Digging deeper into colonial palaeontological practices in modern day Mexico and Brazil

Scientific practices stemming from colonialism, whereby middle- and low-income countries supply data for high-income countries and the contributions of local expertise are devalued, are still prevalent today in the field of palaeontology. In response to these unjust practices, countries such as Mexico and Brazil adopted protective laws and regulations during the twentieth century to preserve their palaeontological heritage. However, scientific colonialism is still reflected in many publications describing fossil specimens recovered from these countries. Here, we present examples of ‘palaeontological colonialism’ from publications on Jurassic–Cretaceous fossils from NE Mexico and NE Brazil spanning the last three decades. Common issues that we identified in these publications are the absence of both fieldwork and export permit declarations and the lack of local experts among authorships. In Mexico, access to many fossil specimens is restricted on account of these specimens being housed in private collections, whereas a high number of studies on Brazilian fossils are based on specimens illegally reposited in foreign collections, particularly in Germany and Japan. Finally, we outline and discuss the wider academic and social impacts of these research practices, and propose exhaustive recommendations to scientists, journals, museums, research institutions and government and funding agencies in order to overcome these practices

A new angiosperm from the Crato Formation (Araripe Basin, Brazil) and comments on the Early Cretaceous Monocotyledons

The Crato Formation paleoflora is one of the few equatorial floras of the Early Cretaceous. It is diverse, with many angiosperms, especially representatives of the clades magnoliids, monocotyledons and eudicots, which confirms the assumption that angiosperm diversity during the last part of the Early Cretaceous was reasonably high. The morphology of a new fossil monocot is studied and compared to all other Smilacaceae genus, especially in the venation. Cratosmilax jacksoni gen. et sp. nov. can be related to the Smilacaceae family, becoming the oldest record of the family so far. Cratosmilax jacksoni is a single mesophilic leaf with entire margins, ovate shape, with acute apex and base, four venation orders and main acrodromous veins. It is the first terrestrial monocot described for the Crato Formation, monocots were previously described for the same formation, and are considered aquatics. Cratosmilax jacksoni is the first fossil record of Smilacaceae in Brazil, and the oldest record of this family

Densitometria da vértebra dorsal, osso pleural e osso neural em tartarugas verdes hígidas por tomografia computadorizada quantitativa Densitometry of dorsal vertebrae, pleural bone and neural bone in healthy green sea turtles by quantitative computed tomography

A tomografia computadorizada quantitativa (TCQ) é uma técnica com alta sensibilidade, aplicabilidade e precisão no diagnóstico de perda de massa óssea, entretanto a falta de valores de normalidade para animais silvestres limita a sua aplicação clínica. O presente estudo objetiva estabelecer valores médios de radiodensidade do osso trabecular das vértebras dorsais, osso pleural e osso neural de tartarugas marinhas juvenis hígidas utilizando a TCQ. Para isso, utilizou-se um grupo experimental de cinco animais que foram submetidos a exames de tomografia computadorizada helicoidal, sendo as mensurações da radiodensidade óssea realizadas ao nível da terceira, quarta e quinta vértebras dorsais. Os valores médios de radiodensidade do osso trabecular das vértebras dorsais, osso pleural e osso neural foram, respectivamente, de 287,4±39,1, 1093,74±100,4 e 1089,6±86,5 unidades Hounsfield (HU). Estudos complementares devem ser realizados em diferentes espécies e faixas etárias de quelônios para favorecer a aplicação clínica desta técnica.<br>Quantitative computed tomography (QCT) is a technique with high sensitivity, applicability and accuracy in the diagnosis of bone loss; however the lack of normal values for wild animals limits their clinical application. This study aims to establish medium values radiodensity trabecular bone of the dorsal vertebrae, bone pleural and neural bone in healthy juvenile sea turtles using the QTC. For this we used an experimental group of five animals that underwent helical computed tomography, and measurements of bone radiodensity conducted at the level of the third, fourth and fifth dorsal vertebrae. The medium values of radiodensity trabecular bone of the dorsal vertebrae, pleural bone, and neural bone were respectively 287.4±39.1, 1093.74±100.4, and 1089.6±86.5 Hounsfield units (HU). Further studies should be performed in different species and ages of turtles to encourage the clinical application of this technique