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Article Reference Unusual pectoral apparatus in a predatory dinosaur resolves avian wishbone homology
Located in Library / RBINS Staff Publications 2021
Article Reference New Pliocene right whale from Belgium informs balaenid phylogeny and function
Located in Library / RBINS Staff Publications 2020
Article Reference Phylogenetic analysis of the Baikalodrilus species flock (Annelida: Clitellata: Naididae), an endemic genus to Lake Baikal (Russia)
Lake Baikal is populated by an endemic genus of oligochaetes (Baikalodrilus), which currently comprises 24 morphospecies. The genus can be considered as a ‘species flock’. However, the validity of many species is questionable: the great similarity in their description and the lack of unequivocal diagnostic characters often lead species identification to an impasse. In order to clarify the systematics of this genus, we analysed two nuclear and two mitochondrial DNA markers of 40 Baikalodrilus specimens. DNA and morphological approaches are mostly congruent in suggesting ten candidate species, although two additional species are suspected. A reassessment of the taxonomic value of the morphological characteristics of Baikalodrilus suggests that there are few that can be used as distinctive, specific criteria in the genus. The association between candidate and nominal species remains problematic, except for three species identified prior to molecular analyses. Baikalodrilus trituberculum sp. nov. is described. Phylogenetic inferences suggests that the earliest split in Baikalodrilus and the time of divergence of most lineages corresponding to species are consistent with the hypothesis of a general rearrangement of the Baikal fauna, following major environmental changes due to a general cooling in the Early Pleistocene.
Located in Library / RBINS Staff Publications 2019
Article Reference A review of the geology and origin of CO2 in mineral water springs in east Belgium
Naturally CO2-rich mineral water springs (pouhons) in east Belgium occur in the context of the Rhenohercynian domain of the Variscan fold-and-thrust belt, mostly within the Cambro-Ordovician Stavelot-Venn Massif. The origin of the CO2 is still unclear, although different hypotheses exist. In this review study, we show pouhon waters are of the calcium bicarbonate type (~310 mg/l HCO3- on average), with notable Fe (~15 mg/l) and some Ca (~43 mg/l). Pouhon waters are primarily meteoric waters, as evidenced by H and O isotopic signature. The δ13Cof CO2 varies from -7.8 to +0.8‰ and contains up to ~15% He from magmatic origin, reflecting a combination of carbonate rocks and mantle as CO2 sources at depth. Dinantian and Middle Devonian carbonates at 2–6 km depth could be potential sources, with CO2 generated by dissolution. However, carbonates below the Stavelot-Venn Massif are only predicted by structural models that assume in-sequence thrusting, not by the more generally accepted out-of-sequence thrust models. The mantle CO2 might originate from degassing of the Eifel magmatic plume or an unknown shallower magmatic reservoir. Deep rooted faults are thought to act as preferential pathways. Overall low temperatures of pouhons (~10 °C) and short estimatedresidence times (up to 60 years) suggest magmatic CO2 is transported upwards to meet infiltrating groundwater at shallower depths, with partial to full isotopic exchange with carbonate rocks along its path, resulting in mixed magmatic-carbonate signature. Although the precise role and interaction of the involved subsurface processes remains debatable, this review study provides a baseline for future investigations.
Located in Library / RBINS Staff Publications 2020
Article Reference A new Four-clawed Gecko from limestone hills in Lopburi Province, central Thailand (Squamata, Gekkonidae: Gehyra)
We describe Gehyra wongchan sp. nov. from Tham Khao Chan (Khao Chan Cave), Tha Luang District, and Wat Khao Wong, Kok Samrong District, in Lopburi Province, central Thailand. The new species differs from all currently recognized Gehyra by the following combination of morphological characters and dorsal color pattern: maximal known snout–vent length of 52.4 mm, 8–10 supralabials, 76–80 dorsal and 48–50 ventral scale rows around midbody, absence of skin folds on limbs, 17 or 18 preanofemoral pores in males in a continuous series extending to mid-length of femur (pores absent in females), tail not- to moderately widened behind vent in adults, a single row of widened subcaudals, digits and toes unwebbed, 7 or 8 divided subdigital lamellae on 4th toe, and a dorsal pattern with white spots as large or larger than adjacent crescentic black markings on a beige to light-brown background.
