Search Constraints
Search Results
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2023
Journal article
A new long‐necked archosauromorph from the Guanling Formation (Anisian, Middle Triassic) of southwestern China and its implications for neck evolution in tanystropheids
A long neck is an evolutionary innovation convergently appearing in multiple tetrapod lineages, including groups of plesiosaurs, non-archosauriform archosauromorphs, turtles, sauropodomorphs, birds, and mammals. Among all tetrapods both extant and extinct, two Triassic archosauromorphs, Tanystropheus and Dinocephalosaurus, have necks that are particularly elongated relative to the lengths of their trunks....Wang, Wei ; Spiekman, Stephan N F ; Zhao, Lijun ; Rieppel, Olivier ; Scheyer, Torsten M …
Triassic archosauromorphs, Dinocephalosaurus, tetrapods, evolution, and Tanystropheus
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2023
Blog post
Doctor Zoo: the real-world taxonomy behind Doctor Who's monsters and aliens
Mark Gatiss, in his narration for the Doctor Who Worlds of Wonder exhibition, astutely observes that the show is rooted in science. This is evident in its portrayal of alien life, including both monstrous creatures and humanoid allies. Dr. Vladimir Blagoderov, Principal Curator of Invertebrates, explores the expansive legendarium of...Blagoderov, Vladimir
Natural Sciences, Doctor Who Worlds Of Wonder , Invertebrate Biology , and Biology
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2023
Journal article
Evolutionary trends in trimerellid brachiopods
Non-articulated trimerellides, one minor group among the largest brachiopods, are commonly found in massive monospecific accumulations in Ordovician and Silurian rocks. In this paper, all species of the family Trimerellidae are listed for the first time, and some of them are discussed. They appeared in the Sandbian and became extinct...Chen, Di ; Huang, Bing ; Candela, Yves
Morphospace, Trimerellids, Platform, Vault, and Cladistics
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2023
Journal article
The aspen hoverfly Hammerschmidtia ferruginea (Fallén)(Diptera, Syrphidae) in Deeside
After a gap of some 30 years the presence of the aspen hoverfly Hammerschmidtia ferruginea (Fallén, 1817), is confirmed in Deeside, Aberdeenshire. The methods used to re-establish the population are discussed.MacGowan, Iain
Hammerschmidtia ferruginea , population, aspen hoverfly , Diptera, cambium, and Syrphidae
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2023
Interview (radio, television)
Research on urban and rural red foxes
In Edinburgh, Gillian Burke and Iolo Williams head into a cemetery to see the wildlife that uses these city habitats as a haven.Cooper, David
archeological record , feeding animals, urban foxes, messaging, climate change, sustainability, and human/animal interaction
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2023
Interview (radio, television)
Moby the sperm whale interview
In Edinburgh, Iolo Williams and Gillian Burke remain on the coast for a cetacean celebration before saying goodbye to the wild badger sett they’ve been following all series.Kitchener, Andrew C
contemporary collecting, cetacean collections, skull, Physeter catodon (sperm whale), and whale stranding
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2023
Interview (radio, television)
Value of urban green spaces for overwintering insects
Iolo Williams and Gillian Burke meet some urban mammals in Edinburgh, indulging in a look at some of the macro marvels that call the cemetery home.Whiffin, Ashleigh
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2023
Journal article
Notes on the three species of Cotesia Cameron, 1891 (Hymenoptera: Braconidae, Microgastrinae) parasitizing Gonepteryx [Leach, 1815] species (Lepidoptera: Pieridae) in Europe, with description of a new species from the Balearic Islands
Shaw & Colom sp. nov. is described as a solitary endemic parasitoid of in the Balearic Islands. A key is given to the three known parasitoids of in Europe, and biological notes are given for each species. Some new country records are given.Shaw, Mark R ; Colom, Pau
GONEPTERYX, GONEPTERYX RHAMNI, COTESIA GONOPTERYGIS, FRANCE, PHENOLOGY, REARING RECORDS, COTESIA RISILIS, SWEDEN, SPAIN, CLEOPATRA, and COTESIA BALEARICA
