Pub Date : 2026-02-01Epub Date: 2025-11-15DOI: 10.1016/j.cretres.2025.106267
Chenlin Zhu , Chao Han , Zhigang Song , Shourui Dai , Jie Li , Yuetong Zhang , Xiang Ren , Zuozhen Han
During the Early Cretaceous, the Paleo Pacific Plate underwent extensive subduction beneath the Eurasian continent, which coincided with substantial lithospheric thinning in the North China Craton. The Jiaolai Basin, which formed during this period, is located along the southeastern margin of the North China Craton, and is positioned between the Sulu Orogenic Belt (SLOB) and the Jiaobei Terrane (JBT). The sedimentary sequences in the basin record relevant information on the evolution of the surrounding tectonic units. Thus, this study conducted petrographic and detrital zircon U–Pb geochronological analyses on sandstones from the Lower Cretaceous Laiyang Formation in the Laiyang Sag. The findings indicate that: (1) during the Early Cretaceous, detrital sources within the Laiyang Sag displayed a distinct evolutionary pattern: early-stage deposits were primarily sourced from the JBT, with a subsequent transition towards dual-source inputs from both the JBT and the SLOB. (2) At approximately 123 Ma, intensified faulting along the southern margin of Jiaolai Basin led to the rapid deposition of substantial amounts of detrital material from the SLOB. (3) The SLOB may have been exhumed above the surface during the Middle–Late Jurassic and continued to supply sediment to the Laiyang Sag.
{"title":"Detrital zircon populations in the early cretaceous Laiyang Sag: Implications for the evolution of the Basin and peripheral orogenic belt","authors":"Chenlin Zhu , Chao Han , Zhigang Song , Shourui Dai , Jie Li , Yuetong Zhang , Xiang Ren , Zuozhen Han","doi":"10.1016/j.cretres.2025.106267","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.cretres.2025.106267","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>During the Early Cretaceous, the Paleo Pacific Plate underwent extensive subduction beneath the Eurasian continent, which coincided with substantial lithospheric thinning in the North China Craton. The Jiaolai Basin, which formed during this period, is located along the southeastern margin of the North China Craton, and is positioned between the Sulu Orogenic Belt (SLOB) and the Jiaobei Terrane (JBT). The sedimentary sequences in the basin record relevant information on the evolution of the surrounding tectonic units. Thus, this study conducted petrographic and detrital zircon U–Pb geochronological analyses on sandstones from the Lower Cretaceous Laiyang Formation in the Laiyang Sag. The findings indicate that: (1) during the Early Cretaceous, detrital sources within the Laiyang Sag displayed a distinct evolutionary pattern: early-stage deposits were primarily sourced from the JBT, with a subsequent transition towards dual-source inputs from both the JBT and the SLOB. (2) At approximately 123 Ma, intensified faulting along the southern margin of Jiaolai Basin led to the rapid deposition of substantial amounts of detrital material from the SLOB. (3) The SLOB may have been exhumed above the surface during the Middle–Late Jurassic and continued to supply sediment to the Laiyang Sag.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":55207,"journal":{"name":"Cretaceous Research","volume":"179 ","pages":"Article 106267"},"PeriodicalIF":1.7,"publicationDate":"2026-02-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145623593","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"地球科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2026-02-01Epub Date: 2025-09-30DOI: 10.1016/j.cretres.2025.106242
Silvia Regina Gobbo, Reinaldo J. Bertini
This study investigates the origin and intercontinental dispersal routes of non-marine ostracods during the Campanian–Maastrichtian, with emphasis on the biogeographic history of the subfamily Talicyprideinae and related genera. Fossil distribution data from the literature were analysed, key species were taxonomically revised, and the results were integrated with palaeogeographic reconstructions to infer dispersal pathways. The findings indicate that Talicyprideinae originated in north-eastern Brazil and dispersed along two main routes: one through Africa and Eurasia, and another through South America to India via Antarctica. Genera such as Harbinia, Vecticypris, Zonocypris and Virgatocypris spread from northern Africa into Europe, southern South America, and North America (via Beringia). The Antarctic route explains ostracod occurrences in south-eastern Brazil, Argentina and India. The revised diagnosis of four Talicyprideinae species confirms their presence in South America. Dispersal mechanisms—wind, water and animal-mediated—were evaluated for their role in these patterns. A complex network of Campanian–Maastrichtian dispersal routes is highlighted, including the Kerguelen Plateau, Ninetyeast Ridge, Seychelles–Laxmi Ridge, Apulian Microplate, Beringia, and the Caribbean region, revealing global connectivity among ostracod faunas.
