Search

Paromomyidae are one of several families of plesiadapiforms that flourished during the Paleocene in North America soon after the extinction of non-avian dinosaurs some 66 million years ago. Although they are often among the best-represented plesiadapiforms in mammalian faunas in both North America and Europe, the early history of paromomyids is poorly understood, and their fossil record at higher latitudes is comparatively depauperate. We report here on the discovery of two new species of paromomyids from Paleocene deposits in southwestern Alberta: Edworthia greggi new species is the second known species of the basal paromomyid Edworthia Fox, Scott, and Rankin, 2010 whereas Ignacius glenbowensis new species is among the most abundantly represented species of Ignacius Matthew and Granger, 1921. These new discoveries document, for the first time, parts of the upper dentition of Edworthia, and the new species of Ignacius represents the first new, pre-Clarkforkian species of the genus to be described in nearly 100 years. A comprehensive phylogenetic analysis of nearly all known paromomyid taxa (including the new species described herein) recovered both species of Edworthia near the base of the paromomyid tree in a polytomy with Paromomys depressidens Gidley, 1923 and a paraphyletic Ignacius. The new paromomyids from Alberta not only increase the known taxonomic diversity of Edworthia and Ignacius but also add significantly to knowledge of the dental anatomy of these poorly known genera and further add to a uniquely Canadian complement of Paleocene plesiadapiforms. UUID: http://zoobank.org/a2f31cfe-09b9-4168-b09f-9d0c3d0af342 [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although multituberculates are among the best-represented mammals of the Late Cretaceous and early Paleogene in North America, their evolution during the first several tens to hundreds of thousands of years following the Cretaceous–Paleogene (K–Pg) impact event is largely obscure. A better understanding of the early Paleogene record of multituberculates is crucial, for their dominance in early Paleocene mammalian faunas is unquestionably a result of rapid evolution during the immediate post-impact interval, and they accordingly played an important role in the evolution of mammalian communities more generally. I report on a new multituberculate from the early Paleocene of southwestern Alberta, in rocks of the Willow Creek Formation, the first such occurrence in this otherwise poorly known unit. The new multituberculate, Aenigmamys aries gen. et sp. nov., most closely resembles the ptilodontid Kimbetohia campi in comparable parts of the dentition and sheds light on the early evolution of Ptilodontidae, one of the major cimolodontan families that diversified during the Paleocene. The presence of Aenigmamys in mammalian faunas that lived soon after the K–Pg boundary implies a still-deeper evolutionary history for Ptilodontidae that may have extended into the Late Cretaceous. Aenigmamys is part of a new mammalian fauna from southwestern Alberta, the taxonomic composition of which includes a diversity of multituberculates, cimolestans, primates, and condylarths. The fauna correlates with those of middle Puercan age from other parts of the Western Interior of North America, and its high taxonomic diversity further corroborates previous hypotheses that multituberculate recovery — and mammalian recovery more generally — occurred relatively quickly after the K–Pg extinction event. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although the magnitude of the Cretaceous–Palaeogene extinction event, and the timing and tempo of the subsequent diversification of Mammalia, continue to be debated, the evidence to date unequivocally indicates that one mammalian group in particular, the Eutheria, benefitted enormously from the selective nature of the extinctions and flourished during the Palaeocene. Western Canada has long been an important region in documenting this diversification, with a fossil record that includes significant parts of the Palaeocene. I report here on the discovery of an unusual new eutherian from rocks of earliest Late Palaeocene age (earliest Tiffanian North American Land Mammal Age) in south-western Alberta. The new mammal, named Ferrequitherium sweeti gen. et sp. nov. closely resembles a second, slightly younger eutherian, Horolodectes sunae, in the major features of the molar dentition, but differs in having comparatively unspecialized premolars. The results of phylogenetic analyses under varying conditions show strong support for a close evolutionary relationship between Ferrequitherium gen. nov. and Horolodectes, and form the basis for naming a new family, the Horolodectidae fam. nov. Horolodectids first appear near the onset of chron 26r in south-western Alberta, at the beginning of the Late Palaeocene, and may have been one of several eutherian immigrants into the Alberta Basin during mammalian faunal turnover near the Early–Late Palaeocene boundary. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Multituberculates were among the most taxonomically diverse mammals of the early Paleocene, having survived the catastrophic Cretaceous-Paleogene mass extinction and radiating soon thereafter. Although their evolution during the early Paleocene saw the advent of increasingly specialized dentitions, multituberculates generally remained small, rarely exceeding body sizes greater than those of extant rabbits. A conspicuous exception is the Taeniolabidoidea, a primarily North American clade whose members include the largest multituberculates yet discovered. Taeniolabidoidea includes several genera, with one of these, Catopsalis, being speciose and geographically wide ranging. Until recently, the chronological succession of Catopsalis appeared to document a trend of increasing body size. We report here on a new species of Catopsalis from the early Paleocene of Alberta that violates this trend and suggests that the evolutionary history of Catopsalis is considerably more complex. Catopsalis kakwa new species is not only the smallest species of Catopsalis, but is the smallest taeniolabidoid so far discovered, with