Ebook: Morphology and Evolution of Turtles

This volume celebrates the contributions of Dr. Eugene Gaffney to the study of turtles, through a diverse and complementary collection of papers that showcases the latest research on one of the most intriguing groups of reptiles. A mix of focused and review papers deals with numerous aspects of the evolutionary history of turtles, including embryonic development, origins, early diversification, phylogenetic relationships, and biogeography. Moreover it includes reports on important but poorly understood fossil turtle assemblages, provides historical perspectives on turtle research, and documents disease and variation in turtles. With its broad scope, which includes descriptions of material and new taxa from Australia, Asia, and Europe, as well as North and South America, this work will be an essential resource for anyone interested in the morphology and evolution of turtles. “This volume’s breadth of time, geography, and taxonomic coverage makes it a major contribution to the field and a ‘must have’ for all vertebrate paleontologists.”, James F. Parham, California State University, CA, USA “A comprehensive and sweeping overview of turtle evolution by the top experts in the field that will interest everyone curious about these unique reptiles.” Jason S. Anderson, University of Calgary, Canada “An invaluable addition to the literature that covers the full spectrum of approaches toward understanding the evolution of these noble creatures.” Ann C. Burke, Wesleyan University, CT , USA “A truly comprehensive volume that both the student of fossil turtles, as well as the general reader interested in these enigmatic creatures, will find fascinating.” Tyler Lyson, Yale University, CT, USA​

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This volume celebrates the contributions of Dr. Eugene Gaffney to the study of turtles, through a diverse and complementary collection of papers that showcases the latest research on one of the most intriguing groups of reptiles. A mix of focused and review papers deals with numerous aspects of the evolutionary history of turtles, including embryonic development, origins, early diversification, phylogenetic relationships, and biogeography. Moreover it includes reports on important but poorly understood fossil turtle assemblages, provides historical perspectives on turtle research, and documents disease and variation in turtles. With its broad scope, which includes descriptions of material and new taxa from Australia, Asia, and Europe, as well as North and South America, this work will be an essential resource for anyone interested in the morphology and evolution of turtles.

“This volume’s breadth of time, geography, and taxonomic coverage makes it a major contribution to the field and a ‘must have’ for all vertebrate paleontologists.”,James F. Parham, California State University, CA, USA

“A comprehensive and sweeping overview of turtle evolution by the top experts in the field that will interest everyone curious about these unique reptiles.” Jason S. Anderson, University of Calgary, Canada

“An invaluable addition to the literature that covers the full spectrum of approaches toward understanding the evolution of these noble creatures.” Ann C. Burke, Wesleyan University, CT , USA

“A truly comprehensive volume that both the student of fossil turtles, as well as the general reader interested in these enigmatic creatures, will find fascinating.” Tyler Lyson, Yale University, CT, USA

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This volume celebrates the contributions of Dr. Eugene Gaffney to the study of turtles, through a diverse and complementary collection of papers that showcases the latest research on one of the most intriguing groups of reptiles. A mix of focused and review papers deals with numerous aspects of the evolutionary history of turtles, including embryonic development, origins, early diversification, phylogenetic relationships, and biogeography. Moreover it includes reports on important but poorly understood fossil turtle assemblages, provides historical perspectives on turtle research, and documents disease and variation in turtles. With its broad scope, which includes descriptions of material and new taxa from Australia, Asia, and Europe, as well as North and South America, this work will be an essential resource for anyone interested in the morphology and evolution of turtles.

“This volume’s breadth of time, geography, and taxonomic coverage makes it a major contribution to the field and a ‘must have’ for all vertebrate paleontologists.”,James F. Parham, California State University, CA, USA

“A comprehensive and sweeping overview of turtle evolution by the top experts in the field that will interest everyone curious about these unique reptiles.” Jason S. Anderson, University of Calgary, Canada

“An invaluable addition to the literature that covers the full spectrum of approaches toward understanding the evolution of these noble creatures.” Ann C. Burke, Wesleyan University, CT , USA

“A truly comprehensive volume that both the student of fossil turtles, as well as the general reader interested in these enigmatic creatures, will find fascinating.” Tyler Lyson, Yale University, CT, USA

Content:
Front Matter....Pages i-xix
Front Matter....Pages 1-1
Eugene S. Gaffney: A Professional Biography and Bibliography....Pages 3-8
Autobiography (Through May 2009)....Pages 9-15
Front Matter....Pages 17-17
Problems of the Ancestry of Turtles....Pages 19-36
Origin of the Turtle Body Plan: The Folding Theory to Illustrate Turtle-Specific Developmental Repatterning....Pages 37-50
The Evolution of the Turtle Shell....Pages 51-61
Three Ways to Tackle the Turtle: Integrating Fossils, Comparative Embryology, and Microanatomy....Pages 63-70
Geometric and Developmental Perspectives on the Evolution of the Skull and Internal Carotid Circulation in Turtles....Pages 71-101
Front Matter....Pages 103-103
Turtles from the Jurassic Shishugou Formation of the Junggar Basin, People’s Republic of China, with Comments on the Basicranial Region of Basal Eucryptodires....Pages 105-120
Morphology and Relationships of Brachyopsemys tingitana gen. et sp. nov. from the Early Paleocene of Morocco and Recognition of the New Eucryptodiran Turtle Family: Sandownidae....Pages 121-146
Front Matter....Pages 147-172
Two Synchronic and Sympatric Bothremydidae Taxa (Chelonii, Pleurodira) in the Late Cretaceous Site of “Lo Hueco” (Cuenca, Spain)....Pages 173-178
New Information about Pelomedusoides (Testudines: Pleurodira) from the Cretaceous of Brazil....Pages 179-185
A New Species of Bairdemys (Pelomedusoides: Podocnemididae) from the Oligocene (Early Chattian) Chandler Bridge Formation of South Carolina, USA, and Its Paleobiogeographic Implications for the Genus....Pages 187-212
Front Matter....Pages 213-213
Preliminary Overview of Late Cretaceous Turtle Diversity in Eastern Central Europe (Austria, Hungary, and Romania)....Pages 215-250
Re-Assessment of Late Campanian (Kirtlandian) Turtles from the Upper Cretaceous Fruitland and Kirtland Formations, San Juan Basin, New Mexico, USA....Pages 251-259
Front Matter....Pages 261-275
Cretaceous Trionychids of Asia: An Expanded Review of Their Record and Biogeography....Pages 277-287
Fossil European Sea Turtles: A Historical Perspective....Pages 289-303
Fossil Kinosternidae from the Oligocene and Miocene of Florida, USA....Pages 305-305
Front Matter....Pages 307-336
Osseous and Other Hard Tissue Pathologies in Turtles and Abnormalities of Mineral Deposition....Pages 337-387
Back Matter....Pages 305-305
....Pages 389-405