis of sequence stratigraphical and sedimentological interpretations.     

Occurrence of high-diversity metazoan- to microbial-dominated bioconstructions in a shallow Kimmeridgian carbonate ramp (Jabaloyas,Spain)

The horizontal and vertical transitions of a wide range of bioconstructions are documented from the shallow domains of a Kimmeridgian carbonate ramp (Upper Jurassic) in the Jabaloyas area of NE Spain. The bioconstructions include microbial buildups, coral-bearing thrombolite buildups, coral-microbial buildups, branching coral patches, oyster patches, and stromatoporoid carpets. Buildups form stacked pinnacles up to 19 m thick, within a broad spectrum of coeval inter-buildup carbonate facies. Coral-bearing thrombolites are coincident with shallow-marine oolitic sands, indicating development during the initial platform flooding (unit 1). During the continued sea-level rise (units 2 and 3), coral-microbial buildups [encrusted by Crescentiella (Tubiphytes) and serpulids] were established from proximal to distal mid-ramp domains, and these showed an increasing proportion of microbial crust in distal domains. Inter-buildup oolitic facies sharply grade down-dip to hummocky cross-stratified intraclastic, peloidal, and skeletal deposits, mostly sourced from the coral-microbial buildups. The lower part of unit 4 was dominated by microbialites in the proximal areas, related to local fresh-water input causing seawater stratification and oxygen depletion. The upper part of unit 4 indicates an initial recovery of metazoan frame builders, with abundant branching corals. During the late regression (units 5 and 6), Marinella lugeoni red algae, oyster patches, and stromatoporoid boulders developed close to the shoreline in well-oxygenated waters with high nutrient content. The reported data contribute to the discussion of the optimal environmental conditions for each “bioconstruction window” in Jabaloyas, namely sediment and nutrient supply, water depth, water oxygenation, wave energy and light availability.     

Jules Cotard: sa vie, son œuvre

Jules Cotard was a psychiatrist at the Vanves asylum. Described as a sharp observer and clinician, he also had a passion for clinical research. Jules Cotard was always ready to modify, question, or even abandon a hypothesis if clinical facts and scientific analysis made him deem it necessary to do so. He devoted most of his writing to “negation delirium”, (also known as “nihilistic delusion”): “Du délire hypochondriaque dans une forme grave de mélancolie (“Concerning hypochondriac delusion in serious melancholy”)” in 1880, “Du délire des négations (“Concerning negation delirium”)” in 1882, “Perte de la vision mentale dans une mélancolie anxieuse (“Loss of mental vision in anxious melancholy”)” in 1884 and “Du délire d’énormité (“Concerning delusions of enormity”)” in 1888. Long after his death, there was much controversy and debate about the existence of negation delirium. J. Séglas and J. Régis were the main contributors to the development and clarification of his work. Thus it is this most unusual of syndromes, Cotard’s syndrome, that has caused Jules Cotard to be part of the history of French psychiatry since the end of the 19th century.     

The oldest turtle from Portugal corresponding to the only pre-Kimmeridgian plesiochelyid (basal Eucryptodira) recognized at the generic level

A shell coming from an upper Oxfordian section of the Lusitanian Basin located in Alqueidão da Serra (Municipality of Porto de Mós, West Central Portugal) is here presented. It corresponds to the oldest remain of a turtle identified in Portugal. In fact, the record of Jurassic turtles identified in pre-Kimmeridgian levels of Europe is very scarce. The new specimen represents the second worldwide identification of a Plesiochelyid turtle (basal Eucryptodira) performed in pre-Kimmeridgian levels, being the only one recognized at generic level. Therefore, this specimen corresponds to the oldest identification of Craspedochelys, a genus well-represented in Kimmeridgian and Tithonian levels of several European countries. This finding contributes the first evidence on the synchronous coexistence of more than a member of Plesiochelyidae in pre-Kimmeridgian levels, which provides arguments to justify the relatively wide diversity known for this exclusively Jurassic clade during the Kimmeridgian and the Tithonian.     

Microfossil assemblages and relative sea-level fluctuations in a lagoon at the Oxfordian/Kimmeridgian boundary (Upper Jurassic) in the eastern part of the Paris Basin