an estimated body mass between 400 g and 660 g. In contrast to previous studies, we used recently proposed regressions based on lower cheek tooth row length to estimate body masses for North American taeniolabidoids. Our results propose more modest body mass estimates, particularly for the largest taeniolabidoids. The occurrence of C. kakwa n. sp. in the late early Paleocene implies either a significant ghost lineage, or reversal of several characters, including body size, during the latter part of the early Paleocene; the more likely of these scenarios must await a better understanding of the phylogenetic position of C. kakwa n. sp. UUID: http://zoobank.org/66d85345-49b8-4a46-ba6e-a4d4369cb3e0 urn:lsid:zoobank.org:pub:AF7A5659-9068-4F2F-A6EC-5522A2BBA4CB [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The fossil record of the earliest primates, purgatoriid plesiadapiforms, has become increasingly well documented during the past two decades, but their dietary preferences remain poorly understood. While the available evidence, which consists mostly of isolated teeth and incomplete jaws with teeth, suggests that purgatoriids were insectivorous to omnivorous, we describe here a new species of Purgatorius, Purgatorius pinecreeensis sp. nov., that extends the range of purgatoriid dental disparity toward greater omnivory than had been known before. Purgatorius pinecreeensis sp. nov., from the early Paleocene (Puercan) Ravenscrag Formation of southwestern Saskatchewan, differs from other species of Purgatorius in having slightly lower crowned teeth with a lower trigonid relative to talonid, blunter and more swollen major cusps, more transverse lower molar paracristids, and m3 with a more robustly developed posterior lobe. Taken together, these specializations enhanced the capacity for crushing and grinding at the expense of orthal shear, and represent the first instance of a modest degree of bunodonty in the family. The discovery of P. pinecreeensis sp. nov., along with other recently reported basal plesiadapiforms from the Puercan and Torrejonian of the northern Western Interior, lends additional support to the notion of a significant primate radiation soon after the Cretaceous-Paleogene extinction event. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although stagodontid marsupials are among the most distinctive mammals of Late Cretaceous age in North America, there remain significant gaps in knowledge of their dental anatomy, particularly that of the stratigraphically oldest genus, Eodelphis Matthew, 1916. We report here on stagodontid specimens from the Judithian Belly River Group of southeastern Alberta, Canada, that document what was until now previously unknown parts of the upper and lower premolar dentition of Eodelphis browni Matthew, 1916 and Eodelphis cutleri (Smith Woodward, 1916). The new information further confirms the distinctiveness of both nominal species of Eodelphis, and bolsters previous hypotheses suggesting a close phylogenetic relationship between E. cutleri and the advanced stagodontid Didelphodon Marsh, 1889. Although the new specimens from Alberta suggest that the problematic holotype of "Boreodon matutinus" Lambe, 1902 is an upper third premolar, a referral to Eodelphis cannot be made with confidence and the name should continue to be treated as a nomen dubium. Lastly, we report the first occurrence of Didelphodon in strata of the Belly River Group, extending the geological age of the genus into the Judithian, co-eval with species of Eodelphis, and suggesting a significant prior and as yet undiscovered evolutionary history. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ursolestes perpetior gen. et sp. nov. is a large purgatoriid plesiadapiform primate from the middle/late Puercan (earliest Paleocene) Simpson Quarry, Montana, USA. It differs from Purgatorius Van Valen and Sloan, 1965, the only other known purgatoriid and the oldest discovered primate, in its substantially larger body size as inferred from the dimensions of the known parts of its dentition, while resembling Purgatorius in possessing a large lower canine, unreduced p1, and in the upper molars, a protocone twist and weakly developed postprotocone fold; moreover, the m3 of U. perpetior possesses an expanded, plesiadapiform-like posterior lobe of the talonid that supports the hypoconulid. The large lower canine and the greater development of trenchant molar crests suggest that U. perpetior was more insectivorous, differing appreciably from the omnivorous niche long hypothesized for Purgatorius and purportedly marking the insectivore-primate transition. Hence, U. perpetior adds significant new knowledge regarding the breadth of the adaptive zone occupied by purgatoriids in their position at the very beginnings of primate evolution. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The University of Washington (UW) Institute for Translational Health Sciences (ITHS), funded by a Clinical and Translational Sciences Award program, has supplemented its initial Kellogg Logic Model–based program evaluation with the eight judgment-based evaluative elements of the World Health Organization’s (WHO) Health Services Assessment Model. This article describes the relationship between the two models, the rationale for the decision to supplement the evaluation with WHO evaluative elements, the value-added results of the WHO evaluative elements, and plans for further developing the WHO assessments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although mammals of Paleocene age are well known from Alberta, their record is largely restricted to one lithological unit, the Paskapoo Formation (a record that includes mammals from the Cochrane area erroneously attributed to the Porcupine Hills Formation). We report here the first occurrence of Paleocene mammals from the Porcupine Hills Formation at exposures near the western edge of the city of Calgary. The assemblage, termed the Bearspaw local fauna, documents a diversity of multituberculate and eutherian mammals, including new species of the pentacodontid Aphronorus bearspawensis sp. nov., the mixodectid Eudaemonema bohachae sp. nov., the hyopsodontid