Marine vertebrate fauna from the late Eocene Samlat Formation of Ad-Dakhla, southwestern Morocco

Samir Zouhri; Bouziane Khalloufi; Estelle Bourdon; France De Lapparent De Broin; Jean-claude Rage; Leila M'haïdrat; Philip D. Gingerich; Najia Elboudali

doi:10.1017/S0016756817000759

Marine vertebrate fauna from the late Eocene Samlat Formation of Ad-Dakhla, southwestern Morocco

Samir Zouhri, Bouziane Khalloufi, Estelle Bourdon, France De Lapparent De Broin, Jean-claude Rage, Leila M'haïdrat, Philip D. Gingerich, Najia Elboudali

9 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

Late Eocene deposits of the Samlat Formation, south of Ad-Dakhla city, southwestern Morocco, have yielded a mixed marine and terrestrial vertebrate fauna. Abundant and diversified chondrichthyans and archaeocete whales have been found, as well as the remains of sirenians and proboscideans. Here we describe the rest of this fossil assemblage which includes actinopterygians, turtles, palaeophiid snakes, crocodiles and pelagornithid seabirds. Actinopterygians are represented by at least two large-sized taxa, a scombroid probably close to the extant Acanthocybium or to the Eocene Aramichthys, and a siluriform related to the Ariidae. Turtles include at least four species represented by shell fragments. This mixed coastal and continental turtle fauna includes one littoral species of Podocnemididae, one or two deep-sea species of Dermochelyidae and one deep-sea species of Cheloniidae. Another turtle species is assigned to the terrestrial Testudinidae. Fragmentary crocodilian remains indicate the presence of undetermined eusuchians tentatively referred to Gavialidae and/or to Crocodylidae. Snake vertebrae are tentatively attributed to the genus Pterosphenus (Palaeophiidae) pending the discovery of new material. Avian remains belong to a large pseudo-toothed bird (Pelagornithidae). Pseudo-tooth morphology resembles that of the late Oligocene - Neogene genus Pelagornis. Additional bird remains are needed for a more precise taxonomic assignment. The fossil assemblage and palaeoenvironment of the upper Eocene deposits of the Samlat Formation appear closely related to those of the upper Eocene - lower Oligocene deposits of the Fayum (Egypt). The initial overview of this fauna provides an important contribution to the study of vertebrate evolution in North Africa near the Eocene-Oligocene transition.

Original language	English
Journal	Geological Magazine
Volume	155
Issue number	07
Pages (from-to)	1596-1620
ISSN	0016-7568
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1017/S0016756817000759
Publication status	Published - 1 Oct 2018

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10.1017/S0016756817000759

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title = "Marine vertebrate fauna from the late Eocene Samlat Formation of Ad-Dakhla, southwestern Morocco",

abstract = "Late Eocene deposits of the Samlat Formation, south of Ad-Dakhla city, southwestern Morocco, have yielded a mixed marine and terrestrial vertebrate fauna. Abundant and diversified chondrichthyans and archaeocete whales have been found, as well as the remains of sirenians and proboscideans. Here we describe the rest of this fossil assemblage which includes actinopterygians, turtles, palaeophiid snakes, crocodiles and pelagornithid seabirds. Actinopterygians are represented by at least two large-sized taxa, a scombroid probably close to the extant Acanthocybium or to the Eocene Aramichthys, and a siluriform related to the Ariidae. Turtles include at least four species represented by shell fragments. This mixed coastal and continental turtle fauna includes one littoral species of Podocnemididae, one or two deep-sea species of Dermochelyidae and one deep-sea species of Cheloniidae. Another turtle species is assigned to the terrestrial Testudinidae. Fragmentary crocodilian remains indicate the presence of undetermined eusuchians tentatively referred to Gavialidae and/or to Crocodylidae. Snake vertebrae are tentatively attributed to the genus Pterosphenus (Palaeophiidae) pending the discovery of new material. Avian remains belong to a large pseudo-toothed bird (Pelagornithidae). Pseudo-tooth morphology resembles that of the late Oligocene - Neogene genus Pelagornis. Additional bird remains are needed for a more precise taxonomic assignment. The fossil assemblage and palaeoenvironment of the upper Eocene deposits of the Samlat Formation appear closely related to those of the upper Eocene - lower Oligocene deposits of the Fayum (Egypt). The initial overview of this fauna provides an important contribution to the study of vertebrate evolution in North Africa near the Eocene-Oligocene transition.",

author = "Samir Zouhri and Bouziane Khalloufi and Estelle Bourdon and {De Lapparent De Broin}, France and Jean-claude Rage and Leila M'ha{\"i}drat and Gingerich, {Philip D.} and Najia Elboudali",

year = "2018",

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doi = "10.1017/S0016756817000759",

language = "English",

volume = "155",

pages = "1596--1620",

journal = "Geological Magazine",

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T1 - Marine vertebrate fauna from the late Eocene Samlat Formation of Ad-Dakhla, southwestern Morocco