{"title":"Global dispersal patterns of non-marine ostracods in the Late Cretaceous (Campanian–Maastrichtian)","authors":"Silvia Regina Gobbo, Reinaldo J. Bertini","doi":"10.1016/j.cretres.2025.106242","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.cretres.2025.106242","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>This study investigates the origin and intercontinental dispersal routes of non-marine ostracods during the Campanian–Maastrichtian, with emphasis on the biogeographic history of the subfamily Talicyprideinae and related genera. Fossil distribution data from the literature were analysed, key species were taxonomically revised, and the results were integrated with palaeogeographic reconstructions to infer dispersal pathways. The findings indicate that Talicyprideinae originated in north-eastern Brazil and dispersed along two main routes: one through Africa and Eurasia, and another through South America to India via Antarctica. Genera such as <em>Harbinia</em>, <em>Vecticypris</em>, <em>Zonocypris</em> and <em>Virgatocypris</em> spread from northern Africa into Europe, southern South America, and North America (via Beringia). The Antarctic route explains ostracod occurrences in south-eastern Brazil, Argentina and India. The revised diagnosis of four Talicyprideinae species confirms their presence in South America. Dispersal mechanisms—wind, water and animal-mediated—were evaluated for their role in these patterns. A complex network of Campanian–Maastrichtian dispersal routes is highlighted, including the Kerguelen Plateau, Ninetyeast Ridge, Seychelles–Laxmi Ridge, Apulian Microplate, Beringia, and the Caribbean region, revealing global connectivity among ostracod faunas.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":55207,"journal":{"name":"Cretaceous Research","volume":"179 ","pages":"Article 106242"},"PeriodicalIF":1.7,"publicationDate":"2026-02-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145322957","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"地球科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2026-02-01Epub Date: 2025-11-10DOI: 10.1016/j.cretres.2025.106259
Facundo Irazoqui , Carolina Acosta Hospitaleche , Javier N. Gelfo , Ariana Paulina Carabajal , Paula Bona , Leonel Acosta Burlaille
A new genus and species of Cretaceous bird from Antarctica with implications for the early evolution of Neornithes is described here. The type specimen of Pujatopouli soberana gen. et sp. nov. (MLP-PV 08-XI-30-44), preserving part of the skull and postcranium, was recovered from Maastrichtian deposits of the López de Bertodano Formation on Marambio (Seymour) Island, James Ross Basin, West Antarctica. The phylogenetic relationships of Pujatopouli with other avian species, including all previously described Cretaceous birds from Antarctica, were assessed using two different datasets. The first, mainly composed of Mesozoic birds, places Pujatopouli within the crown group of birds (Neornithes), whereas the second, which includes a broad sampling of modern taxa, positions it within Neoaves, and closely related to the ‘core-waterbirds’ (Aequornithes). Besides, morphological evidence suggests that Pujatopouli was a foot-propelled diver with an ichthyophagous diet, living sympatrically with other neornithine birds along the Antarctic coast during the latest Cretaceous.
本文描述了一种来自南极洲的白垩纪鸟类的新属和新种，它与新鸟的早期进化有关。Pujatopouli soberana gen. et sp. nov. （MLP-PV 08-XI-30-44）的模式标本保存了部分头盖骨和后头盖骨，是在南极洲西部James Ross盆地Marambio （Seymour）岛的López de Bertodano组的Maastrichtian沉积物中发现的。使用两个不同的数据集评估了Pujatopouli与其他鸟类物种的系统发育关系，包括所有先前描述的来自南极洲的白垩纪鸟类。第一个主要由中生代鸟类组成，将Pujatopouli置于鸟类的冠群（Neornithes）中，而第二个包括现代分类群的广泛样本，将其置于新鸟群中，并与“核心水鸟”（Aequornithes）密切相关。此外，形态学证据表明，Pujatopouli是一种以脚为动力的潜水员，以食鱼为食，在白垩纪晚期与其他新鸟目鸟类共同生活在南极海岸。
{"title":"Diving in the Maastrichtian of Marambio (Seymour) Island: A new member of the Neoaves in the Cretaceous Antarctic avifauna","authors":"Facundo Irazoqui , Carolina Acosta Hospitaleche , Javier N. Gelfo , Ariana Paulina Carabajal , Paula Bona , Leonel Acosta Burlaille","doi":"10.1016/j.cretres.2025.106259","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.cretres.2025.106259","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>A new genus and species of Cretaceous bird from Antarctica with implications for the early evolution of Neornithes is described here. The type specimen of <em>Pujatopouli soberana</em> gen. et sp. nov. (MLP-PV 08-XI-30-44), preserving part of the skull and postcranium, was recovered from Maastrichtian deposits of the López de Bertodano Formation on Marambio (Seymour) Island, James Ross Basin, West Antarctica. The phylogenetic relationships of <em>Pujatopouli</em> with other avian species, including all previously described Cretaceous birds from Antarctica, were assessed using two different datasets. The first, mainly composed of Mesozoic birds, places <em>Pujatopouli</em> within the crown group of birds (Neornithes), whereas the second, which includes a broad sampling of modern taxa, positions it within Neoaves, and closely related to the ‘core-waterbirds’ (Aequornithes). Besides, morphological evidence suggests that <em>Pujatopouli</em> was a foot-propelled diver with an ichthyophagous diet, living sympatrically with other neornithine birds along the Antarctic coast during the latest Cretaceous.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":55207,"journal":{"name":"Cretaceous Research","volume":"179 ","pages":"Article 106259"},"PeriodicalIF":1.7,"publicationDate":"2026-02-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145579116","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"地球科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2026-02-01Epub Date: 2025-08-30DOI: 10.1016/j.cretres.2025.106210
