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We studied at least part of Kuhnʼs original material of lizards from the Paleocene (~ MP 5) of the Walbeck locality in Germany. The collection was considered to be lost but is consistently discussed in the literature due to its importance. We restudied the type material of aff. Parasauromalus paleocenicus and aff. Glyptosaurus walbeckensis described by Kuhn in 1940. The former was originally allocated to Iguania, the latter to Anguimorpha, though later on these identifications were questioned by several authors. We show such a classification of both cannot be upheld. P. paleocenicus resembles the morphology of lacertids showing their presence in Europe already around MP 5. We consider the name P. paleocenicus as a nomen dubium. The material of aff. G. walbeckensis was later suggested to belong to Lacertidae and also considered as a potential amphisbaenian. Although it differs from modern amphisbaenians, it shares features with one supposed polyodontobaenid – Camptognathosaurus parisiensis. The Walbeck form is identical to this species. Since the Walbeck taxon was described in 1940, the principle of priority makes Camptognathosaurus parisiensis a junior synonym of the species erected by Kuhn. We propose a new combined name for this form, Camptognathosaurus walbeckensis comb. nov. The specimen figured by Kuhn is currently lost, thus we designate a neotype from Walbeck. However, this taxon differs significantly from Polyodontobaena and new data doubt the attribution of Camptognathosaurus to Amphisbaenia. This taxon is tentatively assigned here to Lacertidae, as further confirmed by phylogenetic analyses. Material of Scincoidea is also described. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We describe nearly complete skeletons of basal Anseriformes from the Latest Paleocene to the early Eocene of North America and Europe. Collectively, these birds appear to be representative of anseriforms near the divergence of Anhimae and Anseres, but their exact positions relative to these clades remains uncertain. A new family, Anachronornithidae nov. fam., is erected on the basis of one of these, Anachronornis anhimops nov. gen., nov. gen. et sp., to which the others cannot be confidently assigned. The new fossils augment a growing collection of early Pan-Anseriformes, which in their diversity do not paint an unambiguous picture of phylogeny or character state evolution on the path to or within crown-Anseriformes. Anachronornis nov. gen. is similar in some aspects of both cranial and postcranial anatomy to other well-represented early Paleogene Anseriformes and members of Anseres, such as Presbyornis Wetmore, 1926. However, it exhibits a more landfowl-like bill, like that of Anhimae and unlike the spatulate bill of Anseres. Additional specimens of similar basal Anseriformes of uncertain affinities from the early Eocene of North America and Europe further complicate interpretation of character state polarity due to the mosaicism of primitive and derived characters they exhibit. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]