Revision of the Middle Triassic coelacanth Ticinepomis Rieppel 1980 (Actinistia, Latimeriidae) with paleobiological and paleoecological considerations
Abstract Coelacanths form today an impoverished clade of sarcopterygian fishes, which were somewhat more diverse during their evolutionary history, especially in the Triassic. Since the first description of the coelacanth Ticinepomis peyeri from the Besano Formation of the UNESCO World Heritage Site...
| Main Authors: | , , , |
|---|---|
| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
SpringerOpen
2023-09-01
|
| Series: | Swiss Journal of Palaeontology |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1186/s13358-023-00276-4 |
| _version_ | 1797556743066091520 |
|---|---|
| author | Christophe Ferrante Heinz Furrer Rossana Martini Lionel Cavin |
| author_facet | Christophe Ferrante Heinz Furrer Rossana Martini Lionel Cavin |
| author_sort | Christophe Ferrante |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract Coelacanths form today an impoverished clade of sarcopterygian fishes, which were somewhat more diverse during their evolutionary history, especially in the Triassic. Since the first description of the coelacanth Ticinepomis peyeri from the Besano Formation of the UNESCO World Heritage Site of Monte San Giorgio (Canton Ticino, Switzerland), the diversity of coelacanths in the Middle Triassic of this area of the western Paleo-Tethys has been enriched with discoveries of other fossil materials. At Monte San Giorgio, two specimens of Heptanema paradoxum and several specimens of the unusual coelacanth Rieppelia heinzfurreri, have been reported from the Meride Limestone and the Besano Formation, respectively. Another unusual coelacanth, Foreyia maxkuhni, and two specimens referred to Ticinepomis cf. T. peyeri have been described from the isochronous and paleogeographical close Prosanto Formation at the Ducanfurgga and Strel sites (near Davos, Canton Graubünden). In the framework of the revision of the coelacanth material from the Besano Formation kept in the collection of the Paläontologisches Institut und Museum der Universität Zürich (Switzerland), we reviewed the genus Ticinepomis on the basis of the holotype and four new referred specimens. Several morphological traits that were little and/or not understood in T. peyeri are here clarified. We re-evaluate the taxonomic attribution of the material of Ticinepomis cf. T. peyeri from the Prosanto Formation. Morphological characters are different enough from the type species, T. peyeri, to erect a new species, Ticinepomis ducanensis sp. nov., which is shown to be also present in the Besano Formation of Monte San Giorgio, where it is represented by fragmentary bone elements. The recognition of a new coelacanth species indicates that the diversity of this slow-evolving lineage was particularly high in this part of the Western Tethys during the Middle Triassic, especially between 242 and 240 million years ago. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-10T17:07:14Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-c01df815c30d43a4baa333149ec0cb55 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1664-2376 1664-2384 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-10T17:07:14Z |
| publishDate | 2023-09-01 |
| publisher | SpringerOpen |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Swiss Journal of Palaeontology |
| spelling | doaj.art-c01df815c30d43a4baa333149ec0cb552023-11-20T10:47:06ZengSpringerOpenSwiss Journal of Palaeontology1664-23761664-23842023-09-01142113310.1186/s13358-023-00276-4Revision of the Middle Triassic coelacanth Ticinepomis Rieppel 1980 (Actinistia, Latimeriidae) with paleobiological and paleoecological considerationsChristophe Ferrante0Heinz Furrer1Rossana Martini2Lionel Cavin3Department of Geology and Palaeontology, Natural History Museum of GenevaPaläontologisches Institut und Museum der Universität ZürichDepartment of Earth Sciences, University of GenevaDepartment of Geology and Palaeontology, Natural History Museum of GenevaAbstract Coelacanths form today an impoverished clade of sarcopterygian fishes, which were somewhat more diverse during