Fossil wood of <Emphasis Type="Italic">Laricioxylon erkovetskiense</Emphasis> sp. nov. (Pinaceae) from the Miocene of the Erkovetskii Brown Coal Field,Amur Region,Russia

A new species, Laricioxylon erkovetskiense sp. nov. (Pinaceae) identified on the basis of anatomical features of fossil wood from the Sazanka Formation (upper Middle Miocene–Upper Miocene) of the Erkovetskii Brown Coal Field (Amur Region) is described. The new species shares some characters with the extant larches Larix cajanderi and L. olgensis.     

A new fossil Cedrus species from the early Miocene of northwestern Turkey and its possible affinities

A new fossil species, Cedrus anatolica n. sp., is described from the early Miocene Hançili Formation of Turkey. All analyses were performed on the thin sections housed at Istanbul University – Cerrahpasa. The new species was interpreted as having the closest affinity with the modern Mediterranean species Cedrus atlantica (Endlicher) Manetti ex Carriere and Cedrus libani Richard. The evolutionary line shows some changes in wood anatomy. From the early Cretaceous to the early Miocene, the pits on the tangential walls of the tracheids gradually decreased, the height of rays increased and the number of epithelial cells in the traumatic resin canals increased slightly. These features are similar in three modern species; other wood anatomical features are also quite stable among the new fossil and modern species.     

A new species of Craspedisia (Araneae: Theridiidae) in Miocene Dominican amber, imaged using X-ray computed tomography

A new spider species of the extant genus Craspedisia Simon (Araneae: Theridiidae) is described from a fossil in Miocene amber from the Dominican Republic. X-ray computed tomography (CT) was used to reveal important features that were impossible to view using traditional microscopy, because of the position in which the spider is preserved. Craspedisia yapchoontecki sp. nov. is the first described fossil species from this genus and has its closest relative among the extant Hispaniolan fauna.     

Sawfishes and Other Elasmobranch Assemblages from the Mio-Pliocene of the South Caribbean (Urumaco Sequence,Northwestern Venezuela)

The Urumaco stratigraphic sequence, western Venezuela, preserves a variety of paleoenvironments that include terrestrial, riverine, lacustrine and marine facies. A wide range of fossil vertebrates associated with these facies supports the hypothesis of an estuary in that geographic area connected with a hydrographic system that flowed from western Amazonia up to the Proto-Caribbean Sea during the Miocene. Here the elasmobranch assemblages of the middle Miocene to middle Pliocene section of the Urumaco sequence (Socorro, Urumaco and Codore formations) are described. Based on new findings, we document at least 21 taxa of the Lamniformes, Carcharhiniformes, Myliobatiformes and Rajiformes, and describe a new carcharhiniform species (†Carcharhinus caquetius sp. nov.). Moreover, the Urumaco Formation has a high number of well-preserved fossil Pristis rostra, for which we provide a detailed taxonomic revision, and referral in the context of the global Miocene record of Pristis as well as extant species. Using the habitat preference of the living representatives, we hypothesize that the fossil chondrichthyan assemblages from the Urumaco sequence are evidence for marine shallow waters and estuarine habitats.     

The first known fossil record of pipehorses (Teleostei: Syngnathidae: Haliichthyinae) from the Miocene Coprolitic Horizon from the Tunjice Hills,Slovenia

The first known fossil specimens of pipehorses (Haliichthyinae) were unearthed from the Middle Miocene (Sarmatian) beds of the Coprolitic Horizon in the Tunjice Hills, Slovenia. These fossil pipehorses belong to a new genus and species Hippohaliichthys edis, which was similar to the extant species Haliichthys taeniophorus. The body morphology indicates that the described fossil pipehorses were also closely related to the pygmy pipehorse Hippotropiscis frenki and the seahorse Hippocampus sarmaticus, two taxa which were also found in the Coprolitic Horizon. The described fossil material of pipehorses indicates that seahorses evolved from a group of pipehorses that were similar in size and shape to extant and fossil pipehorses of the Haliichthyinae subfamily.     

Fossil wood of <Emphasis Type="Italic">Pinus priamurensis</Emphasis> sp. nov. (Pinaceae) from the Miocene deposits of the Erkovetskii Brown Coal Field,Amur Region

New species of the pine fossil wood, Pinus priamurensis sp. nov. (Pinaceae) from the Sazanka Formation (upper Middle Miocene–Upper Miocene) of the Erkovetskii Brown Coal Field (Amur Region) is described. The new species shares some wood anatomical features with modern species of the subsection Pinus (section Pinus, subgenus Pinus). This is the first record of fossil wood of Pinus in the Amur Region.     

