New carcharhiniform sharks (Chondrichthyes, Elasmobranchii) from the early to middle Eocene of Seymour Island, Antarctic Peninsula

Author(s)
Andrea Engelbrecht, Thomas Mörs, Marcelo Reguero, Jürgen Kriwet
Abstract

Seymour Island, Antarctic Peninsula, is known for its wealth of fossil remains. This island provides one of the richest fossiliferous Paleogene sequences in the world. Chondrichthyans seemingly dominate this Eocene marine fauna and offer a rare insight into high-latitude faunas during the Palaeogene. So far, only a few isolated teeth of carcharhinid sharks have been reported from Seymour Island. Bulk sampling in the well-exposed La Meseta and Submeseta formations yielded new and abundant chondrichthyan material, including numerous teeth of carcharhinid and triakid sharks. Here, we present a reevaluation of the previously described carcharhinid remains and a description of new taxa: Meridiogaleus cristatus, gen. et sp. nov., Kallodentis rythistemma, gen. et sp. nov., Abdounia richteri, sp. nov., and Abdounia mesetae, sp. nov. The carcharhiniforms Mustelus sp. and Galeorhinus sp. are reported based on rare material, whereas teeth previously assigned to Scoliodon represent a nomen dubium. zoobank.org/urn:lsid:zoobank.org:pub:6FA3D201-3686-4129-BC09-10FC86E3DD34 Citation for this article: Engelbrecht, A., T. Mörs, M. A. Reguero, and J. Kriwet. 2017. New carcharhiniform sharks (Chondrichthyes, Elasmobranchii) from the early to middle Eocene of Seymour Island, Antarctic Peninsula. Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology. DOI: 10.1080/02724634.2017.1371724.

Organisation(s)
Department of Palaeontology
External organisation(s)
Swedish Museum of Natural History, Museo de La Plata
Journal
Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology
Volume
37
No. of pages
25
ISSN
0272-4634
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1080/02724634.2017.1371724
Publication date
11-2017
Peer reviewed
Yes
Austrian Fields of Science 2012
105118 Palaeontology
Keywords
Portal url
https://ucrisportal.univie.ac.at/en/publications/dd493e99-7e27-478d-b68a-25ddb1d16fb8