The Southernmost Occurrence of the Aquatic Sloth<i>Thalassocnus</i>(Mammalia, Tardigrada) in Two New Pliocene Localities in Chile

Arcos, Saleta; Partarrieu, Diego; Carrillo-Briceño, Jorge D.; Amson, Eli

doi:10.5710/amgh.29.12.2016.3004

Cited by 8 publications

(9 citation statements)

References 23 publications

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“…6). Both taxa, along with other vertebrates (e.g., the pontoporiid Brachydelphis, the long-snouted seal Acrophoca, the penguin Spheniscus, and crocodylians), have also been recovered from the northern coast of Chile (Walsh and Naish 2002;Canto et al 2008;Gutstein et al 2009;Pyenson et al 2014;De los Arcos et al 2017), suggesting that the southeastern Pacific coastal areas (~ 14-25 ºS) have shared similar Crown odontocete subclades from the EPB lost substantial genus richness (from 10 to 3 genera) at ~ 7-6 Ma (Fig. 6).…”

Section: ~ 10-7 Ma: Morphological Diversification Of Crown Delphinidans and Dawn Of Endemic Taxamentioning

confidence: 99%

Late Neogene evolution of the Peruvian margin and its ecosystems: a synthesis from the Sacaco record

Ochoa

Salas-Gismondi

DeVries

et al. 2021

Int J Earth Sci (Geol Rundsch)

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The highly productive waters of the Humboldt Current System (HCS) host a particular temperate ecosystem within the tropics, whose history is still largely unknown. The Pisco Formation, deposited during Mio-Pliocene times in the Peruvian continental margin has yielded an outstanding collection of coastal-marine fossils, providing an opportunity to understand the genesis of the HCS ecosystem. We present a comprehensive review, completed with new results, that integrates geological and paleontological data from the last 10 My, especially focusing on the southern East Pisco Basin (Sacaco area). We discuss the depositional settings of the Pisco Formation and integrate new U/Pb radiometric ages into the chronostratigraphic framework of the Sacaco sub-basin. The last preserved Pisco sediments at Sacaco were deposited ~ 4.5 Ma, while the overlying Caracoles Formation accumulated from ~ 2.7 Ma onwards. We identified a Pliocene angular unconformity encompassing 1.7 My between these formations, associated with a regional phase of uplift. Local and regional paleoenvironmental indicators suggest that shallow settings influenced by the offshore upwelling of ventilated and warm waters prevailed until the early Pliocene. We present an extensive synthesis of the late Miocene–Pleistocene vertebrate fossil record, which allows for an ecological characterization of the coastal-marine communities, an assessment of biodiversity trends, and changes in coastal-marine lineages in relation to modern HCS faunas. Our synthesis shows that: (i) typical endemic coastal Pisco vertebrates persisted up to ~ 4.5 Ma, (ii) first modern HCS toothed cetaceans appear at ~ 7–6 Ma, coinciding with a decline in genus diversity, and (iii) a vertebrate community closer to the current HCS was only reached after 2.7 Ma. The genesis of the Peruvian coastal ecosystem seems to be driven by a combination of stepwise transformations of the coastal geomorphology related to local tectonic pulses and by a global cooling trend leading to the modern oceanic circulation system.

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Section: ~ 10-7 Ma: Morphological Diversification Of Crown Delphinidans and Dawn Of Endemic Taxamentioning

confidence: 99%

Late Neogene evolution of the Peruvian margin and its ecosystems: a synthesis from the Sacaco record

Ochoa

Salas-Gismondi

DeVries

et al. 2021

Int J Earth Sci (Geol Rundsch)

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“…In addition to the original records of Peru, this taxon was only subsequently recorded in the late Neogene (Upper Miocene to the Upper Pliocene) of Chile (Fig. 1A), in a similar paleoenvironmental context to those found in Peru (Canto et al, 2008; Suárez et al, 2011; De los Arcos et al, 2017; Peralta-Prato and Solórzano, 2019).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 59%

“…Later, new findings were reported from two new Pliocene localities of central-northern Chile. One of them is Lomas del Sauce, Coquimbo Formation (probably Pliocene in age; see De los Arcos et al, 2017), and the other is Playa La Luna, Horcón Formation (Late Pliocene; see Carrillo-Briceño et al, 2013). In both localities the bearing sediments are of marine origin (De los Arcos et al, 2017).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Unexpected record of the aquatic slothThalassocnus(Mammalia, Xenarthra, Folivora) in the upper Neogene of the Puna (Jujuy, Argentina)