Firmiana (Malvaceae: Sterculioideae) fruits from the Upper Miocene of Yunnan,Southwest China

A new species of Firmiana Marsili is recognized and described based on capsules from the Late Miocene Lincang flora of Yunnan, China. Firmiana yunnanensis nov. sp. is represented by opened, dehiscent, membranous follicles with a weak, sinuous midvein, obtuse secondary veins and thick marginal vein. The follicles conform in shape and venation with those of extant species of Firmiana, a genus now distributed in eastern Africa, Indo-Malaysia, and eastern and southeastern Asia. This fossil species occurred within the native distribution of extant Firmiana species. It provides new information on fossil history, paleoecology, as well as on the plant diversity of the Lincang flora.     

?Kenyaichthyidae fam. nov. and ?Kenyaichthys gen. nov. – First Record of a Fossil Aplocheiloid Killifish (Teleostei,Cyprinodontiformes)

The extant Cyprinodontiformes (killifishes) with their two suborders Cyprinodontoidei and Aplocheiloidei represent a diverse and well-studied group of fishes. However, their fossil record is comparatively sparse and has so far yielded members of the Cyprinodontoidei only. Here we report on cyprinodontiform fossils from the upper Miocene Lukeino Formation in the Tugen Hills of the Central Rift Valley of Kenya, which represent the first fossil record of an aplocheiloid killifish. A total of 169 specimens - mostly extraordinarily well preserved - and a sample of ten extant cyprinodontiform species were studied on the basis of morphometrics, meristics and osteology. A phylogenetic analysis using PAUP was also conducted for the fossils. Both the osteological data and the phylogenetic analysis provide strong evidence for the assignment of the fossils to the Aplocheiloidei, and justify the definition of the new family †Kenyaichthyidae, the new genus †Kenyaichthys and the new species †K. kipkechi sp. nov. The phylogenetic analysis unexpectedly places †Kenyaichthys gen. nov. in a sister relationship to the Rivulidae (a purely Neotropical group), a probable explanation might be lack of available synapomorphies for the Rivulidae, Nothobranchiidae and Aplocheilidae. The specimens of †K. kipkechi sp. nov. show several polymorphic characters and large overlap in meristic traits, which justifies their interpretation as a species flock in statu nascendi. Patterns of variation in neural and haemal spine dimensions in the caudal vertebrae of †Kenyaichthys gen. nov. and the extant species studied indicate that some previously suggested synapomorphies of the Cyprinodontoidei and Aplocheiloidei need to be revised.     

First record of fossil angiosperm wood (Ulmoxylon,Ulmaceae) from the famous locality of Bı́lina (Czech Republic,Early Miocene)

A fossil angiosperm wood is described for the first time from the famous Early Miocene locality of Bı́lina. It represents a fossil elm wood, attributed to Ulmoxylon marchesonii Biondi. The fossil wood can be compared to extant North American soft elms, also to Ulmus macrocarpa Hance and U. parvifolia Jacq. from China or to the European common elm U. carpinifolia Gled. The wood together with fossil leaves/fruits of Ulmus pyramidalis Goeppert forms a single natural fossil species that lived in the Bı́lina area during the Early Miocene. The influence of two types of preservation, permineralised and xylitic, on the same wood species is also discussed. To cite this article: J. Sakala, C. R. Palevol 1 (2002) 161–166.     

The parrots (Aves: Psittaciformes) from the Middle Miocene of Sansan (Gers,Southern France)

The occurrence of Archaeopsittacus sp. (Psittaciformes) in the fossil deposits of Sansan (France) is reported, testifying to a survival of this genus in the Middle Miocene, as Archaeopsittacus verreauxi was described from the Early Miocene of Saint-Gérand-le-Puy (France) and was recorded only from its type locality. The data discussed here indicate the presence of two parrot species from Sansan, as it is the type locality of another parrot species, Pararallus dispar, only known from this locality. The differences between the humeri of these two taxa are described in detail, together with the differences from the other European fossil parrot species. The presence of more than one species of parrot in the same locality is not rare, but in Europe it is recorded in Sansan for the second time. Evidence for parrots also confirms the paleoenvironmental reconstruction of Sansan, as parrots are primarily arboreal species. Archaeopsittacus also represents one of the few common elements between the Early and Middle Miocene European bird assemblages.     