their evolutionary history, especially in the Triassic. Since the first description of the coelacanth Ticinepomis peyeri from the Besano Formation of the UNESCO World Heritage Site of Monte San Giorgio (Canton Ticino, Switzerland), the diversity of coelacanths in the Middle Triassic of this area of the western Paleo-Tethys has been enriched with discoveries of other fossil materials. At Monte San Giorgio, two specimens of Heptanema paradoxum and several specimens of the unusual coelacanth Rieppelia heinzfurreri, have been reported from the Meride Limestone and the Besano Formation, respectively. Another unusual coelacanth, Foreyia maxkuhni, and two specimens referred to Ticinepomis cf. T. peyeri have been described from the isochronous and paleogeographical close Prosanto Formation at the Ducanfurgga and Strel sites (near Davos, Canton Graubünden). In the framework of the revision of the coelacanth material from the Besano Formation kept in the collection of the Paläontologisches Institut und Museum der Universität Zürich (Switzerland), we reviewed the genus Ticinepomis on the basis of the holotype and four new referred specimens. Several morphological traits that were little and/or not understood in T. peyeri are here clarified. We re-evaluate the taxonomic attribution of the material of Ticinepomis cf. T. peyeri from the Prosanto Formation. Morphological characters are different enough from the type species, T. peyeri, to erect a new species, Ticinepomis ducanensis sp. nov., which is shown to be also present in the Besano Formation of Monte San Giorgio, where it is represented by fragmentary bone elements. The recognition of a new coelacanth species indicates that the diversity of this slow-evolving lineage was particularly high in this part of the Western Tethys during the Middle Triassic, especially between 242 and 240 million years ago.https://doi.org/10.1186/s13358-023-00276-4ActinistiaCoelacanthTicinepomisNew speciesMonte San GiorgioBesano Formation |
| spellingShingle | Christophe Ferrante Heinz Furrer Rossana Martini Lionel Cavin Revision of the Middle Triassic coelacanth Ticinepomis Rieppel 1980 (Actinistia, Latimeriidae) with paleobiological and paleoecological considerations Swiss Journal of Palaeontology Actinistia Coelacanth Ticinepomis New species Monte San Giorgio Besano Formation |
| title | Revision of the Middle Triassic coelacanth Ticinepomis Rieppel 1980 (Actinistia, Latimeriidae) with paleobiological and paleoecological considerations |
| title_full | Revision of the Middle Triassic coelacanth Ticinepomis Rieppel 1980 (Actinistia, Latimeriidae) with paleobiological and paleoecological considerations |
| title_fullStr | Revision of the Middle Triassic coelacanth Ticinepomis Rieppel 1980 (Actinistia, Latimeriidae) with paleobiological and paleoecological considerations |
| title_full_unstemmed | Revision of the Middle Triassic coelacanth Ticinepomis Rieppel 1980 (Actinistia, Latimeriidae) with paleobiological and paleoecological considerations |
| title_short | Revision of the Middle Triassic coelacanth Ticinepomis Rieppel 1980 (Actinistia, Latimeriidae) with paleobiological and paleoecological considerations |
| title_sort | revision of the middle triassic coelacanth ticinepomis rieppel 1980 actinistia latimeriidae with paleobiological and paleoecological considerations |
| topic | Actinistia Coelacanth Ticinepomis New species Monte San Giorgio Besano Formation |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1186/s13358-023-00276-4 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT christopheferrante revisionofthemiddletriassiccoelacanthticinepomisrieppel1980actinistialatimeriidaewithpaleobiologicalandpaleoecologicalconsiderations AT heinzfurrer revisionofthemiddletriassiccoelacanthticinepomisrieppel1980actinistialatimeriidaewithpaleobiologicalandpaleoecologicalconsiderations AT rossanamartini revisionofthemiddletriassiccoelacanthticinepomisrieppel1980actinistialatimeriidaewithpaleobiologicalandpaleoecologicalconsiderations AT lionelcavin revisionofthemiddletriassiccoelacanthticinepomisrieppel1980actinistialatimeriidaewithpaleobiologicalandpaleoecologicalconsiderations |