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2023
Journal article
Two new species of European Microgaster Latreille, 1804 (Hymenoptera: Braconidae, Microgastrinae), with host data on some further species
Two new European species of are described from reared material. parasitizes species (Depressariidae) on and in Britain, and a key is provided to separate it from two other British species that parasitize other , with host information. ., a parasitoid of (Noctuidae), is described from Austrian specimens. The host repertoires... -
2023
Journal article
Supplement to the Burmese (Myanmar) amber checklist and bibliography, 2022
This is a supplement to the Burmese (Myanmar) amber checklist and bibliography covering taxa described or recorded during 2022, plus a couple of earlier records that were missed previously. Up to the end of 2022, 2,524 species have been recorded from Kachin amber, of which 350 were named in 2022;...Ross, Andrew J
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2023
Journal article
Revision of the Llandovery (lower Silurian) trimerellide brachiopod Yidurella in South China
Although a minor group of brachiopods in the Ordovician and Silurian, the trimerellides include some of the largest known brachiopods in the Early Paleozoic. Yidurella Zeng, a monospecific genus of moderate size from the Shamao Formation of Tizikou, Yidu City, Hubei Province, was originally described as having a solid platform....Chen, Di ; Huang, Bing ; Candela, Yves
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2023
Magazine article
'Alice Balfour' In: Herstory - women who changed the world
To mark Women's History Month, female curators at National Museums Scotland have each selected an inspiration woman represented in the collection. From entomologist to artist to queen, their legacy lives on.Whiffin, Ashleigh
Alice Blanche Balfour (1850-1936), Whittingehame, Entomology, and Women's History Month
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2023
Presentation
Marine invertebrate collection
Next, the curator of the invertebrates at National Museums Scotland, Sankurie Pye, will talk about the fascinating diversity of specimens they have in their collections and why collecting these specimens is crucial for science and conservation. The National Museum Scotland are renowned worldwide for their collections, so get ready to...Pye, Sankuri
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2023
Journal article
The prevalence of vestigial teeth in two beaked whale species from the North Atlantic
Beaked whales, Family Ziphiidae, occur in deep offshore and oceanic seas, where they are very difficult to study, so that much of our knowledge about them is derived from stranded animals. Most beaked whales (e.g., genera and ) have only one pair of mandibular teeth. A reduced dentition is widely...Kitchener, Andrew C ; Herman, Jeremy S ; Doeschate, Mariel ten ; Davison, Nicholas J ; Brownlow, Andrew …
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2023
Blog post
Entangled Knowledges: Sharing collections in Albany
Since 2021 Ali and Andrew have been participating in a project which aims to highlight Menang Nyungar knowledge embedded in a historical collection of fishes and cultural objects and return this knowledge to the Menang community in Western Australia. Here they tell us about this collection, their recent visit to...Clark, Ali ; Kitchener, Andrew C
Research, Collections , Fish , and Colonial Histories And Legacies
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Presentation
The skull morphology of London’s foxes: Exploring phenotypic plasticity and long-term adaptation as a consequence of dietary change
The red fox (Vulpes vulpes) shows diverse ecological, behavioural and dietary plasticity, and is now a common sight in UK towns and cities. Yet colonisation of the fox in London occurred relatively recently, following the Second World War and rise of suburban housing. With only ~70 years since urbanisation, red...Cooper, David
London , urban, skull morphology., and Vulpes vulpes
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2023
Journal article
