Reassessment of a large lamniform shark from the Upper Cretaceous (Santonian) of Italy
To date, only a few partially articulated chondrichthyan specimens are known from the Upper Cretaceous marine fossil record of northern Italy. Here, we re-evaluate the taxonomic status and geological age of selachian remains originally discovered during the 19th century from the Castellavazzo locali...
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Online Access: | http://hdl.handle.net/11585/683267 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cretres.2019.02.011 |
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ftunibolognairis:oai:cris.unibo.it:11585/683267 2024-09-09T20:04:11+00:00 Reassessment of a large lamniform shark from the Upper Cretaceous (Santonian) of Italy Larocca Conte, Gabriele Fanti, Federico Trevisani, Enrico Guaschi, Paolo Barbieri, Roberto Bazzi, Mohamad Larocca Conte, Gabriele Fanti, Federico Trevisani, Enrico Guaschi, Paolo Barbieri, Roberto Bazzi, Mohamad 2019 ELETTRONICO http://hdl.handle.net/11585/683267 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cretres.2019.02.011 eng eng info:eu-repo/semantics/altIdentifier/wos/WOS:000466823200013 volume:99 firstpage:156 lastpage:168 numberofpages:13 journal:CRETACEOUS RESEARCH http://hdl.handle.net/11585/683267 doi:10.1016/j.cretres.2019.02.011 info:eu-repo/semantics/altIdentifier/scopus/2-s2.0-85063034984 Santonian Lamniformes Vertebral centra Italy Scaglia Rossa Formation Upper Cretaceous Body size estimation info:eu-repo/semantics/article 2019 ftunibolognairis https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cretres.2019.02.011 2024-07-01T14:08:30Z To date, only a few partially articulated chondrichthyan specimens are known from the Upper Cretaceous marine fossil record of northern Italy. Here, we re-evaluate the taxonomic status and geological age of selachian remains originally discovered during the 19th century from the Castellavazzo locality. The described specimen is largely embedded in matrix with minute exposure of joined and moderately deformed sequentially stacked vertebral centra. Computed tomography (CT) image-data obtained of the specimen enabled the identification of potential cranial-cartilage elements located in close proximity to teeth and are here interpreted as remnants of the jaws. Based on tooth and vertebral morphology the specimen is in all likelihood an adult lamniform shark with a measured 3.5 m length. Using ordinary least-squares regression analysis (OLS) and proportion-based calculations, we estimated a total-length (TL) of 596.27 and 632.5e672.64 cm respectively. We prefer the size estimation derived through OLS bivariate regression; however, in the present analysis, reliance on a small sample size (n 1⁄4 11) and evidence for differential scaling between taxa impose limitations on the precision of our size prediction. Planktonic foraminifera examined from the surrounding matrix of the slab preserving shark vertebral centra and teeth indicate a Santonian age (Dicarinella asymetrica zone). Although, the specimen could not confidently be assigned beyond the ordinal-level, the sheer centrum size, gross dental morphology, and depositional environment, are indicative of a pelagic apex-predator comparable to coeval lamniforms, with a specific resemblance towards cretoxyrhinids, reported from elsewhere along the peri-Tethyan shelf of Europe and Western Interior Seaway of North America. Finally, the re-emergence of this historical specimen, here re-described using cutting-edge techniques, is of great importance as it contributes to the otherwise poor record of extinct lamniform shark skeletons. Article in Journal/Newspaper Planktonic foraminifera IRIS Università degli Studi di Bologna (CRIS - Current Research Information System) Rossa ENVELOPE(-65.233,-65.233,-65.960,-65.960) Cretaceous Research 99 156 168 |
institution |
Open Polar |
collection |
IRIS Università degli Studi di Bologna (CRIS - Current Research Information System) |
op_collection_id |
ftunibolognairis |
language |
English |
topic |
Santonian Lamniformes Vertebral centra Italy Scaglia Rossa Formation Upper Cretaceous Body size estimation |
spellingShingle |