Located in Library / RBINS Staff Publications 2022
Article Reference Reappraisal of the extinct seal “Phoca” vitulinoides from the Neogene of the North Sea Basin, with bearing on its geological age, phylogenetic affinities, and locomotion
Located in Library / RBINS Staff Publications 2017
Article Reference A Miocene pygmy right whale fossil from Australia
Located in Library / RBINS Staff Publications 2018
Article Reference First European record of the invasive barnacle Balanus glandula Darwin, 1854.
Located in Library / RBINS Staff Publications 2018
Article Reference Vertebrate predation in the Late Devonian evidenced by bite traces and regurgitations: implications for an early tetrapod freshwater ecosystem
The terrestrialization process by vertebrates occurred during the Devonian period, with fully land-dwelling tetrapods recorded in the Carboniferous. Thus, the Late Devonian is an important period for deciphering the ecological pressures that applied during the water-to-land transition. Higher predation pressures in the underwater environment have been suggested as an influential biotic evolutionary factor in this key habitat shift. Direct evidence of ancient predation on Palaeozoic vertebrates is seen in the form of rare traces preserved on fossils, and these range from trauma observed on the skeleton (such as attack marks) to ingested food remains (bromalites). The late Famennian freshwater ecosystem of Strud (Belgium) consists of a rich assemblage of many coeval gnathostomes or jawed fishes (placoderms, ‘acanthodians’, actinopterygians, and various sarcopterygian groups including tetrapods). Here we analyse the record of direct evidence for predation in the Strud vertebrate fossil assemblage. We recognize 12 regurgitalites and 13 bite traces, including a rare case of a tooth embedded in its original prey body target. Fossils from regurgitalites were imaged using scanning electron microscopy and chemically analysed to test for their possible ingestion signature by comparison with other isolated skeletal remains from the same locality. From this evidence, tristichopterid tetrapodomorphs are inferred to be the highest consumers of the trophic network, targeting small placoderms, and porolepiforms, and probably congeners. We observe two possible prey patterns in regurgitalites, for sarcopterygians and actinopterygians, both of which are associated with acanthodians. In Strud, no trophic position can be deduced for tetrapods from direct fossil evidence of predation.
Located in Library / RBINS Staff Publications 2022
Article Reference Opportunistic feeding habits of two African freshwater clupeid fishes: DNA metabarcoding unravels spatial differences in diet and microbiome, and identifies new prey taxa
The African Lake Tanganyika clupeids play an important role in the lake's ecosystem and have a high regional economic and nutritional value. Using DNA metabarcoding, we analysed the prey item composition and microbiome of these two clupeid species, Stolothrissa tanganicae and Limnothrissa miodon. We sequenced the mitochondrial COI region of the gut content for prey analysis and the 16S rRNA region of the hindgut content for microbiome analysis of 140 fish sampled at five locations across Lake Tanganyika. Our research confirmed previously reported prey items and discovered prey items that were not reported before, including the jellyfish Limnocnida tanganjicae. The hindgut of the fish harboured 15 bacterial phyla, with the most common being Firmicutes and Proteobacteria. The two clupeid species differed in diet, but not in microbiome. Further, the diet of S. tanganicae, but not its microbiome, varied on a spatial scale, whereas the microbiome, but not the diet, of L. miodon showed spatial variation. Our findings suggest that the Lake Tanganyika clupeids are opportunists, with a diet reflecting the local zooplankton community's composition. These results can serve as a useful reference for monitoring the health status of economically important fish stocks.
Located in Library / RBINS Staff Publications 2023