The geological and historical milieu of an ornamental cephalopod limestone (‘orthoceratite limestone’, Ordovician, Sweden) used in the Clerk Mausoleum (1684), St Mungo's Kirkyard, Penicuik, Scotland
A slab of cephalopod limestone bears a dedicatory Latin inscription on the mausoleum built around 1684 by Sir John Clerk of Penicuik (1649–1722) for his wife Elizabeth Henderson (1658–83) at St Mungo's Church, Penicuik, near Edinburgh, Scotland. The stone is identified on sedimentological and palaeontological evidence and historical context as... -
2022
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2022
Journal article
Silba septuosa Mcalpine, 1964 (Diptera: Lonchaeidae) Breeding in papaya fruit in Eastern Australia, with a Revised checklist of the Australian Silba species
A total of 222 lonchaeid flies were reared from four samples of ripe papaya collected at Yamba (-29.442° 153.364°) in eastern Australia during October and November 2021, during work on a tephritid fruit fly. The lonchaeids were identified as Silba septuosa McAlpine, a little-known species represented by just a few...Fay, H A C ; MacGowan, Iain
ecology and distribution of Lonchaeidae world-wide and Taxonomy
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2022
Journal article
An annotated checklist of the Norwegian Lonchaeidae (Diptera, Cyclorrhapha) with the description of a new species
The status of Lonchaeidae in Norway is reviewed and a Norwegian checklist is provided for the first time listing 40 species in six genera. Whenever possible the records for each species provide details of region code, municipality, locality (grid code after the EIS-system, decimal degrees) number of individuals, sex, date,...MacGowan, Iain ; Gustad, Jørn R
ecology and distribution of Lonchaeidae world-wide and Taxonomy
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2022
Journal article
A new species of Earomyia Zetterstedt, 1842 (Diptera; Lonchaeidae) from Montana, U.S.A., associated with the toxic plant Toxicoscordion venenosum (S. Watson) Rydb. (Melanthiaceae)
A new species of Earomyia Zetterstedt, 1842, namely E. melnickae sp. nov., is described from Montana, U.S.A. The new species is compared with other Nearctic Earomyia species, and its association with a highly toxic plant Toxicoscordion venenosum (S. Watson) Rydb. (Melanthiaceae) is discussed.MacGowan, Iain ; Astle, Tom
pollinator, Nearctic region , and lance-flies
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2022
Blog post
First British record of the short-finned pilot whale
What is the difference between the long-finned and the short-finned pilot whale? Andrew Kitchener explains how the examination of the skull of a stranded whale revealed the true identity of the species and the most northerly stranding of a short-finned pilot whale in the northeast Atlantic.Kitchener, Andrew C
Britain , Stranding , Whales, Short-Finned Pilot Whale, Pilot Whale , and Whale
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2023
Journal article
The Life of Mary Anning, Fossil Collector of Lyme Regis: a Contemporary Biographical Memoir by George Roberts
Despite the modern celebrity of the fossil collector Mary Anning (1799–1847) of Lyme Regis and her frequent use as an icon in scientific education and popularization, there are few accounts of her life by her contemporaries. We report here a previously unpublished anonymous manuscript memoir of Anning's life, in the...Taylor, Michael A ; Benton, Michael J
George Roberts, Lyme Regis, Athenæum, and Mary Anning obituary
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2022
Journal article
Tough to digest: first record of Teleosauroidea (Thalattosuchia) in a regurgitalite from the Upper Jurassic of north‐eastern Italy
Postcranial remains of a small teleosauroid from the Upper Jurassic of north-eastern Italy are described in detail. The specimen, discovered in 1980 on a slab of Rosso Ammonitico Veronese (RAV Fm.; Bajocian–Tithonian), is represented by partially articulated thoracic, sacral and anterior caudal vertebrae, fractured and displaced osteoderms and pelvic girdle...Serafini, Giovanni ; Gordon, Caleb M ; Foffa, Davide ; Cobianchi, Miriam ; Giusberti, Luca
Rosso Ammonitico Veronese, SEM-EDS analysis , regurgitalite, Aeolodontinae , and Upper Jurassic
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2022