Promioclaenus thnetus sp. nov., and a new genus and species of multituberculate ( Alopocosmodon hadrus gen. et sp. nov.) tentatively referred to the Microcosmodontidae. The Bearspaw local fauna also details the first Canadian occurrences of several taxa, including Ptilodus wyomingensis, Aphronorus fraudator, Bryanictis microlestes, Elpidophorus minor, and possibly Goniacodon. Preliminary biostratigraphic analyses suggest that the Bearspaw local fauna is middle Torrejonian (To2) in age, correlating most closely with near-coeval Gidley Quarry of Montana and Rock Bench Quarry of Wyoming. In addition to improving the depauperate record of Torrejonian mammals in western Canada, the new fauna is important in documenting a mammal assemblage from a lithological unit that is thought to have been deposited in semi-arid conditions, rather than the wetter and more humid conditions of the Paskapoo Formation. Further, the Bearspaw localities, along with several other recently discovered localities in the Calgary and Cochrane areas, closely bracket the 27n-26r chron boundary and as such will be important in detailing the Torrejonian-Tiffanian transition in western Canada. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Garbani Channel deposits, part of the Tullock Formation exposed in northeastern Montana, have yielded a large sample of vertebrates that probably lived during the Puercan 3 North American Land Mammal Age (NALMA). Four fossils in this sample - three isolated teeth and a medial phalanx - document the presence of a stylinodontid taeniodont, cf. Wortmania. Discovery of cf. Wortmania in the Tullock Formation extends the documented range of taeniodonts during Puercan 3 approximately 500 miles (800 km) northward from the San Juan Basin, New Mexico. Evaluation of the oldest records of taeniodonts, from the Lancian, Puercan, and Torrejonian NALMAs, highlights biases warranting future research. Recent phylogenetic analyses that resulted in numerous ghost lineages indicate that the available fossil record is far from complete. They open the possibility that the origin and initial radiation of taeniodonts occurred in areas yet to be sampled and their first occurrences might reflect immigration of invasive species. The available fossil record of taeniodonts is biased with significantly more abundant and complete specimens discovered in the San Juan Basin than at localities to the north. This bias is also apparent in the available samples of two other lineages of large Puercan mammals, the multituberculate Taeniolabis and the 'triisodontid' Eoconodon. Where they occur, taeniodonts are relatively rare members of any local fauna. Is their rarity a product of an ecological bias or a reflection of decreasing population size related to increasing body size? [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Beginning in 1962 and extending to the present, Richard C. Fox and colleagues have named 87 species of fossil vertebrates (1 fish, 4 amphibians, 2 choristoderes, 12 lizards, 1 crocodile, 1 dinosaur, 2 'pelycosaurs', 2 non-mammalian therapsids, and 62 mammals) and numerous new supraspecific taxa. Virtually all of these species continue to be accepted, although the higher-level assignments of several have been altered. The vast majority of the named species were founded on specimens, collected during the mid-1960s to early 2000s by field parties under Fox's direction, from the Late Cretaceous (late Santonian to late Maastrichtian) and Paleocene of Alberta and Saskatchewan, Canada, and that are housed at the University of Alberta Laboratory for Vertebrate Paleontology. Here we present ( i) an annotated list of all fossil vertebrate species named by Richard Fox between 1962 and 2012, ( ii) updated information on the stratigraphic nomenclature and age estimates for the eight localities in Alberta that yielded holotypes for all the Cretaceous mammal species named by Richard Fox from that province, and ( iii) new photographs for the holotypes of the one non-mammalian therapsid and 43 Late Cretaceous and Paleocene mammal species named by Richard Fox before 1995. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In addition to four isolated mammalian teeth from the Late Cretaceous (Maastrichtian) of Madagascar described previously and allocated to Gondwanatheria, Marsupialia, and Mammalia incertae sedis, here I put on record five more specimens. Four of these, a virtually complete lower molariform cheek tooth, two fragmentary cheek teeth, and a fragmentary lower incisor, are referred to the Sudamericidae (Gondwanatheria). The internal structure of the hypsodont cheek teeth, as revealed by micro-computed tomography scans to simulate different stages of wear, is highly variable. Limited knowledge of intra-individual morphological and size variability in the dentition of sudamericids, which are known almost exclusively from isolated teeth, precludes a conclusive assessment of whether some or all of the new specimens belong to Lavanify miolaka, the only previously described sudamericid from Madagascar, or to a new taxon. Conservatively, therefore, pending the recovery of better material, all four specimens are referred to Sudamericidae gen. et sp. indet. The fifth specimen, a molar fragment, is tentatively allocated to the Multituberculata, thereby adding to the controversial specimens that comprise the very sparse and questionable record of this clade on the southern supercontinent Gondwana. The new specimens do not provide any profound insight into the origins of the highly endemic and imbalanced extant mammalian fauna on Madagascar; rather, they provide only more negative evidence. Like those previously described, they do not represent the basal stocks of any of the five mammalian clades that live on the island today and therefore further support the growing consensus that representatives of the extant clades arrived in the Cenozoic. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Plesiadapidae are a family of Paleogene mammals thought to have phylogenetic affinities with modern Primates. We describe previously unpublished dentitions and the first skull and isolated petrosals of the plesiadapid Pronothodectes gaoi, collected from middle Tiffanian localities of the Paskapoo Formation in Alberta. Other species of Pronothodectes, traditionally considered the most basal members of the Plesiadapidae, occur at earlier, Torrejonian horizons in Montana, Wyoming, and Alberta. Classification of P. gaoi as a species of Pronothodectes has proved controversial; accordingly, we use the newly available samples and the more extensively preserved specimens to re-evaluate the generic affinities of this species. Included in our study are comparisons with craniodental material known for other plesiadapids and plesiadapiforms. Cladistic analysis of craniodental characters is used to assess the hypothesis that P. gaoi and other species in this genus are basal members of the Plesiadapidae. The new dental evidence confirms that P. gaoi lacks derived character states of other plesiadapids except for a variably present fissuring of the m3 hypoconulid. Moreover, several aspects of the cranium seem to be more primitive in P. gaoi (i.e., more like nonplesiadapid plesiadapiforms) than in later occurring plesiadapids, such as Plesiadapis tricuspidens and Plesiadapis cookei. Cladistic analysis of craniodental morphology supports a basal position of P. gaoi among species of Plesiadapidae, with the exception of other species of Pronothodectes. The basicranium of P. gaoi preserves a laterally placed bony canal for the internal carotid neurovascular system, suggesting that this was the ancestral condition for the family. Am J Phys Anthropol, 2012. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The early Paleocene Purgatorius Van Valen and Sloan is the most primitive plesiadapiform primate yet discovered, mostly known from middle to late Puercan strata in Montana, deposited during the interval C29N of the geomagnetic polarity time scale. Here we describe Purgatorius coracis n. sp. from the Ravenscrag Formation, at the Ray W-l horizon, Medicine Hat Brick and Tile Quarry, southwestern Saskatchewan. This horizon occurs within C29R, making P. coracis the earliest known primate, while strengthening the evidence that plesiadapiforms, and hence primates, originated and underwent their initial evolutionary diversification in North America. Most North American mammalian local faunas correlating with C29R have been assigned to the Pul (earliest Pucrcan) interval zone, but the taxonomic composition of the mammals accompanying P. coracis at Ray W-l more resembles local faunas of Pu2 age. The occurrence at Ray W- I of Pu2 aspect mammals within C29R agrees with similar occurrences at the Hiatt and PITA Flats localities in Montana and North Dakota, also possibly correlated with C29R. The evidence from these three sites, all in the Williston Basin, suggests that in some areas of the Western Interior Pu2 aspect local faunas were coeval with those of latest Pul age, having evolved earlier than has commonly been assumed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Mixodectidae (Mammalia, Archonta) are an unusual, poorly known family of dermopteran-like mammals that have been discovered at several North American localities of primarily early Paleocene age. Among the three or four recognized mixodectid genera, Eudaemonema Simpson is perhaps one of the least understood, being known from only a few localities of late Torrejonian and earliest Tiffanian age. This paper reports on a new species of Eudaemonema from the late Paleocene of Alberta, Canada, that significantly extends the geographic and stratigraphic ranges of the genus. Eudaemonema webbi sp. nov. is known from middle and late Tiffanian localities in central and south central Alberta, and it represents the youngest and northernmost species of Eudaemonema so far discovered. E. webbi differs from the genotypic species E. cuspidata in being larger and in having a suite of dental characters (e.g., molariform posterior premolars, enlarged molar protocone and hypocone, development of a second grinding platform on the lower molars) that suggests an increased emphasis on grinding during mastication. E. webbi possesses several dental features (e.g., broad, shelf-like molar paraconid-paracristid, lingually shifted molar hypoconulid) that resemble those of cynocephalids (Mammalia, Dermoptera), with these resemblances interpreted herein as convergent. The occurrence of E. webbi at Gao Mine extends the stratigraphic range of Eudaemonema into the late Tiffanian (Ti5) and represents the youngest known record of Mixodectidae. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

New specimens of an as yet unidentified carnivoran from the earliest Paleocene of Saskatchewan are described. The new specimens augment the evidence on which the contentious earliest (middle Puercan) occurrence of Carnivora is based, provide novel information of the lower dentition of the earliest carnivorans, and provides evidence for the earliest taxonomic diversity in Carnivora. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A primitive paromomyid plesiadapiform primate, Edworthia lerbekmoi new genus and species, is described from a recently discovered locality in the Paskapoo Formation, exposed at a road cut in Edworthy Municipal Park, Bow River Valley, Calgary, Alberta, Canada. The new taxon, probably middle Torrejonian (To2) in age, is based on two dentary fragments containing well-preserved dentitions that bracket p2-4, m1-3. With the exception of the basal Paromomys, E. lerbekmoi differs from all other paromomyids in retaining p2, but p2 in the new paromomyid is single-rooted, not two-rooted as in Paromomys. E. lerbekmoi differs further from Paroznoznys in having an enlarged anterior alveolus for a tooth immediately anterior to p2, hypothesized to be il. Unlike other paromomyids with an enlarged il, however, this tooth in E. lerbekmoi was obliquely, not horizontally, oriented and its alveolus opens dorsally, in the alveolar row, not anteriorly, as in other paromomyids in which il is greatly enlarged. This suggests that E. lerbekmoi represents a previously unknown paromomyid lineage that evolved from an ancestor having obliquely oriented lower incisors as in the basal primate Purgatorius, not from an ancestor in which il was already subhorizontal in orientation, as in Paromomys. If this working hypothesis is correct or whether in the future some other evolutionary scenario will better account for the unique anterior dentition in E. lerbekmoi, the new paromomyid nonetheless demonstrates that crucial aspects of the earliest history of the important plesiadapiform family Paromomyidae remain to be discovered. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cyriacotheriidae are a family of unusual small-bodied pantodonts known from the Paleocene of the Western Interior of North America. Cyriacotheriids possess a suite of dental characters similar to that of pantodonts (e.g., molar dilambdodonty, lingual molar hypoconulids), as well as several divergent features (e.g., molarized premolars, strong molar conules) that have been interpreted as "dermopteran-like." The unusual combination of pantodont and dermopteran-like characters, combined with a limited fossil record, has made attempts at understanding the broader relationships of Cyriacotheriidae difficult. This paper reports on a new genus and two new species of cyriacotheriids from the Paleocene of Alberta, Canada, with both species significantly older than those of the only previously described cyriacotheriid, Cyriacotherium. Collectively, the dentitions of these new taxa exhibit derived characters seen in Cyriacotherium (e.g., robust molar conules, strong molar dilambdodonty) in addition to a number of plesiomorphies seen in more basal pantodonts (e.g., conspicuous molar entoconids, deep premolar ectoflexus) and, importantly, posterior premolars that are weakly molariform and non-dilambdodont. A phylogenetic analysis of the new cyriacotheriid, basal pantodonts, dermopterans, and dermopteran-like eutherians resulted in Cyriacotheriidae nesting within a monophyletic Pantodonta. The results strengthen previous hypotheses regarding the pantodont affinities of the family, and suggest that the dermopteran-like features seen in the more derived Cyriacotherium were acquired convergently. Although the discovery of new cyriacothcriids sheds light on the evolutionary history of the family, it cannot resolve the ongoing questions of pantodont origins; nonetheless, their discovery in strata of early Paleocene age indicates that significant parts of the evolutionary history of Cyriacotheriidae, and North American pantodonts more generally, have yet to be discovered. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A new genus and species of erinaceid lipotyphlan (Mammalia, Insectivora) from the late Paleocene of western Canada is described. Oncocherus krishtalkai gen. et sp. nov. is known from three late Tiffanian localities in central Alberta and southeastern Saskatchewan and is but one of several erinaceomorph and soricomorph taxa known from the Late Paleocene of western Canada. Oncocherus possesses apomorphies that link it to other primitive erinaceids (e.g., enlarged upper and lower fourth premolars, lower molars markedly decreasing in size from m1-m3, talonid basins V-shaped), yet its affinity with any of the recognized erinaceid subfamilies is uncertain. Although Oncocherus is phenetically, and probably phylogenetically, closest to Litolestes Jepsen, the genus is clearly distinguished from Litolestes and other erinaceid taxa by its proportionately larger and more inflated premolars and lower crowned molars, features that were likely adaptations for durophagy. Oncocherus joins a number of endemic mammalian taxa that were apparently confined to more northerly latitudes of the Western Interior of North America during the Late Paleocene. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A new eutherian mamma! of uncertain taxonomic position is described on the basis of well-preserved dental and gnathic specimens collected from localities in the Paleocene Paskapoo Formation of Alberta, Canada. Horolodectes sunae new genus and species is represented by seven incomplete maxillae, eleven incomplete dentaries, and numerous isolated teeth, together preserving nearly all of the postcanine dentition. The unusual dentition of Horolodectes n. gena. consists of trenchant, posteriorly leaning premolars in combination with comparatively primitive molars, suggestive of a masticatory cycle that consisted primarily of shearing and, to a lesser degree, horizontal grinding. Included among the specimens of Horolodectes is an incomplete dentary of an immature individual, with the teeth having been in various stages of eruption at the time of death. Although the dentition of Horolodectes broadly resembles that of apheliscine hyopsodontids, pentacodontine pantolestids, and "ungulatomorphs" among eutherian mammals, significant differences in the coronal structure of the teeth prevent unequivocal referral of Horolodectes to any of these groups, or to any known eutherian order. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Neoplagiaulacid multituberculates are among the most numerous and best represented members of early Cenozoic North American mammal faunas, achieving their greatest diversity during the Paleocene. Despite their relatively dense record in the Torrejonian (middle Paleocene) and Tiffanian (late Paleocene), the study of early Cenozoic neoplagiaulacids has been limited more often than not to isolated teeth or, more rarely, incomplete skull, gnathic, or postcranial remains. The current study reports on new neoplagiaulacid multituberculates from the Paleocene Paskapoo Formation of central Alberta, Canada, at localities along the Blindman River near the City of Red Deer. The exceptionally well-preserved specimens consist of incomplete articulated and associated skull and gnathic remains, and collectively document four new species: Ectypodus elaphus, Neoplagiaulax serrator, Neoplagiaulax paskapooensis, and Neoplagiaulax cimolodontoides. Neoplagiaulax paskapooensis is the most dentally complete neoplagiaulacid so far discovered, with a single specimen documenting for the first time left and right 12 and 13 in situ with the cheek teeth, along with the associated lower dentition. Specimens of Neoplagiaulax cimolodontoides record important details of the rostrum and palate, and provide the first direct evidence of incisor replacement in Neoplagiaulax. The new neoplagiaulacids, together with other multituberculates from the Blindman River localities, document unusually high multituberculate diversity in the latter half of the Tiffanian in western Canada. Despite superficial similarity to some European species of Neoplagiaulax, the new taxa from the Paskapoo Formation apparently show no closer relationship to these than do other North American congeners, suggesting parallel evolution in endemic North America and western European clades. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Since 1908, the peculiar North American primate Picrodus Douglass, 1908 (Picrodontidae; Plesiadapiformes) has been thought to contain only a single species, P. silberlingi Douglass, 1908, of late Paleocene age. However, new collections from the Paskapoo Formation, Alberta, Canada, reveal that instead a rich complex of Picrodus species lived during the Paleocene. Three of these, Picrodus calgariensis, P. canpacius, and P. lepidus, are described herein as new. Others, represented by more fragmentary specimens from Canada and the United States, are included in this paper, but are not named. P. calgariensis, from Who Nose? (late Torrejonian), Calgary, is the most primitive known species of Pie rodus, having molars with little crenulation of the enamel. P. canpacius, from Cochrane 2 (earliest Tiffanian), northwest of Calgary, most resembles P. silberlingi sensu stricto, but differs in P4 structure, denser enamel crenulation, and weaker molar cusps. P. lepidus, from DW-2 (middle Tiffanian), near Red Deer, is the most advanced, having, for example, a two-rooted P4, tiny p3, and single-rooted p4. At least two of these species also occur in the United States, documented by fossils referred to P. silberlingi by previous workers. Dental evolution within Picrodus seems marked by several trends, including increase in size of i1, simplification of P4, reduction of molar cusps and crests, enlargement of the horizontal occlusal surfaces of the molars, and greater crenulation of enamel. From present knowledge, Zanycteris paleocenus Matthew, 1917 is dentally more primitive than Picrodus, Draconodus Tomida, 1982 is a valid genus, and picrodontids probably originated from ‘purgatoriid-grade’ plesiada-piforms in earliest Paleocene time. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A new species of the ptilodontid multituberculate genus Prochetodon (Mammalia, Allotheria) from the Paleocene Paskapoo Formation of Alberta, Canada, is described. Prochetodon speirsae sp. nov. is the oldest discovered species of the genus, extending the temporal range of Prochetodon earlier into the Paleocene. It exhibits a mosaic of primitive and derived dental features suggestive of a position phylogenetically intermediate between Ptilodus and Prochetodon. Newly discovered specimens from the late Paleocene Gao Mine locality are referred tentatively to Prochetodon foxi. The occurrence of a primitive form of Prochetodon in sediments of early Tiffanian age suggests the evolutionary history of the genus is more complex than previously appreciated. Prochetodon joins a number of well-documented, progressive mammalian taxa making their first appearance in the Western Interior of North America at higher latitudes, well before their first known occurrence in the United States, suggesting a possible origin and immigration from currently unsampled habitats. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Paskapoo Formation in central and south central Alberta, Canada, preserves continental sediments of Paleocene age. Outcrops of the formation on Nose Creek in northeast Calgary, at a locality called Who Nose?, have yielded fossil mammals from the middle part of the epoch. To date, some 400 dental specimens representing eight mammalian orders have been recovered, among them numerous well-preserved jaws. Newly named taxa include new species of Parectypodus and Baiotomeus (Multituberculata); new species of Parectypodus, Litotnylus (Condylarthra), and Cyriacotherium (Pantodonta) are left unnamed. Biostratigraphic correlation indicates a late Torrejonian age for the local fauna based on the presence of the plesiadapid primate Pronothodectes matthewi. Faunal comparisons suggest a close similarity to the penecontemporaneous Gidley Quarry fauna, Montana, with a taxonomic diversity consistent with other co-eval faunas in the Western Interior of the United States. The specimens from Who Nose? constitute the largest collection of Torrejonian mammals from Canada, offering a unique perspective on mammalian diversity from an otherwise poorly represented interval in western Canada. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Computing and biomedical informatics technologies are providing almost instantaneous access to vast amounts of possibly relevant information. Although students are entering medical school with increasingly sophisticated basic technological skills, medical educators must determine what curricular enhancements are needed to prepare learners for the world of electronic information. Purpose: The purpose was to examine opinions of academic affairs and informatics administrators, curriculum deans and recently matriculated medical students about prematriculation competence and medical education learning expectations. Methods: Two surveys were administered: an Information Literacy Survey for curriculum/informatics deans and a Computing Skills Survey for entering medical students. Results: Results highlight differences of opinion about entering competencies. They also indicate that medical school administrators believe that most basic information skills fall within the domain of undergraduate medical education. Conclusions: Further investigations are needed to determine precise entry-level skills and whether information literacy will increase as a result of rising levels of technical competence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A large collection of dentigerous jaws quarried from the Gao Mine locality, late Paleocene, Paskapoo Formation, central Alberta, Canada, documents a new species