Christa-Ch. Hofmann , Ulrich Heimhofer , Emily A. Roberts , Leyla J. Seyfullah
Twelve species of Eucommiidites pollen from deltaic sedimentary rocks of the Rio da Batateira and lowermost Crato formations are here described and depicted with light microscopy (LM) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). A clump of Eucommiidites sp. 6 from sample CAS 27 of the lowermost Crato Formation is thought to be the dispersed equivalent of in situ pollen of Araripestrobus resiniferous found in the laminitic limestone of the Crato Formation. The other Eucommiidites taxa are known only as dispersed taxa. The separation of individual Eucommiidites species using LM is often very difficult and helped by the use of SEM to observe the position of lateral sulci/furrows, plus the sculpture and ornamentation of the sulcus membrane and ektexine. Only two Eucommiidites taxa, E. sp. 2 and E. sp. 3, occur frequently and generally abundantly in medium percentages (4–15 %) in the pollen sum throughout the section, and are interpreted to come from either wind pollinated plants or plants with no specific edaphic requirements. All other taxa are interpreted to have grown further away from the distributary channels, probably in more specialized stands. Two of them (Eucommiidites sp. 6 and E. sp. 8) are preserved in clumps and are suggested to be animal pollinated. The presence of unusually high percentages of 8–14 % of Eucommiidites in the pollen sums reveal that Eucommiidites taxa constituted a significant portion of the ancient vegetation habitats located upriver, but only comprise a few fragments in the macrofossil record of the Araripe Basin.
{"title":"More diverse and abundant than assumed: Eucommiidites pollen preserved in a deltaic setting (Lower Cretaceous) of the Araripe Basin (NE Brazil)","authors":"Christa-Ch. Hofmann , Ulrich Heimhofer , Emily A. Roberts , Leyla J. Seyfullah","doi":"10.1016/j.cretres.2025.106210","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.cretres.2025.106210","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Twelve species of <em>Eucommiidites</em> pollen from deltaic sedimentary rocks of the Rio da Batateira and lowermost Crato formations are here described and depicted with light microscopy (LM) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). A clump of <em>Eucommiidites</em> sp. 6 from sample CAS 27 of the lowermost Crato Formation is thought to be the dispersed equivalent of <em>in situ</em> pollen of <em>Araripestrobus resiniferous</em> found in the laminitic limestone of the Crato Formation. The other <em>Eucommiidites</em> taxa are known only as dispersed taxa. The separation of individual <em>Eucommiidites</em> species using LM is often very difficult and helped by the use of SEM to observe the position of lateral sulci/furrows, plus the sculpture and ornamentation of the sulcus membrane and ektexine. Only two <em>Eucommi</em><em>i</em><em>di</em><em>tes</em> taxa<em>, E</em>. sp. 2 and <em>E</em>. sp. 3, occur frequently and generally abundantly in medium percentages (4–15 %) in the pollen sum throughout the section, and are interpreted to come from either wind pollinated plants or plants with no specific edaphic requirements. All other taxa are interpreted to have grown further away from the distributary channels, probably in more specialized stands. Two of them (<em>Eucommiidites</em> sp. 6 and <em>E</em>. sp. 8) are preserved in clumps and are suggested to be animal pollinated. The presence of unusually high percentages of 8–14 % of <em>Eucommiidites</em> in the pollen sums reveal that <em>Eucommiidites</em> taxa constituted a significant portion of the ancient vegetation habitats located upriver, but only comprise a few fragments in the macrofossil record of the Araripe Basin.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":55207,"journal":{"name":"Cretaceous Research","volume":"179 ","pages":"Article 106210"},"PeriodicalIF":1.7,"publicationDate":"2026-02-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145520350","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"地球科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2026-02-01Epub Date: 2025-09-17DOI: 10.1016/j.cretres.2025.106239
Abdallah Rabea , Omar Mohamed , Ahmed Mansour , Ramadan S. Mohamed , Ahmed Ali
During the Campanian-Maastrichtian, long-term cooling drove eustatic sea-level fall, promoting carbonate platform deposition at mid-to-high paleolatitudes. Here, 85 rock samples were collected from the Campanian-Maastrichtian uppermost Qusseir, Duwi, and lowermost Dakhla formations at three sections in the El-Sebaiya area of the Nile Valley (Egypt). A comprehensive approach, including palynological, whole rock geochemistry, and total organic carbon (TOC) analyses, was performed. Four palynofacies assemblages (PFA) were identified in the three sections. PFA-A shows high abundances of amorphous organic matter (AOM), suggesting deposition in a shallow marine environment, whereas PFA-B exhibits moderate abundances of phytoclasts and AOM, indicative of deposition in fluvio-deltaic to marginal shallow marine conditions. PFA-C is dominated by phytoclasts, mainly of opaque