Two new species of <i>Mennerotodus</i> Zhelezko, 1994 (Chondrichthyes: Lamniformes: Odontaspididae), from the Paleogene of the southeastern United States
<p><i>Mennerotodus</i> Zhelezko, 1994, is an extinct lamniform shark known to occur in Paleogene strata of the Tethyan region of Asia and Europe. Although only a single species has been named, multiple subspecies have been erected and used as biostratigraphic tools in Asia. The gen...
| Main Authors: | , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Pensoft Publishers
2020-07-01
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| Series: | Fossil Record |
| Online Access: | https://fr.copernicus.org/articles/23/117/2020/fr-23-117-2020.pdf |
| Summary: | <p><i>Mennerotodus</i> Zhelezko, 1994, is an extinct lamniform shark known to
occur in Paleogene strata of the Tethyan region of Asia and Europe. Although
only a single species has been named, multiple subspecies have been erected
and used as biostratigraphic tools in Asia. The genus has not been reported
with confidence outside of the Tethyan region, but we have identified two
new species of <i>Mennerotodus</i> from Paleogene deposits of the southeastern United States.
<i>Mennerotodus mackayi</i> sp. nov. is described by teeth occurring in the lower Paleocene (Danian
Stage) Pine Barren Member of the Clayton Formation of southern Alabama. A
middle Eocene (Bartonian) species, <i>Mennerotodus parmleyi</i> sp. nov., is based on material occurring
in the Clinchfield Formation in central Georgia. The early Paleocene record
could indicate a North American origin for <i>Mennerotodus</i> relatively soon after the K–Pg
event, with subsequent radiation to other parts of the world. The genus is
likely more widely distributed than is currently known, but teeth can easily
be overlooked due to their similarity to other taxa.</p> |
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| ISSN: | 2193-0066 2193-0074 |