30.9.16

Nuevos datos sobre Camerochelys en las VII Jornadas de Salas de Los Infantes


En el registro del Cretácico Inferior español se identifica un número relativamente elevado de tortugas. Así, la diversidad actualmente reconocida para las tortugas del Cretácico Inferior de esta región es mayor que la identificada para cualquier otro país europeo. Una de las tortugas recientemente descritas para el registro español, y hasta ahora reconocida como exclusiva, es Camerochelys vilanovai. Aunque se había descrito a partir de varios ejemplares, todos ellos correspondían a caparazones parciales o a placas aisladas. Un nuevo ejemplar de Camerochelys ha sido presentado en las VII Jornadas de Salas de Los Infantes. Se trata de un caparazón relativamente completo, que permite profundizar en el conocimiento sobre esta tortuga.

El resumen publicado en el libro de actas del congreso es el siguiente:

Camerochelys vilanovai is a turtle defined in 2013, belonging to the Spanish Lower Cretaceous record. This turtle was defined by scarce remains, corresponding to some partial shells and plates, from the Enciso Group (Hauterivian-Barremian), found in Igea (La Rioja, eastern Cameros Basin). The so far available information on its shell is relatively limited, and only allowed its attribution to Pan-Cryptodira indet.
A new, relatively complete and well-preserved shell, attributable to Camerochelys vilanovai, is presented here. This new specimen comes from Igea, as all previously remains attributed to this taxon, having also been found in levels corresponding to the Enciso Group. The new specimen allows knowing much of the shell of this taxon. Its study allows us to analyze hitherto unknown regions of both the carapace and the plastron, confirm or refute some previously proposed anatomical hypotheses, and identify more characters to be included in the diagnosis of this taxon (i.e. those corresponding to the morphology and relative size of both the entoplastron and the gular scutes), the diagnosis being amended. The study of the fossil presented here allows us to propose a new and more precise hypothesis about the phylogenetic position of this poorly known form, being identified as a basal member of Pan-Cryptodira (i.e. a representative of the stem group of Cryptodira).

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