Early–Middle Triassic fluvial ecosystems of Mallorca (Balearic Islands): Biotic communities and environmental evolution in the equatorial western peri-Tethys

Matamales‐Andreu, Rafel; Peñalver, Enrique; Mujal, Eudald; Oms, Oriol; Scholze, Frank; Juárez, Josep; Galobart, Àngel; Fortuny, Josep

doi:10.1016/j.earscirev.2021.103783

Cited by 8 publications

(31 citation statements)

References 107 publications

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“…sollingensis Kozur & Lepper in Kozur & Weems, 2010 (Matamales‐Andreu et al . 2021). Other insects present in Pedra Alta were mayfly nymphs of an indeterminate detritivorous morphotype preserving cololites (abundant) and the species Triassoephemera punctata Sinitshenkova & Marchal‐Papier in Sinitshenkova et al , 2005, Triassonurus doliiformis Sinitshenkova & Marchal‐Papier in Sinitshenkova et al , 2005 and cf.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The body fossils and invertebrate traces from Pedra Alta provide several insights into the early Middle Triassic aquatic trophic net (Matamales‐Andreu et al . 2021). Phytoplankton and photosynthetic bacteria could have been the primary producers in the palaeoecosystem.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The specimens studied herein were found during two palaeontological excavations (further details in Matamales‐Andreu et al . 2021) and are housed at the Museu de Mallorca (Palma, Mallorca, Balearic Islands, Spain), with an abbreviation in the form: DA21/[campaign number]‐[horizon number]‐[specimen number].…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…A, simplified geological map of the west end of the island of Mallorca (Balearic Islands), with the position of the study area and Pedra Alta site, and simplified stratigraphic log of the Pedra Alta section (simplified from Matamales‐Andreu et al . 2021); red arrow indicates the level at which the fossil dipterans were found, and colours in the stratigraphic log indicate variable rock colouration. B, panoramic view of the outcrop of Pedra Alta (arrow indicates a member of excavation team).…”

Section: Geographical and Geological Contextmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…1; see Matamales‐Andreu et al . 2021; Scholze & Matamales‐Andreu 2021, for further details). This site has been correlated to the upper part of the Estellencs Formation (Fig.…”

Section: Geographical and Geological Contextmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 4 more Smart Citations

Early adaptations of true flies (Diptera) to moist and aquatic continental environments

Peñalver

Matamales‐Andreu

Nel

et al. 2022

Papers in Palaeontology

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Insect colonization of continental aquatic ecosystems and their immediate surroundings was paramount for the establishment of complex trophic nets and organic‐matter recycling in those environments. True flies and other insects such as mayflies developed crucial ecological roles in early continental aquatic ecosystems, as early as the Triassic. However, the mode and tempo of these processes remain poorly known, partly due to a critical fossil record gap before the Middle Triassic. Here we study the dipterans from the early Middle Triassic Konservat‐Lagerstätte of Pedra Alta (Aegean, early Anisian, Spain), which yields the oldest records of the order. Protoanisolarva juarezi gen. et sp. nov., based on an exceptionally preserved larva, shares key features with the extant nematoceran family Anisopodidae. Developing in inferred moist terrestrial environments contiguous with pools inhabited by aquatic organisms, it represents the only known Triassic dipteran larva with terrestrial affinities indicating that the amphipneustic respiratory system of insect larvae extends back to c. 247 Ma. Two nematoceran aquatic pupae are also described: one classified as Voltziapupa cf. cornuta, and the other as an indeterminate taxon. Finally, an egg cluster belonging to the ootaxon Clavapartus latus is likely to have been produced by chironomids. These eggs were included in a mucilaginous matrix, a probable adaptation against predation and/or changing conditions, including desiccation. These new findings provide key data on the early evolutionary history of the mega‐diverse order Diptera, the ecology of their ancestral pre‐adult forms, and the functioning of early Middle Triassic continental aquatic ecosystems.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Geographical and Geological Contextmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…1; see Matamales‐Andreu et al . 2021; Scholze & Matamales‐Andreu 2021, for further details). This site has been correlated to the upper part of the Estellencs Formation (Fig.…”

Section: Geographical and Geological Contextmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 3 more Smart Citations

Early adaptations of true flies (Diptera) to moist and aquatic continental environments

Peñalver

Matamales‐Andreu

Nel

et al. 2022

Papers in Palaeontology

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Early detritivory and sedimentivory in insects based on in situ gut contents from Triassic aquatic nymphs

Peñalver

Matamales‐Andreu

Juárez‐Ruiz³

et al. 2023

Papers in Palaeontology

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The colonization of freshwater by insects is one of the milestones in the establishment of continental ecosystems and, thus, of life on our planet. However, several key aspects of this process such as patterns of origination, early adaptations and palaeoecological relationships of the groups involved remain poorly known, namely due to the scarcity of significant assemblages. The Palaeozoic fossil record of freshwater insects is poor and unstudied in suitable detail. Here we analyse exceptionally preserved, three-dimensional cololites (in situ gut contents) in abundant mayfly nymphs from Pedra Alta (lower Anisian, lowermost Middle Triassic; Mallorca, Spain), which probably inhabited lentic waters (pools) in a riverine ecosystem. This Konservat-Lagerst€ atte shows an aquatic insect assemblage c. 2 myr older than the similar locality of Gr es a Voltzia (Northern Vosges, France). Detailed morphological and elemental analysis show that the cololites are composed of the same very fine-grained claystone as the fossil-bearing rock. This study presents the oldest direct evidence of insect detritivory, as well as most probably that of sedimentivory. The trophic niche represented by insect sedimentivory in the early continental aquatic ecosystem of Pedra Alta is not known for the subsequent c. 240 myr of insect evolutionary history and up to the present. This lifestyle in extant insects is extremely infrequent and is known only in a few species of burrowing mayfly nymphs. Our findings illuminate the role of insects in detritus processing in relatively complex food webs shortly after the end-Permian mass extinction event.

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Early–middle Permian ecosystems of equatorial Pangaea: Integrated multi-stratigraphic and palaeontological review of the Permian of Mallorca (Balearic Islands, western Mediterranean)

Matamales‐Andreu

Mujal

Dinarès-Turell

et al. 2022

Earth-Science Reviews

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Early–Middle Triassic fluvial ecosystems of Mallorca (Balearic Islands): Biotic communities and environmental evolution in the equatorial western peri-Tethys

Cited by 8 publications

References 107 publications

Early adaptations of true flies (Diptera) to moist and aquatic continental environments

Early adaptations of true flies (Diptera) to moist and aquatic continental environments

Early detritivory and sedimentivory in insects based on in situ gut contents from Triassic aquatic nymphs

Early–middle Permian ecosystems of equatorial Pangaea: Integrated multi-stratigraphic and palaeontological review of the Permian of Mallorca (Balearic Islands, western Mediterranean)

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