Journal article
The ecological diversification and evolution of Teleosauroidea (Crocodylomorpha, Thalattosuchia), with insights into their mandibular biomechanics
Throughout the Jurassic, a plethora of marine reptiles dominated ocean waters, including ichthyosaurs, plesiosaurs and thalattosuchian crocodylomorphs. These Jurassic ecosystems were characterized by high niche partitioning and spatial variation in dietary ecology. However, while the ecological diversity of many marine reptile lineages is well known, the overall ecological diversification of...Johnson, Michela M ; Foffa, Davide ; Young, Mark T ; Brusatte, Stephen L
Jurassic ecosystems , thalattosuchian crocodylomorphs, and Teleosauroidea
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2022
Journal article
New fossil assemblages from the Early Ordovician Fezouata Biota
The Fezouata Biota (Morocco) is a unique Early Ordovician fossil assemblage. The discovery of this biota revolutionized our understanding of Earth’s early animal diversifications—the Cambrian Explosion and the Ordovician Radiation—by suggesting an evolutionary continuum between both events. Herein, we describe Taichoute, a new fossil locality from the Fezouata Shale. This...Saleh, Farid ; Vaucher, Romain ; Vidal, Muriel ; Hariri, Khadija El ; Laibl, Lukáš …
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2022
Journal article
When did Alexander Philipp Maximilian, Prinz zu Wied-Neuwied, first describe Felis macroura?
The margay, Leopardus wiedii Schinz, 1821, is a Neotropical small spotted cat, whose nomenclatural history has long been confused (Thomas 1903; Pocock 1917; Allen 1919). This confusion began with Georges-Louis Leclerc, Comte de Buffon, in Histoire naturelle, générale et particulière, avec la description du Cabinet du roi published in 1765,...Kitchener, Andrew C ; Sanderson, James G
Leopardus macrourus, margay, Leopardus wiedii, wild cat, Heinrich Rudolf Schinz, Reise nach Brasilien, and Felis wiedii
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2022
Journal article
Biogeography in the deep: Hierarchical population genomic structure of two beaked whale species
The deep sea is the largest ecosystem on Earth, yet little is known about the processes driving patterns of genetic diversity in its inhabitants. Here, we investigated the macro- and microevolutionary processes shaping genomic population structure and diversity in two poorly understood, globally distributed, deep-sea predators: Cuvier’s beaked whale (Ziphius... -
2022
Learning object
Conserving a Blaschka model
Holly Daws is Assistant Artefact Conservator in the artefact conservation team at the National Museums Collection Centre. She was faced with the delicate task of mending a broken Blaschka model of a Thick Horned Anemone. Holly describes the step-by-step process of how the model was brought back to life.Daws, Holly
Invertebrates, Collections , Blaschka Glass Models , Art , Sea Creatures, Glass , Blaschka, and Conservation
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Presentation
Extending the archive of life: Contemporary collecting in Natural Sciences at National Museums Scotland
What objects will tell the stories of 21st-century Scotland? What themes, events, and ideas represent Scotland today? How do we ‘future proof’ our contemporary collecting? National Museums Scotland is hosting a one-day symposium on contemporary collecting. It will explore how we build representative collections for the future, covering Scotland’s present...Kitchener, Andrew C
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2022
Lecture
Carrion Beetles: Nature's Undertakers
Meet the unsung heroes of the natural world: carrion beetles. Important decomposers and recyclers, most carrion beetles feed and breed on dead animals. Museum curator and carrion beetle specialist, Ashleigh Whiffin introduces us to these delightful decomposers, digs deeper into their complex ecology, and highlights some of the current work...Whiffin, Ashleigh
Silphidae and Coleoptera
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2022
Journal article
A new genus within the tribe Lonchaeini (Diptera, Lonchaeidae) based on two species from the Neotropics
Hydrolysa gen. nov. is erected within the tribe Lonchaeini to include Central American species which possess distinctive and unique male genitalia. Two species are described within this new genus, namely Hydrolysa tanetzensis MacGowan sp. nov. and Hydrolysa oaxacana MacGowan sp. nov. A revised key to the genera within the Lonchaeini...MacGowan, Iain
new species, Lonchaeidae, Diptera, Mexico, and new genus
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2022
Journal article
Ecological signal in the size and shape of marine amniote teeth
Amniotes have been a major component of marine trophic chains from the beginning of the Triassic to present day, with hundreds of species. However, inferences of their (palaeo)ecology have mostly been qualitative, making it difficult to track how dietary niches have changed through time and across clades. Here, we tackle...Fischer, Valentin ; Bennion, Rebecca F ; Foffa, Davide ; MacLaren, Jamie A ; McCurry, Matthew R …
palaeoecology, feeding guilds, high-density morphometricss, Cetacea, and marine reptile
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2022
Journal article
Review of nose picking in primates with new evidence of its occurrence in Daubentonia madagascariensis
Nose picking (rhinotillexis) is a common behaviour in humans which remains, however, poorly studied. Several species of primates are known to pick their nose and ingest the nasal mucus suggesting that this behaviour may actually be beneficial and showing it is not restricted to humans. Here, we review relevant literature...Fabre, A.‐C ; Portela Miguez, R ; Wall, C E ; Peckre, L R ; Ehmke, E …
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2022
Journal article
Synchrotron tomography of a stem lizard elucidates early squamate anatomy
Squamates (lizards and snakes) include more than 10,000 living species, descended from an ancestor that diverged more than 240 million years ago from that of their closest living relative, Sphenodon. However, a deficiency of fossil evidence1,2,3,4,5,6,7, combined with serious conflicts between molecular and morphological accounts of squamate phylogeny8,9,10,11,12,13 (but see...Tałanda, Mateusz ; Fernandez, Vincent ; Panciroli, Elsa ; Evans, Susan E ; Benson, Roger J
Skeleton, Herpetology , Phylogenetics , and Palaeontology
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2022
Journal article
Scleromochlus and the early evolution of Pterosauromorpha
Pterosaurs, the first vertebrates to evolve powered flight, were key components of Mesozoic terrestrial ecosystems from their sudden appearance in the Late Triassic until their demise at the end of the Cretaceous1,2,3,4,5,6. However, the origin and early evolution of pterosaurs are poorly understood owing to a substantial stratigraphic and morphological...Foffa, Davide ; Dunne, Emma M ; Nesbitt, Sterling J ; Butler, Richard J ; Fraser, Nicholas C …
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2022
Book chapter
Harnessing the power of natural science collections: a blueprint for the UK
Between September 2021 and March 2022, a consortium across the twelve major regions of the UK, led by the Natural History Museum, London (NHM), participated in a study to develop the business case and plan to support a national programme of natural science collections digitisation. This work, funded by the... -
2022
Journal article
Life in death
Whiffin, Ashleigh
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2022
Journal article
Characterisation of some species groups of Brachymeria (Hymenoptera: Chalcididae), with a review of the B. tibialis-group and description of a new species parasitizing Zygaena pupae (Lepidoptera: Zygaenidae)
The Brachymeria tibialis species group is newly recognized and diagnosed together with the Brachymeria annulata, femorata, kassiliensis and lasus species groups also newly defined. In these diagnoses a few morphological characters of the ventral part of the mesosoma, discovered in this study, are proposed to help differentiate the groups. The...Delvare, Gérard ; Shaw, Mark R
BIOLOGY, HOSTS , LEPIDOPTERA , DISTRIBUTION , MORPHOLOGY , and SPECIES GROUPS DIAGNOSES
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2022
Journal article
Rearings of four European Microgastrinae (Hymenoptera: Braconidae), three new to Britain including a new species of Cotesia Cameron, 1891