equidimensional particles, characterizing a fluvio-deltaic environment, while PFA-D is characterized by moderate levels of AOM and dinoflagellate cysts (dinocysts) with low phytoclasts, pointing to a shallow marine shelf environment. Dinocysts are dominated by peridinioid forms combined with the common distribution of phosphorite belts, reflecting that the southern Tethys was controlled by upwelling-driven elevated productivity settings under varying redox conditions. Data further allowed the reconstruction of three third-order transgressive-regressive sequences. The transgressive systems tract (TST) sediments are characterized by an increase in AOM, coincided with elevated carbonate content, Mn, and Mn/Al ratios, with maxima corresponding to the maximum flooding surface (MFS) within most sequences. Conversely, the regressive systems tract (RST) sediments show an increase in phytoclasts and elevated SiO2, Zr, Zr/Al, Ti, Ti/Al, and Sr/Ca ratios, with their highest values corresponding to the maximum regressive surface (MRS).
{"title":"Paleoenvironmental evolution and sequence stratigraphic reconstruction during the Late Cretaceous in southern Egypt: Implications for palynological and geochemical proxy data","authors":"Abdallah Rabea , Omar Mohamed , Ahmed Mansour , Ramadan S. Mohamed , Ahmed Ali","doi":"10.1016/j.cretres.2025.106239","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.cretres.2025.106239","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>During the Campanian-Maastrichtian, long-term cooling drove eustatic sea-level fall, promoting carbonate platform deposition at mid-to-high paleolatitudes. Here, 85 rock samples were collected from the Campanian-Maastrichtian uppermost Qusseir, Duwi, and lowermost Dakhla formations at three sections in the El-Sebaiya area of the Nile Valley (Egypt). A comprehensive approach, including palynological, whole rock geochemistry, and total organic carbon (TOC) analyses, was performed. Four palynofacies assemblages (PFA) were identified in the three sections. PFA-A shows high abundances of amorphous organic matter (AOM), suggesting deposition in a shallow marine environment, whereas PFA-B exhibits moderate abundances of phytoclasts and AOM, indicative of deposition in fluvio-deltaic to marginal shallow marine conditions. PFA-C is dominated by phytoclasts, mainly of opaque equidimensional particles, characterizing a fluvio-deltaic environment, while PFA-D is characterized by moderate levels of AOM and dinoflagellate cysts (dinocysts) with low phytoclasts, pointing to a shallow marine shelf environment. Dinocysts are dominated by peridinioid forms combined with the common distribution of phosphorite belts, reflecting that the southern Tethys was controlled by upwelling-driven elevated productivity settings under varying redox conditions. Data further allowed the reconstruction of three third-order transgressive-regressive sequences. The transgressive systems tract (TST) sediments are characterized by an increase in AOM, coincided with elevated carbonate content, Mn, and Mn/Al ratios, with maxima corresponding to the maximum flooding surface (MFS) within most sequences. Conversely, the regressive systems tract (RST) sediments show an increase in phytoclasts and elevated SiO<sub>2</sub>, Zr, Zr/Al, Ti, Ti/Al, and Sr/Ca ratios, with their highest values corresponding to the maximum regressive surface (MRS).</div></div>","PeriodicalId":55207,"journal":{"name":"Cretaceous Research","volume":"178 ","pages":"Article 106239"},"PeriodicalIF":1.7,"publicationDate":"2026-02-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145159476","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"地球科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2026-02-01Epub Date: 2025-09-25DOI: 10.1016/j.cretres.2025.106247
Xiao Tan , Yuhui Feng , Fei Liang , Yunfeng Li , Chunlin Sun , Ge Sun
The Jianchang Basin of western Liaoning, NE China is one of the important Mesozoic non-marine sedimentary basins in China. The Lower Cretaceous Binggou Formation is well exposed in this basin yielding abundant coal and fossils. Lately research on the invertebrate and plant fossils from this formation indicates this biota chronologically corresponding to the famous Fuxin biota. The present work uncovers a palynoflora in the Formation composed of 153 species of 59 genera which are represented by the assemblage of Cicatricosisporites-Osmundacidites-Concentrisporites. The assemblage is dominated by gymnospermous pollen and is evidenced of the upper Lower Cretaceous by the characters of its composition and the occurrence of such age-diagnostic elements as Cicatricosisporites, Appendicisporites, Erlianpollis and Jiaohepollis. New U–Pb zircon dating made by the authors from the middle of the coal seam of the formation, indicates a 106.5 ± 1.9 Ma age, and confirms the Binggou Formation and palynoflora belonging to the Albian of the Lower Cretaceous, for the first time. The paleoecological and paleoenvironmental characteristics based on the palynoflora are also reconstructed by using the Sporopollen EcoGroup (SEG) model and the Plant Ecological Model (Eco-plant model). It suggests that the flora flourished in an environment characterized by the coexistence of both highland and lowland river systems. During the period when this flora existed, humidity levels increased slightly, and the environment remained stable, showing no evidence of large-scale climatic disturbances.
{"title":"Lower Cretaceous palynoflora from the Binggou Formation of Jianchang Basin, western Liaoning, NE China and its U–Pb zircon age","authors":"Xiao Tan , Yuhui Feng , Fei Liang , Yunfeng Li , Chunlin Sun , Ge Sun","doi":"10.1016/j.cretres.2025.106247","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.cretres.2025.106247","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>The Jianchang Basin of western Liaoning, NE China is one of the important Mesozoic non-marine sedimentary basins in China. The Lower Cretaceous Binggou Formation is well exposed in this basin yielding abundant coal and fossils. Lately research on the invertebrate and plant fossils from this formation indicates this biota chronologically corresponding to the famous Fuxin biota. The present work uncovers a palynoflora in the Formation composed of 153 species of 59 genera which are represented by the assemblage of <em>Cicatricosisporites-Osmundacidites-Concentrisporites</em>. The assemblage is dominated by gymnospermous pollen and is evidenced of the upper Lower Cretaceous by the characters of its composition and the occurrence of such age-diagnostic elements as <em>Cicatricosisporite</em>s, <em>Appendicisporites</em>, <em>Erlianpollis</em> and <em>Jiaohepollis</em>. New U–Pb zircon dating made by the authors from the middle of the coal seam of the formation, indicates a 106.5 ± 1.9 Ma age, and confirms the Binggou Formation and palynoflora belonging to the Albian of the Lower Cretaceous, for the first time. The paleoecological and paleoenvironmental characteristics based on the palynoflora are also reconstructed by using the Sporopollen EcoGroup (SEG) model and the Plant Ecological Model (Eco-plant model). It suggests that the flora flourished in an environment characterized by the coexistence of both highland and lowland river systems. During the period when this flora existed, humidity levels increased slightly, and the environment remained stable, showing no evidence of large-scale climatic disturbances.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":55207,"journal":{"name":"Cretaceous Research","volume":"179 ","pages":"Article 106247"},"PeriodicalIF":1.7,"publicationDate":"2026-02-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145270467","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"地球科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2026-02-01Epub Date: 2025-09-26DOI: 10.1016/j.cretres.2025.106244
Jiandong Huang , Xuri Wang , Andrea Cau , Lei Mao , Yichuan Liu , Yang Wang
A new euornithine bird, Kunpengornis anhuimusei gen. et sp. nov., is described based on a nearly complete skeleton from the Lower Cretaceous (Aptian) Jehol Biota in western Liaoning, China. The new taxon is characterized by possessing the unique combination of reduced maxillary ramus of premaxilla shorter than half the buccal margin of premaxilla, coracoid having a trapezoidal procoracoid process not expanded craniocaudally at its medial margin, sternum with blunt craniolateral process, drop-shaped distal end of lateral trabecula and reduced intermediate trabecula not enclosing a caudal fenestra, pubis lacking ossified distal symphysis and with gradually expanding distal end, resulting twice longer craniocaudally than at mid-shaft, but lacking an abrupt distinction between shaft and distal foot. The macerated fish bones preserved in the abdominal cavity provides direct evidence that Kunpengornis was piscivorous. Despite overall similarity with some yanornithids and other piscivorous euornithines, the phylogenetic analysis places Kunpengornis as sister taxon of Piscivoravis and closer to the "ornithuromorph-gansuid" clade than Yanornithidae, a result which supports the hypothesis that a piscivorous "Yanornis-like" bauplan was a grade along the evolutionary sequence leading to the precursors of the modern avians. The acquisition of the fish-eating ecology and the exploitation of the aquatic environments represented key innovations for the successful radiation of the euornithine birds.
根据辽宁西部下白垩世（Aptian）热河生物群的一具近乎完整的骨架，描述了一种新的真鸟目鸟类——Kunpengornis anhuimusei gen. et sp. nov.。该新分类群的特点是具有以下特征的独特组合：前上颌缩支短于前上颌颊缘的一半，喙突内侧缘有一个不向颅侧扩张的梯状前喙突，胸骨颅外侧突钝，外侧小梁远端呈滴水状，中间小梁缩小，不包围尾侧孔，耻骨缺乏骨化的远端联合，远端逐渐扩大。结果两倍长于颅侧比在中轴，但缺乏轴和远端足之间的突然区分。保存在腹腔里的浸泡过的鱼骨为昆鸟是食鱼动物提供了直接证据。尽管总体上与一些燕鸟目和其他鱼食性新鸟目相似，但系统发育分析将Kunpengornis列为鱼鸟目的姐妹分类群，并且比燕鸟科更接近于“鸟鸟形态-gansuid”分支，这一结果支持了一种“类似燕鸟目”的鱼食性鸟计划是进化序列中导致现代鸟类祖先的一个等级的假设。食鱼生态的获取和水生环境的开发是新鸟目鸟类成功辐射的关键创新。
{"title":"A new euornithine from the Lower Cretaceous (Aptian) of China reveals the first radiation of fish-eating birds","authors":"Jiandong Huang , Xuri Wang , Andrea Cau , Lei Mao , Yichuan Liu , Yang Wang","doi":"10.1016/j.cretres.2025.106244","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.cretres.2025.106244","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>A new euornithine bird, <em>Kunpengornis anhuimusei</em> gen. et sp. nov., is described based on a nearly complete skeleton from the Lower Cretaceous (Aptian) Jehol Biota in western Liaoning, China. The new taxon is characterized by possessing the unique combination of reduced maxillary ramus of premaxilla shorter than half the buccal margin of premaxilla, coracoid having a trapezoidal procoracoid process not expanded craniocaudally at its medial margin, sternum with blunt craniolateral process, drop-shaped distal end of lateral trabecula and reduced intermediate trabecula not enclosing a caudal fenestra, pubis lacking ossified distal symphysis and with gradually expanding distal end, resulting twice longer craniocaudally than at mid-shaft, but lacking an abrupt distinction between shaft and distal foot. The macerated fish bones preserved in the abdominal cavity provides direct evidence that <em>Kunpengornis</em> was piscivorous. Despite overall similarity with some yanornithids and other piscivorous euornithines, the phylogenetic analysis places <em>Kunpengornis</em> as sister taxon of <em>Piscivoravis</em> and closer to the \"ornithuromorph-gansuid\" clade than Yanornithidae, a result which supports the hypothesis that a piscivorous \"<em>Yanornis</em>-like\" <em>bauplan</em> was a grade along the evolutionary sequence leading to the precursors of the modern avians. The acquisition of the fish-eating ecology and the exploitation of the aquatic environments represented key innovations for the successful radiation of the euornithine birds.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":55207,"journal":{"name":"Cretaceous Research","volume":"179 ","pages":"Article 106244"},"PeriodicalIF":1.7,"publicationDate":"2026-02-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145270468","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"地球科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2026-02-01Epub Date: 2025-09-03DOI: 10.1016/j.cretres.2025.106217
Miaoqin Lin , Jianguo Li , Yixiao Wu , Tan Tan , Yigang Xu
The International Continental Scientific Drilling Project (ICDP) in the Songliao Basin that has produced a continuous core of the Lower Cretaceous in 4134.81 m thickness, i.e. the SK-II borehole, provides an exceptional archive for studying tectonic and palaeoenvironmental history of the basin under the Cretaceous greenhouse climate. The Shahezi Formation that consists of the main part of this core, represents the primary basin fills at the syn-rift stage of the Songliao Basin and thus marks its commencement and is crucial for studying the timing and mechanism of this basin's early evolution. The precise age of the Shahezi Formation, however, remains controversial and little is known about the palaeovegetation and palaeoenvironment during its deposition. In this study, plenty of pollen and spores are extracted from core samples near the base of the Shahezi Formation. They are the oldest fossils so-far identified from the SK-Ⅱ borehole. The high abundance and diversity of Cicatricosisporites, in association with some other fossils as Pilosisporites, indicate a clear early–middle Aptian age for the base of the Shahezi Formation, i.e. the primary formation of the Songliao Basin. The vegetation was overall featured by abundant ferns, common cycads and some bryophytes in the ground storey, alongside conifer trees or shrubs of Pinaceae, Taxodiaceae, Araucariaceae and Cheirolepidiaceae in the upper canopy, with increases of Cheirolepidiaceae and cycads over time. A generally warm and humid tropical to subtropical climate with a trend to be slightly drier was developed, which might be a response of terrestrial ecosystem to the Oceanic Anoxic Event 1a.
