Old and new specimens of a poorly known glyptodont from the Miocene of Patagonia and their biochronological implications

The Palaehoplophorini is a tribe of glyptodonts represented by fragmentary specimens for which the oldest records occur in the Pedregoso and Río Mayo formations (middle–late Miocene) in Patagonia (Argentina). The mammal fossils from those formations were the basis for the recognition of the Mayoan fauna, placed between the Friasian sensu stricto/Colloncuran–Laventan and the Chasicoan faunas. The only identified glyptodont from Río Mayo Formation is Palaehoplophorus meridionalis represented only by its type material (i.e., caudal tube) and the precise provenance is unknown. We describe a new specimen of Palaehoplophorus meridionalis collected in the Río Mayo Formation represented by associated osteoderms of the dorsal carapace and postcranial elements, plus part of the type and assigned specimens that remain unpublished from the old collection. This is the first description of osteoderms from the dorsal carapace of this species and postcranial elements (the first for a Palaehoplophorini), and the first glyptodont with precise provenance from Río Mayo Formation. As result of improving the description and emending the diagnosis, we agree with previous authors about the basal position of Palaehoplophorus meridionalis within the tribe. Finally, we review the Glyptodontidae association of the Mayoan fauna, which are exclusively represented by Palaehoplophorini (Palaehoplophorus meridionalis and Palaehoplophoroides rothi) and Glyptodontidae indet. This association supports a greater affinity of this fauna with the younger Chasicoan than with the older Friasian sensu stricto/Colloncuran–Laventan faunas

3D models related to the publication: Comparative anatomy and phylogenetic contribution of intracranial osseous canals and cavities in armadillos and glyptodonts (Xenarthra, Cingulata)

INTRODUCTION: The phylogeny of the Cingulata has been debated in morphological analyses for a long time (Engelmann, 1985; Gaudin &Wible, 2006; Billet et al., 2011; Delsuc et al., 2016; Mitchell et al., 2016; Herrera et al., 2017) and this incongruence was enriched by the contribution of recent molecular analyses (Delsuc et al., 2016; Mitchell et al., 2016). This is particularly the case for the emblematic group of glyptodonts whose mitochondrial genome was recently assembled (Delsuc et al., 2016; Mitchell et al., 2016). Although the cranial anatomy is relatively well known in xenarthrans, their internal cranial anatomy remains poorly studied. Yet, several studies have shown that their exploration provides systematic interest on their past and present diversity (Zurita et al., 2011; Fernicola et al., 2012; Billet et al., 2015; Tambusso & Fari˜na, 2015a; Tambusso & Fari˜na, 2015b; Billet et al., 2017; Boscaini et al., 2018; Boscaini et al., 2020; Tambusso et al., 2021). In a recent study (Le Verger et al., 2021), we describe and compare 8 cranial canals (involved in the vascularization and innervation of the cranium) and alveolar cavities (Figure 1) of 30 specimens belonging to the Cingulata. In this sampling, all extant subfamilies are represented and several large fossil groups including giant forms such as pampatheres and glyptodonts are represented. For the latter, the oldest complete crania have been studied. A sloth and an anteater were also added to the sample as outgroup. Of the total sample, 3D models of 13 specimens are made available (Table 1). The rest of the specimens are available only upon request from LGR. In this study (Le Verger et al., 2021), we present the comparativ investigation of these intracranial osseous canals and alveolar cavities using X-ray microtomography. Their 3D virtual reconstruction enabled us to compare the locations, trajectories, and shape of each homologous structure and discuss their potential interest for cingulate systematics

Microbubble injector: an experimental quantitative characterization

Peer Reviewe

Experimental characterization of a microbubble injector

Peer Reviewe

Characterization of a microbubble injector for applications in microgravity

Peer Reviewe

Characterization of the performance of an injector for the controlled generation of microbubbles

We perform a characterization of a recently reported microbubble injector in conditions relevant to microgravity. Injection of bubbles is based on the generation of a slug flow in a capillary T-junction, whose operation is robust to changes in the gravity level. We address questions regarding the performance under different working regimes. In particular, we focus on the regimes found within a large range of gas and liquid injection flow rates. The injection performance is characterized by measuring bubble generation frequency. We propose curves obtained empirically for the behavior of generation frequency and crossover between regimes.Peer Reviewe

Characterization of the performance of an injector for the generation of controlled microbubbles

Peer Reviewe

Dynamics and statistics of a microbubble jet in microgravity

Peer Reviewe

Numerical study of the generation and dispersion of a bubble jet in microgravity

Peer Reviewe