The genus Swiftopecten Hertlein, 1936, (Bivalvia: Pectinidae) in the Tertiary of southern South America

• Published in: Journal of Paleontology
• Main Author: Del Río, Claudia J.
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: Cambridge University Press (CUP) 1995
• Subjects: Antarc*; Antarctic
• Online Access: http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s0022336000038038; https://www.cambridge.org/core/services/aop-cambridge-core/content/view/S0022336000038038

The presence of Swiftopecten Hertlein, 1936, in Patagonia (Argentina), a region situated in the southeastern extreme of the South American continent, is the oldest and southernmost fossil record of the genus. Furthermore, its occurrence during the Late Eocene in the circum-Antarctic region suggests that its origin was in the Southern Hemisphere; it has been known from Japan and the eastern Pacific, ranging from Miocene to Holocene (Moore, 1984). Swiftopecten iheringii new species, from the Late Eocene-Early Miocene sedimentary sequence of Patagonia, is described and illustrated.