{"title":"Vegetation and climate during the primary formation of the Songliao Basin, NE China","authors":"Miaoqin Lin , Jianguo Li , Yixiao Wu , Tan Tan , Yigang Xu","doi":"10.1016/j.cretres.2025.106217","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.cretres.2025.106217","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>The International Continental Scientific Drilling Project (ICDP) in the Songliao Basin that has produced a continuous core of the Lower Cretaceous in 4134.81 m thickness, i.e. the SK-II borehole, provides an exceptional archive for studying tectonic and palaeoenvironmental history of the basin under the Cretaceous greenhouse climate. The Shahezi Formation that consists of the main part of this core, represents the primary basin fills at the syn-rift stage of the Songliao Basin and thus marks its commencement and is crucial for studying the timing and mechanism of this basin's early evolution. The precise age of the Shahezi Formation, however, remains controversial and little is known about the palaeovegetation and palaeoenvironment during its deposition. In this study, plenty of pollen and spores are extracted from core samples near the base of the Shahezi Formation. They are the oldest fossils so-far identified from the SK-Ⅱ borehole. The high abundance and diversity of <em>Cicatricosisporites</em>, in association with some other fossils as <em>Pilosisporites</em>, indicate a clear early–middle Aptian age for the base of the Shahezi Formation, i.e. the primary formation of the Songliao Basin. The vegetation was overall featured by abundant ferns, common cycads and some bryophytes in the ground storey, alongside conifer trees or shrubs of Pinaceae, Taxodiaceae, Araucariaceae and Cheirolepidiaceae in the upper canopy, with increases of Cheirolepidiaceae and cycads over time. A generally warm and humid tropical to subtropical climate with a trend to be slightly drier was developed, which might be a response of terrestrial ecosystem to the Oceanic Anoxic Event 1a.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":55207,"journal":{"name":"Cretaceous Research","volume":"178 ","pages":"Article 106217"},"PeriodicalIF":1.7,"publicationDate":"2026-02-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145107828","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"地球科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2026-02-01Epub Date: 2025-10-15DOI: 10.1016/j.cretres.2025.106252
Donald B. Brinkman , Martin Kundrát , David J. Ward , Alison M. Murray , Izzet K. Aimbetov , Lisa L. Van Loon , Neil R. Banerjee
The Bissekty Formation (Turonian, Uzbekistan) provides new insights into the reorganization of aquatic paleocommunities that occurred during the Turonian thermal maximum, a period of significant climatic and faunal change. The assemblage includes four basal neopterygians and 13 teleosts. Teleosts are dominated by members of early diverging lineages, including Ichthyodectiformes, Elopomorpha, Osteoglossiformes, and Clupeomorpha. More derived teleosts present in the assemblage includes a characiform and an acanthomorph. The assemblage is distinctive compared to Late Cretaceous assemblages from North America in the high abundance of ichthyodectiforms and elopomorphs and both high abundance and large size of acanthomorphs. The Bissekty fish assemblages differs from preceding Cenomanian assemblages of Laurasia in the absence of two taxa that were dominant in the earlier Cenomanian assemblages, Scheenstia López-Arbarello and Sferco, 2011 (Lepidotidae) and a pycnodont, and the appearance of seven new taxa. One of the newly appearing taxa is a member of Characiformes, a group that is thought to have originated in Gondwana, adding to the evidence that the introduction of new taxa was a result, in part, of intercontinental dispersal events. All seven of the taxa that first appear in the Bissekty Formation are closely related to, or indistinguishable from, taxa present in the North American portion of Laurasia. However, only two of these are known to occur in North America during the Turonian, with the remaining taxa first occurring in North America in a step-wise pattern during the Late Cretaceous. Conversely, two of the taxa that first occur in the Turonian of the North American portion of Laurasia are absent in Asian assemblages.