Quiñones

Zurita

Miño-Boilini

et al. 2022

Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology

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Xenarthra are, very probably, the most basally branching clade among Placentalia, and the result of the so-called “Splendid Isolation” of South America. Although this is the only endemic clade with living representatives, its current diversity is very poor compared with that achieved during most of the Cenozoic. One particular clade, Folivora (living and fossil sloths), includes one of the most enigmatic animals, Thalassocnus, the only genus of the subfamily Thalassocninae. It was originally interpreted as an aquatic sloth taking into account the previous records, which are limited to coastal areas of the latest Miocene and Pliocene of Peru and Chile. Here we present the first record of Thalassocnus from Argentina, which in turn represents the first finding of the genus in a continental sequence. The materials (JUY-P-0180, radius, ulna and part of the articulated left manus) were exhumed from the upper member of the Tafna Formation (Late Miocene–Pliocene) in the eastern Puna (Jujuy Province), Argentina. In agreement with our comparative study, the cladistic analysis corroborates its identification as belonging to the genus Thalassocnus, being placed in a relatively basal location. This finding is of paleobiogeographic and paleoenvironmental significance, due to its location, more than 1171 km away from the Peruvian locality (Sacaco) and more than 750 km from the nearest ones in Chile (Caldera). This extends the geographic range from 76°W to 65°53′W, and from typical littoral environments, to clearly more terrestrial ones. The evolutionary and paleobiogeographic history of Thalassocnus is more complex than previously interpreted.

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“…New Pliocene records have been reported in Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, Chile, and Argentina. Many of these records belong to fragmentary or isolated specimens representing a broad range of taxa, including cetaceans such as Protoglobicephala mexicana (San Jose Island basin, Mexico; Aguirre- Fernández et al, 2009); the marine sloth Thalassocnus carolomartini (Coquimbo Fm., Chile;De Los Arcos et al, 2017), or fragmented phocid remains (Bahia Inglesa Fm. and marine sediments from Isla Guafo in southern Chile; Valenzuela-Toro et al, 2013;Valenzuela-Toro & Pyenson, 2022).…”

Section: Pliocenementioning

confidence: 99%

Aquatic mammal fossils in Latin America – a review of records, advances and challenges in research in the last 30 years

Viglino

Valenzuela‐Toro

Benites‐Palomino

et al. 2023

Lat. Am. J. Aquat. Mamm.

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Records of aquatic mammal fossils (e.g. cetaceans, pinnipeds, sirenians, mustelids, and desmostylians) from Latin America (Mexico to Tierra del Fuego, including Antartica) span since the mid-1800s. Aquatic mammal fossils received little attention from the scientific community, with most of the first studies conducted by Northern Hemisphere researchers. Over the last 30 years, paleontological research in Latin America has increased considerably, with descriptions of several new species and revisions of published original records. The Latin American fossil record of marine mammals spans from the Eocene to the Pleistocene, with formations and specimens of global significance. All three main groups of cetaceans are represented in the continent (Archaeoceti, Mysticeti, and Odontoceti). Pinnipedia are represented by the families Otariidae and Phocidae, with records starting in the Middle Miocene. Both living families of Sirenia (Trichechidae and Dugongidae) are recorded. While less common, but still relevant, records of desmostylians and mustelids are known from Oligocene and Miocene deposits. This review provides a summary of the aquatic mammals known to date, with a special focus on the advances and developments of the last 30 years, since Cozzuol’s (1996) review of the South American fossil record. An up-to-date complete list of species based on the literature and unpublished data is also provided. The study also provides future directions for paleontological research in Latin America, and discusses the challenges and opportunities in the field, including the emergence of a strong new generation of Latin American researchers, many of whom are women.

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The Southernmost Occurrence of the Aquatic SlothThalassocnus(Mammalia, Tardigrada) in Two New Pliocene Localities in Chile

Cited by 8 publications

References 23 publications

Late Neogene evolution of the Peruvian margin and its ecosystems: a synthesis from the Sacaco record

Late Neogene evolution of the Peruvian margin and its ecosystems: a synthesis from the Sacaco record

Unexpected record of the aquatic slothThalassocnus(Mammalia, Xenarthra, Folivora) in the upper Neogene of the Puna (Jujuy, Argentina)

Aquatic mammal fossils in Latin America – a review of records, advances and challenges in research in the last 30 years

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