A compsemydid turtle from the Upper Cretaceous of Var, southern France

Cranial osteology, taxonomic reassessment, and phylogenetic relationships of the Early Cretaceous (Aptian-Albian) turtle Trinitichelys hiatti (Paracryptodira)

“…A similar issue was highlighted by the recently published study of Tong et al (2022) , in which clear synapomorphic characters were not retrieved for Paracryptodira and Baenoidea despite the use of a different matrix. One of the analyses provided by the aforementioned study also yielded an alternative phylogenetic hypothesis with the placement of Compsemydidae as Pan-Pleurodira and that of Kallokibotion bajazidi within Pleurosternidae .…”

“…Thalassochelydia , Sinemydidae , Macrobaenidae , and Xinjiangchelyidae ) to our matrix might impose more constraints on some parts of the tree and provide alternative phylogenetic hypotheses. A redescription of the skulls of Dinochelys whitei , Glyptops ornatus and Dorsetochelys typocardium , which are also included in the phylogenetic analyses of Tong et al (2022) , is also expected to provide new insights into the cranial anatomy of these taxa and, consequently, might allow additional characters to be scored and more precisely identify the synapomorphies of Baenoidea and Pleurosternidae . Finally, the study of phylogenetic affinities of paracryptodires in a global context should be accompanied by a specific focus on Eileanchelys waldmani and Heckerochelys romani , two of the oldest known aquatic turtles that lived during the Middle Jurassic ( Sukhanov, 2006 ; Gordenko, 2008 ; Anquetin et al, 2009 ; Anquetin, 2010 ).…”

An alternative interpretation of small-bodied turtles from the “Middle Purbeck” of England as a new species of compsemydid turtle

“…Our primary comparative sources are as follows: Compsemys (a.k.a. Berruchelus) russelli (Pérez-García, 2012) from the Paleocene of France, as described by Pérez-García (2012); Calissounemys matheroni Tong et al, 2022 from the Campanian of France, as described by Tong et al (2022); Compsemys victa Leidy, 1856 from the Paleocene of New Mexico, as described by Gilmore (1919); Peltochelys duchastelii Dollo, 1884 from the Early Cretaceous (middle Barremian to early Aptian) of Belgium, as described by Joyce and Rollot (2020); Pleurosternon bullockii from the Early Cretaceous (Berriasian) of England, as described by Guerrero and Pérez-García (2021a); and Selenemys lusitanica Pérez-García & Ortega, 2011 from the Late Jurassic (Kimmeridgian) of Portugal, as described by Pérez-García and Ortega (2011).…”

Mandibular anatomy of the paracryptodire Glyptops ornatus supports active hunting behavior in a Jurassic turtle

“…This species is typically considered to be closely related to the European taxon Pleurosternon bullockii (e.g., