New insights on Anthracotherium monsvialense De Zigno, 1888 (Mammalia, Cetartiodactyla) from the lower Oligocene of Monteviale (Vicenza, northeastern Italy)

In Italy, anthracotheres are represented by a few fossils, most of them described during the XIX century and without a standardized scientific method. Anthracotherium monsvialense De Zigno, 1888 was originally erected from a fossil discovered in the site of Monteviale (Vicenza, northeastern Italy), whose Rupelian (MP21) lignitic beds yielded the richest lower Oligocene evidence of the genus Anthracotherium in Europe. A. monsvialense ranges from MP21 to MP23 and its small size has been interpreted as a consequence of the insular environment, at least at Monteviale. In this study, we summarize the long history of Italian findings providing new descriptions of dental and postcranial morphological features of A. monsvialense, and comparing such small anthracothere with its Asian and European relatives. Morphometric analyses are also performed on teeth, in order to verify the presence of evolutionary trends of the genus Anthracotherium

A reappraisal of the Italian record of the Cretaceous pachycormid fish Protosphyraena Leidy, 1857

The genus Protosphyraena is known mainly from partial remains, consisting of isolated blade-like teeth, conical rostra and scythe-like pectoral fins. This paper provides a new insight into partial specimens of the genus Protosphyraena from the Cretaceous of NE Italy, housed in historical collections from local paleontological museums and previously poorly known to the international scientific community. The specimens are referred to the species Protosphyraena ferox, based on the morphology of the pectoral fin. This attribution is consistent with the paleobiogeographic distribution and stratigraphic range of this taxon. The Italian material provides new information about the distribution in time and space of Protosphyraena, which is relatively poorly known despite being an iconic taxon. The Italian remains, although fragmentary, contribute to fill a gap in the central Tethys record of the genus, whose range probably extended worldwide, considering also the genus Australopachycormus and its profound (possibly congeneric) similarities

UPPER CENOMANIAN FISHES FROM THE BONARELLI LEVEL (OAE2) OF NORTHEASTERN ITALY

The Bonarelli Level (BL) is a radiolarian-ichthyolithic, organic-rich marker bed that was deposited close to the Cenomanian/Turonian boundary (CTB) representing the sedimentary expression of the global Oceanic Anoxic Event 2 (OAE2). In northeastern Italy this horizon yielded fossil remains documenting a rather diverse ichthyofauna. The assemblage was studied by Sorbini in 1976 based on material from a single locality, Cinto Euganeo. Subsequently, other localities yielding fish remains have been discovered. Our revision also includes fish remains from three new fish-bearing localities, the Carcoselle Quarry, the Valdagno-Schio tunnel and Quero other than those from Bomba Quarry near Cinto Eugeneo. At least 28 taxa were identified, including nine previously not reported from the Bonarelli Level, namely: Scapanorhynchus raphiodon, Cretalamna appendiculata, Archaeolamna kopingensis, ‘Nursallia’ tethysensis, Belonostomus sp., Dixonanogmius dalmatius, ‘Protosphyraena’ stebbingi and the beryciform Hoplopteryx sp. The overall assemblage mostly consists of crossognathiforms, tselfatiiforms and aulopiforms. A comparison of the taxonomic diversity with coeval assemblages evidences a general similarity with nearby western Tethyan fish assemblages and especially with the Jebel Tselfat ichthyofauna, although some of the taxa are exclusively shared with the assemblages of the boreal realm (English Chalk, Westphalia and Saxony). However, additional information would be necessary to more properly define the main global ichthyogeographic patterns during the Cenomanian

MIDDLE TRIASSIC AMBER ASSOCIATED WITH VOLTZIALEAN CONIFERS FROM THE SOUTHERN ALPS OF ITALY

Amber from the Carnian succession of the Dolomites and Julian Alps (northeastern Italy) represents one of the most ancient and quantitatively substantial Triassic fossil resin records in the world. So far, the Carnian appeared to be the only Triassic stage with findings of amber remains. However, the recent reappraisal of historical collections of plant fossils led to the discovery of even older Triassic amber, found on a rock slab from the “Voltzia beds” of the Recoaro area (Anisian) and on a sample from the “Wengener Schichten” of Wengen/La Valle (Ladinian), respectively. Both specimens are associated with conifer shoots of Voltziales. To date, they are the oldest known Triassic fossil resins, demonstrating that the preservation of amber was not restricted to the sediments deposited during the Carnian as suggested before. These finds contribute to partially fill the gap in the amber record between the Carboniferous and Upper Triassic

EOCENE RHAMPHOSIDAE (TELEOSTEI: SYNGNATHIFORMES) FROM THE BOLCA LAGERSTÄTTE, ITALY

The Rhamphosidae is an extinct family of syngnathiform fishes from the lower Eocene deposits of Europe, primarily known from specimens derived from the Ypresian Konservat-Lagerstätte of Bolca (Verona province, Italy). A descriptive analysis of 28 specimens of Rhamphosus from Bolca revealed the existence of six species, showing a greater taxonomic diversity compared to the previous scenario of only two species (the type species Rhamphosus rastrum and Rhamphosus biserratus). Four new species are established herein: Rhamphosus bloti n. sp., characterized by a peculiar and unique rostrum with a discoid shape; Rhamphosus brevirostris n. sp., which exhibits a moderately large size associated with a relatively short rostrum; Rhamphosus longispinatus n. sp., characterized by having the longest dorsal-fin spine and rostrum of all the Rhamphosus species; Rhamphosus tubulirostris n. sp., which shows a peculiar slim rostrum, long-based dorsal and anal fins, and a unique squamation characterized by the presence of numerous bucklers. The species from Bolca are also compared to the only other known Rhamphosus species, Rhamphosus rosenkrantzi, from the Fur Formation, Denmark. A number of morphological features support the assignment of the Rhamphosidae to the syngnathiform clade Dactylopteroidei, together with the extant families Dactylopteridae and Pegasidae, representing the sister group to the Pegasidae

A diverse assemblage of Ptychodus species (Elasmobranchii: Ptychodontidae) from the Upper Cretaceous of Ukraine, with comments on possible diversification drivers during the Cenomanian

New isolated teeth from the Upper Cretaceous of Ukraine and belonging to the extinct durophagous shark Ptychodus are described here. The taxonomic identification of the examined material reveals a quite diverse Cenomanian shark fauna which comprised both cuspidate and un-cuspidate species of Ptychodus from the coastal areas at the north-western margin of the Ukrainian Massif. In addition, P. latissimus from the Turonian of Ukraine is reported here for the first time. The revision of the Ukrainian record of Ptychodus revealed that most specimens described here are the oldest so far known from this part of the European Peri-Tethys. Moreover, the present study highlights the co-occurrence of cuspidate and un-cuspidate Ptychodus and a variety of shelled macroinvertebrates, which inhabited coastal and offshore areas of the European epicontinental seas during the Late Cretaceous. The availability of different prey items is proposed here as one of the possible drivers, in addition to abiotic environmental factors, for the diversification of shark tooth morphologies, and possible trophic partitioning between cuspidate and un-cuspidate species of the genus Ptychodus

Reappraisal of the thalattosuchian crocodylomorph record from the Middle-Upper Jurassic Rosso Ammonitico Veronese of northeastern Italy:Age calibration, new specimens and taphonomic biases

Despite their extremely rare and fragmentary record, aquatic crocodylomorphs from the Middle to Upper Jurassic (Bajocian-Tithonian) Rosso Ammonitico Veronese (RAV) of northeastern Italy have sparked interest since the late 18th century. Among marine reptiles, Thalattosuchia is by far one of the best represented groups from the RAV units, especially in the Middle Jurassic. Although some specimens have been the subject of multiple studies in recent times, most of them still lack precise stratigraphic assignment and taphonomic assessment, while others remain undescribed. Here we provide a comprehensive revision of the thalattosuchian record from the RAV, alongside the most up-to-date age determination, by means of calcareous nannofossils, when available. Three new metriorhynchoid specimens are described for the first time from the Middle Jurassic of Asiago Plateau (Vicenza province). While the taphonomy of the newly described specimens hampers any taxonomic attribution below superfamily/family level, all three were confidently assigned to a precise interval between the upper Bajocian and the upper Bathonian. This revised record has major paleobiogeographical implications: the new specimens confirm an early origin and distribution of Metriorhynchoidea in the Tethys area and suggest a fast colonization of the open-ocean environment since the upper Bajocian