The Late Oxfordian–Early Kimmeridgian interval of the eastern part of the Paris Basin is characterized by a carbonate succession deposited in shallow-marine platform environments. The Gudmont-Villiers section is represented by deposits ranging from barrier to typical lagoonal environments often poor in macrofossils. Previously unpublished calcareous microfossils are more abundant and provide alternative paleoenvironmental indicators. They also provide a biostratigraphical framework across the Oxfordian–Kimmeridgian boundary. The evolution of microfossil associations (algae and benthic foraminifera) in the lower part of the section, based on statistical analyses, is correlated to the sea-level variations. The first highly diversified association composed of small agglutinated and calcitic foraminifera (miliolids, textulariids, Spirillina, Trocholina, Molherina basiliensis etc.) characterizes high sea-level deposits; a second association richer in large agglutinated foraminifera (Alveosepta jaccardi, Everticyclammina, Nautiloculina oolithica) is significantly abundant in low sea-level deposits. A third association characterizes beds with a significant occurrence of encrusting microorganisms and algae (Lithocodium aggregatum, Troglotella incrustans, Cayeuxia piae, dasycladaceans). The upper part of the section is marked by more argillaceous beds and by the occurrence of one opportunist taxon (Lenticulina). This study shows that the microfauna-flora evolution in an internal carbonate platform environment constitute an efficient tool to determine variations in the relative sea level.     

台湾海峡晚更新世人类肱骨化石

产自台湾海峡海底的人类右肱骨石化程度高; 个体大而粗壮 ,三角肌粗隆发育 ,骨干上下两半段不在同一纵轴上 ,形成 6 5°的夹角 ,这些显示不同于新石器时代和现代人的原始性状 ,其演化水平和日本的港川人及欧洲的克罗马农人相当。与人化石一同捞出的哺乳动物化石有古菱齿象、野马、最后鬣狗、达氏四不像鹿等 ,表明其时代为晚更新世晚期。     

Ostracodes du Dévonien moyen et supérieur du Tafilalt (Maroc)

Forty-four ostracod species are recognised from the upper part of the Eifelian to the base of the Famennian of the Djebel Mech Irdane, Bou Tchrafine and El Atrous sections, in the Tafilalt. The majority are in open nomenclature, and one is new: Tubulibairdia tafilaltensis nov. sp. Ostracods belong principally to the Eifelian Mega-Assemblage and they are generally indicative of poorly oxygenated relatively deep marine environments below storm wave base. However, in the base of the Famennian of the Bou Tchrafine section, ostracods belong to the Myodocopid Mega-Assemblage indicative of strong hypoxic water conditions. They confirm that the hypoxic water conditions linked to the “Upper Kellwasser Horizon”, subsisted in North Africa, in the extreme base of the Famennian. Twenty-four ostracod species are recognized in the Djebel Mech Irdane Eifelian/Givetian stratotype, where the most important change in the ostracod fauna is related to the 40 cm-thick level of grey silty-marl located 10 cm below the boundary. However, this change is not indicative of an extinction event at this level. Three zones established on ostracods are recognized in the Frasnian and in the base of the Famennian of the Tafilalt.     

Etude du banc à nérinées à la limite «kimmeridgien-portlandien» dans le jura neuchâtelois méridional

A stastical analysis of the spatial orientation of gastropod shells in the Nerinea Bed shows that they are aligned parallel to the bedding plane (Fig. 6 A) but no preferential orientation of the direction of shells can be detected (Fig. 6 B). This fact and others exclude the possibility of an accumulation of shells by currents only: In some points the lower contact of the Nerinea Bed is gradational and even shells attacked by perforating algae or fungi are not abraded (Figs. 3, 4, 9). The matrix of the Nerinea Bed, a biopelsparite seems to favour the hypothesis that empty shells were concentrated by winnowing of the fine fraction, but the thickness of the accumulation prohibits a purely mecanical explanation of this kind. There can be no doubt that the Nerinea Bed reflects optimal ecological conditions which have led to a mass development. As it is very probable that Nerineids were sedentary organisms (Vogel 1968), it is tempting to explain the accumulation of shells by biologic factors only. Under optimal ecological conditions Nerineids perhaps lived in banks similar to oyster-beds or banks of Vermetids. Microfaunas and microfacies of the “Kimmeridgian” - “Portlandian” passage beds indicate a somewhat restricted environment thus confirming the conclusions ofHerm (1977) about Nerineids from the Upper Cretaceous Gosau-beds of the Eastern Alps. For local stratigraphy, the Nerinea Bed forms an ecostratigraphic marker-bed very useful in chronological correlations.     

Decouvertes recentes de mammiferes et de mollusquesdans des formations d'age oligocene terminal et aquitanien du SE de la France; comparaison avec les gisements deja connus dans la meme region

The first brackish levels of the Aquitanian (s. lat.) of Cap Janet (B. du Rh.), contemporaneous with thoseof Carry-le-Rouet, have provided rodents and continental molluscs. They belong to the same level as the mammals of Coderet and so are correlated to the “série grise” of Barrême, the “calcaire de Reillanne”, the marls and limestones of Rougier, the gypsun of Aix. Older faunas found in the localities of “St-Henri” and “Les Milles” show that they belong to the same detritic flow as the “marnes de Viens”.