Cotesia carterocephali sp. nov. is described from a single gregarious brood reared from a posthibernation final instar larva of the hesperiid butterfly Carterocephalus palaemon in Scotland. Details of English rearings of two other Microgastrinae recorded from Britain for the first time are also given: Distatrix pompelon, gregariously from the erebiid... -
2022
Journal article
Biological and morphological studies on the parasitoids (Hymenoptera, Ichneumonidae) of Aprosthema tardum (Klug) (Hymenoptera, Argidae, Sterictiphorinae) in Var, southern France
Field surveys at four neighbouring but discrete sites in southern France revealed the presence of five ichneumonid parasitoids of the -feeding sterictiphorine argid sawfly . Four of these parasitoids, , (both Ctenopelmatinae), and (both Tryphoninae), could be identified and, by also incorporating laboratory studies, the developmental biology of each was... -
2022
Journal article
Identity of wasp parasitoids (Hymenoptera) attacking Pieris brassicae (Linnaeus, 1758) (Lepidoptera: Pieridae) in South Africa
The alien invasive large cabbage white, Pieris brassicae (Linnaeus, 1758) (Pieridae), although introduced into South Africa more than 27 years ago, has not dramatically expanded its distribution, possibly because it is effectively attacked by two parasitoid wasp species. Even though there is a cohort of parasitoid species associated with P.... -
2022
Journal article
Larval parasitism in a specialist herbivore is explained by phenological synchrony and host plant availability
Parasitism is a key factor in the population dynamics of many herbivorous insects, although its impact on host populations varies widely, for instance, along latitudinal and altitudinal gradients. Understanding the sources of geographical variation in host–parasitoid interactions is crucial for reliably predicting the future success of the interacting species under...Stefanescu, Constantí ; Colom, Pau ; Barea‐Azcón, José Miguel ; Horsfield, David ; Komac, Benjamin …
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2022
Journal article
Early Eocene fossil illuminates the ancestral (diurnal) ecomorphology of owls and documents a mosaic evolution of the strigiform body plan
We describe a partial skeleton of a fossil owl (Strigiformes) from the early Eocene London Clay of Walton-on-the-Naze (Essex, UK). The holotype of Ypresiglaux michaeldanielsi, gen. et sp. nov. is one of the most complete specimens of a Palaeogene owl and elucidates the poorly known ecomorphology of stem group Strigiformes....Mayr, Gerald ; Kitchener, Andrew C
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2022
Journal article
Oldest fossil loon documents a pronounced ecomorphological shift in the evolution of gaviiform birds
We describe a stem group representative of Gaviiformes (loons or divers) from the early Eocene London Clay of Walton-on-the-Naze (Essex, UK). The holotype of Nasidytes ypresianus gen. et sp. nov. is a partial skeleton including the mandible and all major limb bones. The new species is the oldest unambiguously identified...Mayr, Gerald ; Kitchener, Andrew C
Nasidytes ypresianus, Walton-on-the-Naze, Aves, fossil birds, and London Clay
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2022
Journal article
New fossils from the London Clay show that the Eocene Masillaraptoridae are stem group representatives of falcons (Aves, Falconiformes)
The Eocene taxon Masillaraptoridae includes long-legged, raptorial birds, the phylogenetic affinities of which are poorly resolved. Here, fossils from the London Clay of Walton-on-the-Naze (Essex, U.K.) are described, which corroborate the hypothesis that masillaraptorids are stem group representatives of the Falconiformes (falcons). Two partial skeletons are assigned to a new...Mayr, Gerald ; Kitchener, Andrew C
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Lecture
The Fossil Insects of Scotland
Fossil insects are rare in Scotland, though those that are found are significant and are from four periods: Specimens from the Lower Devonian Rhynie Chert of Aberdeenshire are the oldest in the world; a few species are known from the Upper Carboniferous Coal Measures of Ayrshire and Fife; as yet...Ross, Andrew J