Santonian Lamniformes Vertebral centra Italy Scaglia Rossa Formation Upper Cretaceous Body size estimation Larocca Conte, Gabriele Fanti, Federico Trevisani, Enrico Guaschi, Paolo Barbieri, Roberto Bazzi, Mohamad Reassessment of a large lamniform shark from the Upper Cretaceous (Santonian) of Italy |
topic_facet |
Santonian Lamniformes Vertebral centra Italy Scaglia Rossa Formation Upper Cretaceous Body size estimation |
description |
To date, only a few partially articulated chondrichthyan specimens are known from the Upper Cretaceous marine fossil record of northern Italy. Here, we re-evaluate the taxonomic status and geological age of selachian remains originally discovered during the 19th century from the Castellavazzo locality. The described specimen is largely embedded in matrix with minute exposure of joined and moderately deformed sequentially stacked vertebral centra. Computed tomography (CT) image-data obtained of the specimen enabled the identification of potential cranial-cartilage elements located in close proximity to teeth and are here interpreted as remnants of the jaws. Based on tooth and vertebral morphology the specimen is in all likelihood an adult lamniform shark with a measured 3.5 m length. Using ordinary least-squares regression analysis (OLS) and proportion-based calculations, we estimated a total-length (TL) of 596.27 and 632.5e672.64 cm respectively. We prefer the size estimation derived through OLS bivariate regression; however, in the present analysis, reliance on a small sample size (n 1⁄4 11) and evidence for differential scaling between taxa impose limitations on the precision of our size prediction. Planktonic foraminifera examined from the surrounding matrix of the slab preserving shark vertebral centra and teeth indicate a Santonian age (Dicarinella asymetrica zone). Although, the specimen could not confidently be assigned beyond the ordinal-level, the sheer centrum size, gross dental morphology, and depositional environment, are indicative of a pelagic apex-predator comparable to coeval lamniforms, with a specific resemblance towards cretoxyrhinids, reported from elsewhere along the peri-Tethyan shelf of Europe and Western Interior Seaway of North America. Finally, the re-emergence of this historical specimen, here re-described using cutting-edge techniques, is of great importance as it contributes to the otherwise poor record of extinct lamniform shark skeletons. |
author2 |
Larocca Conte, Gabriele Fanti, Federico Trevisani, Enrico Guaschi, Paolo Barbieri, Roberto Bazzi, Mohamad |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Larocca Conte, Gabriele Fanti, Federico Trevisani, Enrico Guaschi, Paolo Barbieri, Roberto Bazzi, Mohamad |
author_facet |
Larocca Conte, Gabriele Fanti, Federico Trevisani, Enrico Guaschi, Paolo Barbieri, Roberto Bazzi, Mohamad |
author_sort |
Larocca Conte, Gabriele |
title |
Reassessment of a large lamniform shark from the Upper Cretaceous (Santonian) of Italy |
title_short |
Reassessment of a large lamniform shark from the Upper Cretaceous (Santonian) of Italy |
title_full |
Reassessment of a large lamniform shark from the Upper Cretaceous (Santonian) of Italy |
title_fullStr |
Reassessment of a large lamniform shark from the Upper Cretaceous (Santonian) of Italy |
title_full_unstemmed |
Reassessment of a large lamniform shark from the Upper Cretaceous (Santonian) of Italy |
title_sort |
reassessment of a large lamniform shark from the upper cretaceous (santonian) of italy |
publishDate |
2019 |
url |
http://hdl.handle.net/11585/683267 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cretres.2019.02.011 |
long_lat |
ENVELOPE(-65.233,-65.233,-65.960,-65.960) |
geographic |
Rossa |
geographic_facet |
Rossa |
genre |
Planktonic foraminifera |
genre_facet |
Planktonic foraminifera |
op_relation |
info:eu-repo/semantics/altIdentifier/wos/WOS:000466823200013 volume:99 firstpage:156 lastpage:168 numberofpages:13 journal:CRETACEOUS RESEARCH http://hdl.handle.net/11585/683267 doi:10.1016/j.cretres.2019.02.011 info:eu-repo/semantics/altIdentifier/scopus/2-s2.0-85063034984 |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cretres.2019.02.011 |
container_title |
Cretaceous Research |
container_volume |
99 |
container_start_page |
156 |
op_container_end_page |
168 |
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1809936266999889920 |