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Article Reference Octet Stream Keeping cats for mummification in ancient Egypt: osteological evidence from Beni Hassan
The present study documents a substantial assemblage of cat skulls derived from Ancient Egyptian mummies and housed at the Natural History Museum in Vienna (Austria). Examination of the museum's archival correspondence clarified the collection's provenance and acquisition history during the 1880s. Morphological and osteometric analyses were conducted on 131 well-preserved skulls of small felids from Beni Hassan (Speos Artemidos/Stabl Antar). The assemblage includes a small number of jungle cat skulls (Felis chaus), while the marked size variation among the remaining specimens suggests that, in addition to domestic cats (Felis catus), African wild cats (Felis lybica) and possibly hybrids may also be present. Age-at-death estimates based on dental evidence indicate that the collection is biased towards adult and subadult individuals relative to the age profiles reconstructed from X-ray analyses of wrapped mummies. More than half of the felids exhibit pathologies, primarily dental anomalies, along with healed fractures, puncture marks, and deformations possibly linked to infectious or metabolic disorders. Notably, all but one of the jungle cats show pathological alterations, suggesting that all the felids were housed together and subjected to similar captive conditions. Radiocarbon dating was performed on a subsample of four jungle cats and five other small felids. With the exception of one specimen dated to the Third Intermediate Period, all individuals originate from the end of the Late Period and the beginning of the Ptolemaic era. Stable isotope analysis (δ13C and δ15N) of four Felis chaus and twelve Felis cf. catus reveals dietary or environmental differences, suggesting that the jungle cats likely did not reproduce in captivity.
Located in Library / RBINS Staff Publications 2026
Article Reference The new Sarimini planthopper genus Nuichuarima gen. nov. from Nui Chua National Park in southern Central Vietnam (Hemiptera: Fulgoromorpha: Issidae)
Located in Library / RBINS Staff Publications 2025
Article Reference Echoes of Evolution in Holocentridae: Harmony Between Phylogeny, Morphology and Acoustics
ABSTRACT Holocentridae are nocturnal reef fishes that rely on acoustic communication in various behavioral contexts. Using a multidisciplinary approach combining phylogenetics, morphology, and acoustic data from 53 species, we reconstructed the evolutionary history of this communication system within the family. Our results reveal two main clades corresponding to the subfamilies Myripristinae and Holocentrinae, with congruent differences in both the morphology of the sound-producing apparatus and acoustic features. Interestingly, at finer taxonomic scales, closely related species often share similar sound-producing structures but can produce distinct sounds. This suggests that the evolution of acoustic communication in Holocentridae follows a three-step diversification pattern: (1) the emergence of structures enabling sound production; (2) differentiation of sound-producing mechanisms within each subfamily, likely constrained by internal factors such as the swim bladder morphology; and (3) further diversification through differentiated use of conserved mechanisms, consistent with a role of neurophysiological modulation. This scenario mirrors patterns observed in other functional traits, where morphological innovations open new functional pathways, followed by fine-scale diversification based on the flexible exploitation of similar structures. It provides one of the first evolutionary reconstructions of sound production mechanisms in fishes, expanding our understanding of the evolution of complex signaling systems.
Located in Library / RBINS Staff Publications 2026
Article Reference A new bowhead whale-like genus from the Early Pliocene of Antwerpen illuminates phylogenetic relationships and body size evolution in Balaenidae (Cetacea, Mysticeti)
Located in Library / RBINS Staff Publications 2026
Article Reference Tracking individual dietary choices in complex past food webs: Integrated bulk collagen and compound-specific stable isotope analysis of urban cats
Reconstructing dietary strategies in past urban environments is challenging because of the complexity of anthropogenic impacts on food webs, in which diverse local and imported resources with variable isotopic compositions limit the interpretive power of conventional bulk-collagen stable isotope analysis. We address this problem using domestic cats as dietary proxies, exploiting their opportunistic foraging behavior to track resource partitioning within a medieval urban landscape. We present an integrated multi-isotope study of cat bone collagen from medieval Gdańsk (northern Poland) and six regional comparative sites, combining bulk collagen δ13C, δ15N, and δ34S analysis with compound-specific δ13C and δ15N analysis of amino acids. Despite apparent isotopic homogeneity in the Gdańsk assemblage within the conventional bulk collagen dual-isotope space, the expanded isotopic framework reveals substantial individual-level dietary variability. Sulfur isotopes indicate diverse food provenances, including baseline values of the marine ecosystem and grain imported from inland regions. Amino acid-based fingerprinting identifies diets spanning terrestrial C3 and C4, freshwater, and marine ecosystem baselines, while amino acid-based trophic position proxies reveal highly variable individual trophic levels uncorrelated with bulk collagen δ15N values. These findings demonstrate that isotopic homogeneity in the conventional dual-isotope space can mask substantial dietary heterogeneity. Our study highlights the potential of integrating amino acid analysis with sulfur isotope analysis to reconstruct individual-level food choices in complex past environments.
Located in Library / RBINS Staff Publications 2026
Article Reference Unusual skip and groove marks from the Carboniferous Denée Konservat‑Lagerstätte (Visean, Belgium)
Located in Library / RBINS Staff Publications 2026
Article Reference The Consthum Lagerstätte (Luxembourg) – a window into the palaeoecology of Early Devonian marine‑terrestrial transitional facies
In the Rhenish Massif, a vast Lower Devonian deltaic system along the southern edge of Laurussia (Old Red Continent) continues to yield exceptional fossils from marginal marine to terrestrial transitional facies. Hitherto, these occurrences are mainly known from the lower Moselle and West-Eifel regions in Germany. Here, we introduce a new Lagerstätte situated in northern Luxembourg, which extends the known geographical occurrence of this important biota further to the west. It agrees more-or-less with previously known localities from Germany in the general composition of the fossil association, which is composed of a bivalve-lingulid-arthropod-dominated association with a few associated vertebrate remains, macro-plants, and some miospores. Unique features include a mass occurrence of clam shrimp, the high abundance of scorpions and juvenile specimens of the eurypterid Adelophthalmus as well as the occurrence of supposed euthycarcinoids and (stem?) onychophorans. Analyses of the Consthum Lagerstätten and biota have great potential to further illuminate the palaeoecology and palaeogeography of marginal-marine to terrestrial transitional settings in the Ardenno-Rhenish Lower Devonian and to decipher the palaeoecological origin of various lineages of organisms, such as clam shrimp, scorpions, and onychophorans. This is of paramount importance for a holistic understanding of the biology and physiology of their modern descendants.
Located in Library / RBINS Staff Publications 2026
Article Reference Redescription of Teretoctopus alcocki Robson, 1932 (Cephalopoda: Enterotopodidae), and comments on the nomenclature of "inkless octopus" genera.
Located in Library / RBINS Staff Publications 2025
Article Reference On the presence of the phacopid trilobite Omegops in the uppermost Famennian of northern France (Avesnois)
Located in Library / RBINS Staff Publications 2026
Article Reference A selkirkiid scalidophoran from the Lower Devonian of Belgium and the dubious merit of the concept of ‘Burgess Shale-type’ organisms
Located in Library / RBINS Staff Publications 2026