Bissekty组（Turonian, Uzbekistan）为研究发生在Turonian热极大期的水生古群落重组提供了新的见解，这是一个重大的气候和动物变化时期。该组合包括4种基翅类和13种硬骨鱼类。硬骨鱼主要是早期分化谱系的成员，包括鱼形目、鱼形目、骨舌形目和鱼形目。在组合中存在的更多衍生硬骨鱼包括特征鱼和棘形鱼。与北美晚白垩世的组合相比，该组合的特点是鱼形类和鱼形类丰度高，棘形类丰度高，尺寸大。Bissekty鱼类组合与Laurasia以前的Cenomanian组合的不同之处在于缺少两个在早期Cenomanian组合中占主导地位的分类群，Scheenstia López-Arbarello and Sferco, 2011（鳞翅目）和一个长齿鱼，并且出现了7个新的分类群。其中一个新出现的分类群是characterformes的成员，该分类群被认为起源于冈瓦纳，这进一步证明了新分类群的引入部分是洲际分散事件的结果。在Bissekty组首次出现的所有7个分类群都与月桂属北美部分的分类群密切相关或难以区分。然而，其中只有两个已知出现在北美的Turonian期间，其余的分类群在晚白垩纪期间以阶梯模式首次出现在北美。相反，在月牙亚属北美部分的土伦系中首次出现的两个分类群在亚洲的组合中却没有出现。
{"title":"Fish Faunas from the Bissekty Formation (Turonian), Uzbekistan: Insights into biogeographic connectivity and climate-driven Faunal Turnover","authors":"Donald B. Brinkman , Martin Kundrát , David J. Ward , Alison M. Murray , Izzet K. Aimbetov , Lisa L. Van Loon , Neil R. Banerjee","doi":"10.1016/j.cretres.2025.106252","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.cretres.2025.106252","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>The Bissekty Formation (Turonian, Uzbekistan) provides new insights into the reorganization of aquatic paleocommunities that occurred during the Turonian thermal maximum, a period of significant climatic and faunal change. The assemblage includes four basal neopterygians and 13 teleosts. Teleosts are dominated by members of early diverging lineages, including Ichthyodectiformes, Elopomorpha, Osteoglossiformes, and Clupeomorpha. More derived teleosts present in the assemblage includes a characiform and an acanthomorph. The assemblage is distinctive compared to Late Cretaceous assemblages from North America in the high abundance of ichthyodectiforms and elopomorphs and both high abundance and large size of acanthomorphs. The Bissekty fish assemblages differs from preceding Cenomanian assemblages of Laurasia in the absence of two taxa that were dominant in the earlier Cenomanian assemblages, <em>Scheenstia</em> López-Arbarello and Sferco, 2011 (Lepidotidae) and a pycnodont, and the appearance of seven new taxa. One of the newly appearing taxa is a member of Characiformes, a group that is thought to have originated in Gondwana, adding to the evidence that the introduction of new taxa was a result, in part, of intercontinental dispersal events. All seven of the taxa that first appear in the Bissekty Formation are closely related to, or indistinguishable from, taxa present in the North American portion of Laurasia. However, only two of these are known to occur in North America during the Turonian, with the remaining taxa first occurring in North America in a step-wise pattern during the Late Cretaceous. Conversely, two of the taxa that first occur in the Turonian of the North American portion of Laurasia are absent in Asian assemblages.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":55207,"journal":{"name":"Cretaceous Research","volume":"179 ","pages":"Article 106252"},"PeriodicalIF":1.7,"publicationDate":"2026-02-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145418134","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"地球科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2026-02-01Epub Date: 2025-09-17DOI: 10.1016/j.cretres.2025.106240
Han Sang Yoon , Hyun Wook Kim , Jin-Young Park , Seung-Ho Jung , Dal-Yong Kong , Yuong-Nam Lee
A quadrupedal trackway (GS-BHG 2) reported from the Bonghwa-gol tracksite of the Upper Cretaceous Jindong Formation (Cenomanian) shows morphological differences from other dinosaur ichnotaxa from South Korea and other Asian countries. The trackway GS-BHG 2 is characterized by an elongated pes with three short, blunt, and straight digits and oval-to kidney-shaped manus without discernible digit traces showing low heteropody and wide trackway gauge. Based on its morphological characteristics and the temporal distribution of dinosaur fauna during the ‘mid’-Cretaceous, the trackmaker of GS-BHG 2 is tentatively assigned as an ankylosaurid dinosaur, and we refer this trackway as cf. Ruopodosaurus. Pes tracks of GS-BHG 2 show differential depth in their medial and lateral parts, implying that the pressure was focused on the medial part of the pedes during locomotion.
{"title":"First reports of a probable ankylosaurian (Thyreophora) trackway from the Jindong Formation (Cenomanian) of Goseong County, South Korea","authors":"Han Sang Yoon , Hyun Wook Kim , Jin-Young Park , Seung-Ho Jung , Dal-Yong Kong , Yuong-Nam Lee","doi":"10.1016/j.cretres.2025.106240","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.cretres.2025.106240","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>A quadrupedal trackway (GS-BHG 2) reported from the Bonghwa-gol tracksite of the Upper Cretaceous Jindong Formation (Cenomanian) shows morphological differences from other dinosaur ichnotaxa from South Korea and other Asian countries. The trackway GS-BHG 2 is characterized by an elongated pes with three short, blunt, and straight digits and oval-to kidney-shaped manus without discernible digit traces showing low heteropody and wide trackway gauge. Based on its morphological characteristics and the temporal distribution of dinosaur fauna during the ‘mid’-Cretaceous, the trackmaker of GS-BHG 2 is tentatively assigned as an ankylosaurid dinosaur, and we refer this trackway as cf. <em>Ruopodosaurus</em>. Pes tracks of GS-BHG 2 show differential depth in their medial and lateral parts, implying that the pressure was focused on the medial part of the pedes during locomotion.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":55207,"journal":{"name":"Cretaceous Research","volume":"178 ","pages":"Article 106240"},"PeriodicalIF":1.7,"publicationDate":"2026-02-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145221736","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"地球科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
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