of the early Paleogene phenacodontid "condylarth" Ectocion Cope, 1882. The new species, Ectocion stockeyae, the smallest of the genus, occurs well before the abrupt global warming at the Paleocene–Eocene Thermal Maximum, an event purportedly causing the rapid evolution of "dwarfed" mammals, including a species of Ectocion; however, there is no evidence of increased temperatures at Gao Mine to account for the small size of Ectocion stockeyae, raising questions of the relationship between temperature and body size in Ectocion. Ectocion stockeyae also exhibits sexual dimorphism of the canines, a pattern in mammals often associated with a population structure in which the males are relatively few and polygynous, resulting in intense male rivalry for mating success. The sample of Ectocion stockeyae from Gao Mine includes a substantial majority of "juvenile" individuals retaining deciduous posterior premolars, many even after eruption of the molars had been completed, suggesting short life spans, accelerated growth, and rapid dental development in this species as expressed in Schultz's Rule. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: A recent paper by Fanti and Miyashita (2009. A high latitude vertebrate fossil assemblage from the Late Cretaceous of west-central Alberta, Canada: Evidence for dinosaur nesting and vertebrate latitudinal gradient. Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology 275, 37–53) reports on a new assemblage of terrestrial vertebrate fossils from the Campanian (Late Cretaceous) of northern Alberta. In addition to the several dinosaur and microvertebrate specimens reported by Fanti and Miyashita (2009), the new assemblage also contains two mammalian teeth, identified by the authors as pertaining to “Cimolodon sp.” and “Didelphodon sp.” The taxonomic identifications of these teeth are either highly questionable or simply incorrect, and the accompanying descriptions are replete with errors; as a result of these lapses, at least part of the biogeographic conclusions drawn by the authors about the Kleskun Hills Park area is also rendered incorrect. While the discovery of a Late Cretaceous high-latitude vertebrate fauna in Alberta is unquestionably important, the significance of the Kleskun Hills mammalian taxa, both taxonomically and biogeographically, should be reconsidered. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Numerous non-mammalian vertebrates have evolved lethal venoms to aid either in securing prey or as protection from predators, but modern mammals that use venoms in these ways are rare, including only the duck-billed platypus (Ornithorhynchus), the Caribbean Solenodon, and a few shrews (Soricidae) (Order Insectivora). Here we report evidence of a venom delivery apparatus in extinct mammals, documented by well-preserved specimens recovered from late Palaeocene rocks in Alberta, Canada. Although classified within Eutheria, these mammals are phylogenetically remote from modern Insectivora and have evolved specialized teeth as salivary venom delivery systems (VDSs) that differ markedly from one another and from those of Solenodon and shrews. Our discoveries therefore show that mammals have been much more flexible in the evolution of VDSs than previously believed, contradicting currently held notions that modern insectivorans are representative of the supposedly limited role of salivary venoms in mammalian history. Evidently, small predatory eutherians have paralleled colubroid snakes in evolving salivary venoms and their delivery systems several times independently. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Frenchman and Ravenscrag formations of southwestern Saskatchewan, Canada, record an apparently continuous sequence of nonmarine clastic sediments across the Cretaceous-Paleogene (K-Pg) boundary. Extensive exposures of these fossil-rich sediments occur in the Frenchman River Valley, near the towns of Ravenscrag, Eastend, and Shaunavon, and have been a focus of study since the 1970s. Despite this long history of investigation, a comprehensive account of the geographic and stratigraphic positions of many of the significant fossil localities has yet to be published. Given this state of affairs, the goals of this paper are to ( i) document the geographic locations, stratigraphic positions, and lithologies of 11 key vertebrate microfossil localities, including several new localities that have been recently discovered, and ( ii) provide an update on the status of these fossil localities, the majority of which have not been sampled in the last 20 years. Four fossil localities are known from the lower Paleocene Ravenscrag Formation, all of which are Puercan in age: Rav W-1 (Pu2), French Fry (Pu1), Croc Pot (?Pu2), and Pine Cree (?Pu2). With the exception of Rav W-1, which has since been lost as a consequence of quarry reclamation, all of the Ravenscrag Formation localities remain accessible and continue to be productive. Seven vertebrate microfossil localities from the upper Maastrichtian Frenchman Formation are reported here, all of which are Lancian in age: Long Fall, Fr-1, By Gar Gap, Hairpin, Wounded Knee, Wounded C, and Gryde. With the exception of Long Fall and Wounded Knee, which have been lost through reclamation or construction, all of the Frenchman Formation localities are accessible and remain productive. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Pandemonium hibernalis sp. nov., from a middle? Puercan (earliest Paleocene) locality in the upper Scollard Formation, Wintering Hills, southern Alberta, represents the second discovered occurrence of the enigmatic plesiadapiform primate Pandemonium Van Valen and the first from Canada. The holotype of Pandemonium hibernalis is the only known specimen of Pandemonium documented by multiple teeth from a single individual. Pandemonium hibernalis closely resembles the type species Pandemonium dis from Purgatory Hill, middle-late Puercan, Tullock Formation, Montana, but differs in having wider, more bunodont lower molar crowns and a more expanded posterior talonid lobe of m3, specializations suggesting enhanced capacity for crushing and grinding of soft food materials during mastication. Pandemonium hibernalis joins other recent discoveries in Alberta and elsewhere in the North American Western Interior in documenting a moderate radiation of basal plesiadapiforms that evolved unexpectedly early during primate evolution. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although the known record of Mesozoic eutherian mammals has been significantly enriched in recent years, early eutherian evolution is still not well understood. Among the more controversial of Mesozoic eutherians is Paranyctoides Fox, which was described in 1979 from the Judithian Dinosaur Park Formation, Alberta, Canada. It is a rare taxon and therefore has been identified in only a few other North American Late Cretaceous local faunas since. Within the past decade, dental and gnathic remains discovered in Central Asia have also been referred to Paranyctoides, thereby expanding the geographic range of the genus substantially and making it the only Late Cretaceous eutherian ostensibly occurring in both continents. As a result of our detailed study of Paranyctoides, however, we find that the Central Asian species lack the diagnostic characters of Paranyctoides and must be referred to other taxa. We conclude that this genus was limited to North America, ranging from Aquilan to Lancian time, and accordingly we recognize as valid only the following species: Paranyctoides sternbergi (Judithian, Alberta), P. maleficus (Aquilan, Alberta), Paranyctoides Wahweap sp. A and sp. B (Judithian, Utah), Paranyctoides Kaiparowits sp. A and sp. B (Judithian, Utah). Another purported species of Paranyctoides, P. megakeros, from the Lancian of Wyoming, is a junior synonym of Alostera saskatchewanensis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Multituberculates, though among the most commonly encountered mammalian fossils of the Mesozoic, are poorly known from the North American Early Cretaceous, with only one taxon named to date. Herein we describe Argillomys marylandensis, gen. et sp. nov., from the Early Cretaceous of Maryland, based on an isolated M2. Argillomys represents the second mammal known from the Arundel Clay facies of the Patuxent Formation (Lower Cretaceous: Aptian). Though distinctive in its combination of characters (e.g., enamel ornamentation consisting of ribs and grooves only, cusp formula 2:4, presence of distinct cusp on anterobuccal ridge, enlargement of second cusp on buccal row, central position of ultimate cusp in lingual row, great relative length), the broader affinities of Argillomys cannot be established because of non-representation of the antemolar dentition. Based on lack of apomorphies commonly seen among Cimolodonta (e.g., three or more cusps present in buccal row, fusion of cusps in lingual row, cusps strongly pyramidal and separated by narrow grooves), we provisionally regard Argillomys as a multituberculate of 'plagiaulacidan' grade. Intriguingly, it is comparable in certain respects to some unnamed Paulchoffatiidae, a family otherwise known from the Late Jurassic - Early Cretaceous of the Iberian Peninsula. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Peer reviewed publications and extramoral reputation are criteria used to evaluate clinician-educatory for promotion. There is concern that these criteria may be disadvantageous to clinician educatory in generalist fields relative to their specialist counterparts. Purpose: To determine whether medicine subspecialists had more peer-reviewed publications and academic activities outside their home institution than general internal medicine(GIM) faculty, and to explore possible explanations for observed differences. Methods: Cross-sectional survey of all clinician-educators in a department of medicine at a leading public U.S. medical school. The survey assessed clinical duties, publications, and professional activities. Results: Seventy-one percent (42/59) of clinician educator faculty responded. GIM clinician-educators spent fewer months on inpatient services (p = 0.01), but more time in clinic (p = 0.05). Specialist clinician-educators had more peer-reviewed publications (p = 0.003), but total publications since entering a clinician educator track was similar (p > 0.2). After multiple linear regression, only academic rank (p = 0.001) and subspecialty membership (p = 0.005) remained significant predictors of peer-reviewed publication. GIM faculty reported .spending more .scholarly time on "activities unlikely to result in publication" (p < 0.01). A greater proportion of specialists served on extramural committees (72% vs. 41%, p = 0.05) and lectured outside their home institution in the preceding year (92% vs. 59% p = 0.02). Conclusions: In this single-institution survey, specialist clinician-educators reported more peer-reviewed publications and greater participation in other reputation-enhancing activities than did GIM clinician-educators. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The Institute for international Medical Education has published "Global Minimum Essential Requirements (GMERs) in Medical Education." Purpose: This study examined attitudes of a sample of Chinese medical students toward the GMERs. Methods: Matriculating and graduating West China School of Medicine Sichuan University medical students were administered parallel surveys during the 2001 to 2002 academic years. Results: Both cohorts produced similar response profiles. The majority in both groups rated the 7 GMER domains as either important or very important for their medical education. Matriculating students rated professional values, attitudes, behavior, and ethics as most important, whereas graduating students valued clinical skills highest Population health and health systems received the lowest importance ratings from both groups. Please note that this study was conducted before the SARS outbreak. As a result of the SARS experience, attitudes toward population health and health systems might have changed. Conclusion: Although medical students ascribe importance to the GMERS, efforts are needed to increase the perceived importance of the population health and health systems domain. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]