AU - Zouhri, Samir

AU - Khalloufi, Bouziane

AU - Bourdon, Estelle

AU - De Lapparent De Broin, France

AU - Rage, Jean-claude

AU - M'haïdrat, Leila

AU - Gingerich, Philip D.

AU - Elboudali, Najia

PY - 2018/10/1

Y1 - 2018/10/1

N2 - Late Eocene deposits of the Samlat Formation, south of Ad-Dakhla city, southwestern Morocco, have yielded a mixed marine and terrestrial vertebrate fauna. Abundant and diversified chondrichthyans and archaeocete whales have been found, as well as the remains of sirenians and proboscideans. Here we describe the rest of this fossil assemblage which includes actinopterygians, turtles, palaeophiid snakes, crocodiles and pelagornithid seabirds. Actinopterygians are represented by at least two large-sized taxa, a scombroid probably close to the extant Acanthocybium or to the Eocene Aramichthys, and a siluriform related to the Ariidae. Turtles include at least four species represented by shell fragments. This mixed coastal and continental turtle fauna includes one littoral species of Podocnemididae, one or two deep-sea species of Dermochelyidae and one deep-sea species of Cheloniidae. Another turtle species is assigned to the terrestrial Testudinidae. Fragmentary crocodilian remains indicate the presence of undetermined eusuchians tentatively referred to Gavialidae and/or to Crocodylidae. Snake vertebrae are tentatively attributed to the genus Pterosphenus (Palaeophiidae) pending the discovery of new material. Avian remains belong to a large pseudo-toothed bird (Pelagornithidae). Pseudo-tooth morphology resembles that of the late Oligocene - Neogene genus Pelagornis. Additional bird remains are needed for a more precise taxonomic assignment. The fossil assemblage and palaeoenvironment of the upper Eocene deposits of the Samlat Formation appear closely related to those of the upper Eocene - lower Oligocene deposits of the Fayum (Egypt). The initial overview of this fauna provides an important contribution to the study of vertebrate evolution in North Africa near the Eocene-Oligocene transition.

AB - Late Eocene deposits of the Samlat Formation, south of Ad-Dakhla city, southwestern Morocco, have yielded a mixed marine and terrestrial vertebrate fauna. Abundant and diversified chondrichthyans and archaeocete whales have been found, as well as the remains of sirenians and proboscideans. Here we describe the rest of this fossil assemblage which includes actinopterygians, turtles, palaeophiid snakes, crocodiles and pelagornithid seabirds. Actinopterygians are represented by at least two large-sized taxa, a scombroid probably close to the extant Acanthocybium or to the Eocene Aramichthys, and a siluriform related to the Ariidae. Turtles include at least four species represented by shell fragments. This mixed coastal and continental turtle fauna includes one littoral species of Podocnemididae, one or two deep-sea species of Dermochelyidae and one deep-sea species of Cheloniidae. Another turtle species is assigned to the terrestrial Testudinidae. Fragmentary crocodilian remains indicate the presence of undetermined eusuchians tentatively referred to Gavialidae and/or to Crocodylidae. Snake vertebrae are tentatively attributed to the genus Pterosphenus (Palaeophiidae) pending the discovery of new material. Avian remains belong to a large pseudo-toothed bird (Pelagornithidae). Pseudo-tooth morphology resembles that of the late Oligocene - Neogene genus Pelagornis. Additional bird remains are needed for a more precise taxonomic assignment. The fossil assemblage and palaeoenvironment of the upper Eocene deposits of the Samlat Formation appear closely related to those of the upper Eocene - lower Oligocene deposits of the Fayum (Egypt). The initial overview of this fauna provides an important contribution to the study of vertebrate evolution in North Africa near the Eocene-Oligocene transition.

U2 - 10.1017/S0016756817000759

DO - 10.1017/S0016756817000759

M3 - Journal article

SN - 0016-7568

VL - 155

SP - 1596

EP - 1620

JO - Geological Magazine

JF - Geological Magazine

IS - 07

ER -

Marine vertebrate fauna from the late Eocene Samlat Formation of Ad-Dakhla, southwestern Morocco

Abstract

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