New fossil lizard specimens from a poorly-known squamate assemblage in the Upper Cretaceous (Campanian) San Juan Basin, New Mexico, USA
These videos have been matched automatically. Contact us if they are not relevant.
These videos have been matched automatically. Contact us if they are not relevant.
View abstract on PubMed
Summary
This summary is machine-generated.Recent fossil discoveries in New Mexico reveal increased lizard diversity during the Late Cretaceous period. These findings enhance our understanding of ancient reptile ecosystems in North America.
Area Of Science
- Paleontology
- Vertebrate Paleontology
- Late Cretaceous Ecosystems
Background
- The Campanian (Late Cretaceous) squamate (lizard) fauna of northwestern New Mexico was historically poorly understood.
- Previous research had limited taxonomic diversity data for lizards from the Fruitland and Kirtland formations.
Purpose Of The Study
- To document the increased taxonomic diversity of lizards from recent fossil collections in the upper Campanian Fruitland and Kirtland formations.
- To analyze new lizard specimens from the "Hunter Wash Local Fauna" to expand understanding of Late Cretaceous squamate assemblages.
Main Methods
- Systematic collection and identification of new lizard specimens from the "Hunter Wash Local Fauna" in northwestern New Mexico.
- Comparative analysis of newly discovered specimens with existing Late Cretaceous lizard faunas from North America.
Main Results
- Discovery of new specimens representing Chamopsiidae, Scincomorpha, and Anguidae.
- Identification of the first predatory lizard (Platynota) material from the Campanian of New Mexico.
- Significant increase in the known taxonomic diversity of lizards from this region and time period.
Conclusions
- The "Hunter Wash Local Fauna" demonstrates a family-level lizard diversity comparable to other Campanian deposits in the Western Interior.
- These findings provide crucial mid-paleolatitude data from a coastal plain setting in Laramidia, enabling broader comparisons.
- The expanded lizard diversity enhances the understanding of squamate taxonomy, distribution, and ecological dynamics in Late Cretaceous North America.
These videos have been matched automatically. Contact us if they are not relevant.
These videos have been matched automatically. Contact us if they are not relevant.
Related Concept Videos
The fossil record documents only a small fraction of all organisms that have ever inhabited Earth. Fossilization is a rare process, and most organisms never become fossils. Moreover, the fossil record only exhibits fossils that have been discovered. Nevertheless, sedimentary rock fossils of long-lived, abundant, hard-bodied organisms dominate the fossil record. These fossils offer valuable information, such as an organism's physical form, behavior, and age. Studying the fossil record helps...
Next-generation sequencing technologies have created large genomic databases of a variety of animals and plants. Ever since the human genome project was completed, scientists studied the genome of primates, mammals, and other phylogenetically distant living beings. Such large-scale studies have provided new insights into the evolutionary relationship between organisms.
Although the genome of each species varies greatly from each other, a few sequences are highly conserved. Such conserved...
Overview
Speciation usually occurs over a long evolutionary time scale, during which the species may be isolated or continue to interact. If two emerging species start to interbreed, reproductive barriers may be weak, and gene flow can occur again. At this point, the selection of hybrids across the two populations may either stabilize the newly mixed group into a single population or reinforce the distinction between them as new species. Speciation may occur gradually or rapidly, and in some...
Evolution shapes the features of organisms over time, ensuring that they are suited for the environments in which they live. Sometimes, selection pressure leads to the rise of similar but unrelated adaptations in organisms with no recent common ancestors, a process known as convergent evolution.
The structures that arise from convergent evolution are called analogous structures. They are similar in function even if they are dissimilar in structure. Further, structures can be analogous while...
Scientists record evolutionary history by analyzing fossil, morphological, and genetic data. The fossil record documents the history of life on Earth and provides evidence for evolution. However, both fossil and living organisms offer evidence that outlines Earth’s evolutionary history.
Phylogenetic trees illustrate the evolutionary relationships among these organisms. Scientists infer organisms’ common ancestry by evaluating shared morphological and genetic characteristics....
The upper and lower limb initially develops as a small bulge called a limb bud, which appears on the lateral side of the early embryo. The upper limb bud appears near the end of the fourth week of development, with the lower limb bud appearing shortly after.
Initially, the limb buds consist of a core of mesenchyme covered by a layer of ectoderm. The ectoderm at the end of the limb bud thickens to form a narrow crest called the apical ectodermal ridge. This ridge stimulates the underlying...