On the occurrence of Iphiculus eliasi Hyzny & Gross, 2016 (Decapoda, Brachyura, Leucosioidea) from the Miocene of Catalonia (northeastern Iberian Peninsula)

Recovery of two specimens of leucosioid crabs in Langhian (middle Miocene) strata at Vilafranca del Penedes (Alt Penedes, Catalonia) and a re-examination of another leucosioid from the palaeontological collections of the Vinseum (Vilafranca del Penedes, Catalonia) have led us to consider all of these as conspecific with Iphiculus eliasi Hyzny & Gross, 2016, described first from the middle Miocene of Austria. The sternal and pleonal remains preserved in one of the Catalonian specimens allows to emend the original description of the species. Likewise, a specimen from the middle Miocene of Portugal, previously described as a paguroid, is herein transferred to this species. The occurrence of I. eliasi, either in outcrops along the northeastern and southwestern coasts of the Iberian Peninsula, corroborates the close relationship between decapod assemblages which inhabited similar palaeoenvironments in the Central Paratethys, the western Mediterranean and even the nearest Atlantic waters, during the middle Miocene

Comment on the letter of the Society of Vertebrate Paleontology (SVP) dated April 21, 2020 regarding “Fossils from conflict zones and reproducibility of fossil‑based scientific data”: Myanmar amber

Non peer reviewe

Animal Behavior Frozen in Time: Gregarious Behavior of Early Jurassic Lobsters within an Ammonoid Body Chamber

Direct animal behavior can be inferred from the fossil record only in exceptional circumstances. The exceptional mode of preservation of ammonoid shells in the Posidonia Shale (Lower Jurassic, lower Toarcian) of Dotternhausen in southern Germany, with only the organic periostracum preserved, provides an excellent opportunity to observe the contents of the ammonoid body chamber because this periostracum is translucent. Here, we report upon three delicate lobsters preserved within a compressed ammonoid specimen of Harpoceras falciferum. We attempt to explain this gregarious behavior. The three lobsters were studied using standard microscopy under low angle light. The lobsters belong to the extinct family of the Eryonidae; further identification was not possible. The organic material of the three small lobsters is preserved more than halfway into the ammonoid body chamber. The lobsters are closely spaced and are positioned with their tails oriented toward each other. The specimens are interpreted to represent corpses rather than molts. The lobsters probably sought shelter in preparation for molting or against predators such as fish that were present in Dotternhausen. Alternatively, the soft tissue of the ammonoid may have been a source of food that attracted the lobsters, or it may have served as a long-term residency for the lobsters (inquilinism). The lobsters represent the oldest known example of gregariousness amongst lobsters and decapods in the fossil record. Gregarious behavior in lobsters, also known for extant lobsters, thus developed earlier in earth's history than previously known. Moreover, this is one of the oldest known examples of decapod crustaceans preserved within cephalopod shells

Revision of the Miocene shrimp Callianassa kerepesiensis Müller, 1976 (Malacostraca, Decapoda), with a description of a new species

Hyžný, Matúš (2020): Revision of the Miocene shrimp Callianassa kerepesiensis Müller, 1976 (Malacostraca, Decapoda), with a description of a new species. Zootaxa 4801 (2): 363-373, DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4801.2.1

First occurrence of "Prosopidae" s.l. (Crustacea: Decapoda: Brachyura) and other findings of crustaceans in the Upper Jurassic limestones of the Pieniny Klippen Belt

Tyt. z nagłówka.Bibliografia s.63.Dostępny również w formie drukowanej.KEYWORDS: Pieniny Klippen Belt, limestones, Upper Jurassic. SŁOWA KLUCZOWE: wapienie, pieniński pas skałkowy, górna jura

Diversity and distribution patterns of the Oligocene and Miocene decapod crustaceans (Crustacea: Malacostraca) of the Western and Central Paratethys

Decapod associations have been significant components of marine habitats throughout the Cenozoic when the major diversification of the group occurred. In this respect, the circum-Mediterranean area is of particular interest due to its complex palaeogeographic history. During the Oligo-Miocene, it was divided in two major areas, Mediterranean and Paratethys. Decapod crustaceans from the Paratethys Sea have been reported in the literature since the 19th century, but only recent research advances allow evaluation of the diversity and distribution patterns of the group. Altogether 176 species-level taxa have been identified from the Oligocene and Miocene of the Western and Central Paratethys. Using the three-dimensional NMDS analysis, the composition of decapod crustacean faunas of the Paratethys shows significant differences through time. The Ottnangian and Karpatian decapod associations were similar to each other both taxonomically and in the mode of preservation, and they differed taxonomically from the Badenian ones. The Early Badenian assemblages also differed taxonomically from the Late Badenian ones. The time factor, including speciation, immigration from other provinces and/or (local or global) extinction, can explain temporal differences among assemblages within the same environment. High decapod diversity during the Badenian was correlated with the presence of reefal settings. The Badenian was the time with the highest decapod diversity, which can, however, be a consequence of undersampling of other time slices. Whereas the Ottnangian and Karpatian decapod assemblages are preserved virtually exclusively in the siliciclastic “Schlier”-type facies that originated in non-reefal offshore environments, carbonate sedimentation and the presence of reefal environments during the Badenian in the Central Paratethys promoted thriving of more diverse reef-associated assemblages. In general, Paratethyan decapods exhibited homogeneous distribution during the Oligo-Miocene among the basins in the Paratethys. Based on the co-occurrence of certain decapod species, migration between the Paratethys and the North Sea during the Early Miocene probably occurred via the Rhine Graben. At larger spatial scales, our results suggest that the circum-Mediterranean marine decapod taxa migrated in an easterly direction during the Oligocene and/or Miocene, establishing present-day decapod communities in the Indo-West Pacific

Systematics, phylogeny, and taphonomy of ghost shrimps (Decapoda): a perspective from the fossil record

Ghost shrimps of Callianassidae and Ctenochelidae are soft-bodied, usually heterochelous decapods representing major bioturbators of muddy and sandy (sub)marine substrates. Ghost shrimps have a robust fossil record spanning from the Early Cretaceous (~ 133 Ma) to the Holocene and their remains are present in most assemblages of Cenozoic decapod crustaceans. Their taxonomic interpretation is in flux, mainly because the generic assignment is hindered by their insufficient preservation and disagreement in the biological classification. Furthermore, numerous taxa are incorrectly classified within the catch-all taxon Callianassa. To show the historical patterns in describing fossil ghost shrimps and to evaluate taphonomic aspects influencing the attribution of ghost shrimp remains to higher level taxa, a database of all fossil species treated at some time as belonging to the group has been compiled: 250 / 274 species are considered valid ghost shrimp taxa herein. More than half of these taxa (160 species, 58.4%) are known only from distal cheliped elements, i.e., dactylus and / or propodus, due to the more calcified cuticle locally. Rarely, ghost shrimps are preserved in situ in burrows or in direct association with them, and several previously unpublished occurrences are reported herein. For generic assignment, fossil material should be compared to living species because many of them have modern relatives. Heterochely, intraspecific variation, ontogenetic changes and sexual dimorphism are all factors that have to be taken into account when working with fossil ghost shrimps. Distal elements are usually more variable than proximal ones. Preliminary results suggest that the ghost shrimp clade emerged not before the Hauterivian (~ 133 Ma). The divergence of Ctenochelidae and Paracalliacinae is estimated to occur within the interval of Hauterivian to Albian (133–100 Ma). Callichirinae and Eucalliacinae likely diverged later during the Late Cretaceous (100–66 Ma), whereas Callianassinae did not appear before the Eocene (56 Ma)