A new species of Macaranga from the middle Miocene of Fujian,China and its significance

A well-preserved Macaranga leaf fossil from the middle Miocene Fotan Group of Zhangpu County, Fujian, South-eastern China is examined and described as a new species, Macaranga zhangpuensis Z.X. Wang et B.N. Sun sp. nov. The present fossil species represents the highest latitudinal distribution of a reliable Macaranga fossil in the world, and we present the first Macaranga fossil described with detailed cuticular characteristics from China. Based on the global palaeogeographic distribution of Macaranga, we infer that the genus probably originated during the Oligocene in Africa and spread from Africa to India and then to South Fujian, China, further into the Mariana Islands and finally into the Philippine Islands and Malaysia, leading to its present distribution. In addition, the new leaf material described herein is the first Macaranga fossil record with three leaf tips globally. This finding demonstrates that Macaranga with three leaf tips already existed during the Miocene in Fujian, South China, and it provides new information for understanding climatic changes between the Miocene and the present -day.     

New charophyte assemblage from middle Miocene lacustrine deposits of Moneva (Ebro Basin,Spain)

Two new fossil charophyte species from middle Miocene lacustrine deposits of Moneva (Ebro Basin, NE Spain) are described and illustrated. Sphaerochara miocenica nov. sp. is represented by medium sized gyrogonites with a characteristic spheroidal shape and ornamented with numerous small and regularly spaced tubercles arranged along the spiral cells. Several specimens show an unusual carbonate encrusted layer that covers completely or partially the gyrogonite. Psilochara monevaensis nov. sp. is characterized by large gyrogonites, with typical prolate shape and protruding apical poles. A second population of S. miocenica nov. sp. from a distant early upper Miocene lacustrine basin located in the Middle East (Bekaa Valley, Lebanon), identified in a previous study as Sphaerochara sp., is described and illustrated here, allowing the comparison of these distant populations. Ecologically, the associated fauna and facies from both localities suggest that these taxa grew in very shallow athalassic lakes. Interestingly, S. miocenica nov. sp. having a wide geographic distribution in peri-Mediterranean lakes with variable salinity, may become a fossil guide for the Miocene, providing at the same time important palaeoecological information.     

Eocene–Oligocene paleoecology and the diatom genus Kisseleviella Sheshukova-Poretskaya from the Victoria Land Basin,Antarctica

The Cape Roberts Project (CRP) recovered a composite Eocene to lower Miocene stratigraphic sequence from the Victoria Land Basin, Antarctica, which includes four new species, described herein, of the biostratigraphically useful fossil marine diatom genus Kisseleviella. Specimens of this extinct genus occur predominantly in neritic sediments, which along with the chain-forming nature and morphological similarity to extant benthic genera (e.g. Cymatosira) suggest that Kisseleviella was tychopelagic. The species of Kisseleviella described here appear to be endemic to the Antarctic region with an ecological preference for nearshore environments. The polythermal, subpolar glacial regime invoked for the late Eocene–early Miocene may have acted as a significant driver of speciation events in Antarctic Kisseleviella. Phylogenetic analysis of fossil genera such as Kisseleviella allows the development of a neritic biostratigraphic zonation. New taxa formally proposed are: Kisseleviella tricoronata, Kisseleviella cicatricata, Kisseleviella gaster and Kisseleviella faballiforma.     

Review of the fossil pufferfish genus Archaeotetraodon (Teleostei, Tetraodontidae), with description of three new taxa from the Miocene of Italy

Three new species of the extinct pufferfish genus Archaeotetraodon are described from the Middle to Upper Miocene of Italy (A. bannikovi nov. sp., A. dicarloi nov. sp. and A. zafaranai nov. sp.), and compared in detail with the three previously described taxa of the genus [A. jamestyleri (Bannikov), A. winterbottomi Tyler and Bannikov and A. cerrinaferoni Carnevale and Santini], which are known, respectively, from the Miocene of Ukraine, the Oligocene of Russia, and the Miocene of Algeria. The three new species described herein bring the number of known Archaeotetraodon species to six, thereby making it by far the most speciose extinct genus of the order Tetraodontiformes. The monophyly of Archaeotetraodon is supported by two derived conditions: bifid scale spinules (versus single spinules in all other tetraodontids), and the fusion of the haemal spine of the penultimate vertebra to the centrum (versus autogenous in all other tetraodontids). We compare a large suite of morphological features of Archaeotetraodon to those found within the group of more basal tetraodontid genera to which we believe it belongs, but we are unable to determine the closest relationships of Archaeotetraodon within that group. Morphofunctional and paleoenvironmental considerations suggest that the species of the genus Archaeotetraodon were adapted to a pelagic or deep-sea lifestyle and were probably able to tolerate relatively low oxygen concentrations. The entire fossil record of the family Tetraodontidae is discussed.     

