New Refs #15

[Ralph Chapman <CHAPMAN.RALPH@NMNH.SI.EDU>]

Have a bunch of stuff from Luis Chiappe, here's a few items from 1997...

Chiappe, L., M. Norell & J. Clark. 1997. Mononykus and birds:
   methods and evidence. The Auk, 114(2):300-302.

Reply to Zhou's criticisms on Mononykus.

Chiappe, L.M. 1997. Climbing Archaeopteryx? A response to Yalden.
   Archaeopteryx, 15:109-112.

Part of a long term discussion on the possible arboreal habits of Archie.
This is a response to Yalden's paper from the same issue, which I
have yet to get a hold of. Chiappe, of course, does not require an
arboreal Archie whereas Yalden appears to be more Fedduccian.


Next, we have

Kaye, Tom. 1998. A prehistoric round-up: corralling the cow of the
   Cretaceous. GPS World, March 1998:38-48.

Notes on the Fossil Frontier expedition and their use of a global
positioning system during the exploration and excavation process.
The same magazine had an article on the use of GPS systems by
the new AMNH Gobi expeditions a few years ago.


An important work on extinction..

Jablonski, D. 1998. Geographic variation in the molluscan recovery
   from the end-Cretaceous extinction. Science, 279:1327-1330. 27FEB.

Notes how the recovery after the K-T extinction looks different from the
best studied American gulf coast faunas in other parts of the world,
even some not so far away. In the Gulf coast, bloom taxa jump in,
expand greatly, and then decline but not so in northern Europe, northern
Africa, Pakistan and northern India. Recovery seems to be more complex
than anticipated due to paleobiogeographic differences.


Ge, Sun & D.L. Dilcher. 1997. Discovery of the oldest known angiosperm
   inflorescences in the world from Lower Cretaceous of Jixi, China.
   Acta Palaeontologica Sinica, 36(2):135-142.

They are Late Hauterivian to early Barremian in age. Dicotyledonous.



Rieppel, O., J.-M. Mazin & E. Tchernov. 1997. Speciation along rifting
   continental margins: a new nothosaur from the Negev (Israel).
   C.R. Acad. Sci., Paris, Sci. De la Terre, 325:991-997.

Muschelkalk deposits in the Negev (Middle Triassic) yielded 2 endemic
species of nothosaurs, one new Nothosaurus haasi. Cute little guy.


Bush, A.B.G. & S.G.H. Philander. 1997. The late Cretaceous: simulation
   with a coupled atmosphere-ocean general circulation model.
   Paleoceanography, 12(3):495-516.

Climate modeling of the late Cretaceous. Global precip looks to be about
10% more than the present time and climates more moderate and
warmer.


Allain, R., P. Taquet, B. Battail, J. Dejax, P. Richir, M. Veran, P. Sayarath,
   B. Khenthavong, P. Thamvirith & B. Hom. 1997.  Pistes de dinosaures
   dans  les niveaux de Cretace inferieur de Muong Phalane, province de 
   Savannakhet (Laos). C.R. Acad. Sci., Paris, Sci. De la Terre,
   325:815-821.

Dino footprints from Laos. Lower Cretaceous. Theropods, ornithopods
 and sauropods.


Arkhangelsky, M.S. 1997. On a new genus of ichthyosaurs from the
   Lower  Volgian substage of the Saratov, Volga Region. Paleonto. J., 
   1997(1):87-91. [so far in Russian]

Decent amount of the anterior part of the skeleton. New genus
Paraophthalmosaurus (species saveljeviensis) similar to
Ophthalmosaurus and Baptodon.


Sennikov, A.G. 1997. An enigmatic reptile from the Upper Permian of
   the Volga River Basin. Paleont. J. 1997(1):95-103 [in Russian]

A new genus and species of protorosaurid diapsid, Eorasaurus olsoni,
is described. Nicely named after E.C. Olson, one of the greats and a
very early suporter of better communication with Russian
paleontologists. A prolacertiform within the Protorosauridae. Haven't
figured out what is enigmatic about it yet - that part is in Russian.



Kurkin, A.A. 1997. On dentition morphology of Deuterosaurus biarmicus
   Eichw. (Dinocephalia, Synapsida). Paleont. J. 1997(1):92-94. [Russian]

Detailed description of its teeth.


Rieppel, O. 1998 (for 1997). The status of the sauroptrygian reptile
   genera  Ceresiosaurus, Lariosaurus, and Silvestrosaurus from the
   Middle Triassic of Europe. Fieldiana: Geology, n.s. #38:1-46.

Classic Olivier analysis of detailed morphology and phylogeny of those
beasts.


Berman, D.S., S.S. Sumida and T. Martens. 1998. Diadectes
   (Diadectomorpha: Diadectidae) from the Early Permian of central
   Germany, with descriptions of a new species. Annals of the Carnegie
   Museum, 67(1):53-93.

Describes D. absitus on the basis of a nearly complete specimen. Clears
   up knowledge on European members of the family and the overall
   relationships,  both phylogenetic, evolutionary, and paleobiogeographic
   of the group. I don't think they'll send this one into outer space,
   though.

More in a short while...

Ralph E. Chapman