A Late Miocene Paratethyan mollusc fauna from the Denizli Basin (southwestern Anatolia, Turkey) and its regional palaeobiogeographic implications

We report on a Late Miocene mollusc fauna from a single locality in the Denizli Basin in southwestern Turkey that is composed of ten presumably euryhaline species and three freshwater species. The fauna is remarkably distinct from faunas of the adjacent Late Miocene Aegean and Euxinian Basins, and has elements in common with the modern Caspian Sea fauna in the form of Didacna species. The suggested age of the fauna (Late Miocene) would extend the stratigraphic range of the lymnocardiid genus Didacna (hitherto Calabrian-Extant) considerably. The palaeobiogeographic significance of the Denizli fauna is discussed.     

The westernmost tarsier: A new genus and species from the Miocene of Pakistan

As the closest living sister group of anthropoids, tarsiers (Family Tarsiidae) are an important group in primate evolution. However, their fossil record is poor: only four species have been described, two from the Eocene of China and two from the Miocene of Thailand. All are from outside the range of the living species, which occur only on islands off Southeast Asia. Here, we describe a new fossil tarsier from Pakistan, a significant range extension. This record consists of two lower molars, an upper molar, and a lower premolar found in the Miocene Manchar Formation (∼18–16 Ma [millions of years ago]) of Sindh Province, southern Pakistan. The Pakistani tarsier is morphologically distinct from all living and fossil tarsiers, but most similar to the middle Miocene Thai species Tarsius thailandicus. Though living tarsiers have traditionally been classified in a single genus, a recent revision proposed a division into three genera, which is strongly supported by molecular data. The Pakistani species is not referable to any of these genera, and we create for it and T. thailandicus a new tarsiid genus. This discovery broadens our understanding of the geographic range and morphological diversity of Miocene tarsiers and helps to put the living tarsiers into their evolutionary context.     

A fossil Vallisneria plant (Hydrocharitaceae) from the Early Miocene freshwater deposits of the Most Basin (North Bohemia)

A new fossil species of Vallisneria (V. janecekii Bogner & Kva?ek, sp. n., Hydrocharitaceae) is reported from Early Miocene freshwater lake deposits of the North Bohemian brown coal basin (Czech Republic). It is based on a single fragmentary sterile plant bearing two clusters of ribbon-shaped widely serrulate leaves on a short rhizome. It is a potential producer of seeds described from equivalent and slightly older deposits in Saxony (Germany) as Vallisneria ovalis Mai.     

A new horned sculpin (Pisces: Cottidae) from the Miocene of Sakhalin Island,Russia

A new species of the Recent genus Enophrys, E. hoplites sp. nov., is described from the Miocene (Serravalian?Tortonian) Agnevo Formation of Sakhalin Island, Russia. This Miocene species differs from two Recent congeners in the greater number of anal fin rays (14 versus 9?13), the smaller head, less raised margins of the orbit, flatter upper contour of the head, longer anal fin base, short predorsal distance, higher first dorsal fin, and in the right angle (versus acute angle) between two upper preopercular spines. An archaic feature of the new species is the presence of two rays on the posterior pterygiophore of the anal fin, a character recorded only in the most primitive Recent members of the family. The occurrence of this new fossil species shows that extant subfamilies, tribes, and genera existed as a part of the family Cottidae as early as the Miocene time.     

Two Flat-Backed Polydesmidan Millipedes from the Miocene Chiapas-Amber Lagerst?tte,Mexico

Two species of fossil polydesmidan millipedes (Diplopoda: Polydesmida) embedded in amber are described from Miocene strata near Simojovel, in the Chiapas Highlands, Mexico. Maatidesmus paachtun gen. et sp. nov., placed into Chelodesmidae Cook, 1895, and Anbarrhacus adamantis gen. et sp. nov., assigned in the family Platyrhacidae Pocock, 1895. Morphological data from fossil specimens have been recovered using 3D X-ray micro-computed tomography and regular to infrared-reflected microscopy. Both fossil species are recognizable as new primarily but not exclusively, by collum margin modification and remarkable paranotal and metatergite dorsal sculpture.     

A new fossil species of Phlebotominae sand fly from Miocene amber of Chiapas,Mexico (Diptera: Psychodidae)

The male of Pintomyia (Pifanomyia) bolontikui sp. nov., from the Miocene Mexican amber deposits of Simojovel, Chiapas, is described. This is the second fossil phlebotomine sand fly described from Mexico. Morphological differences between fossil and extant species of American phlebotomine sand flies are discussed.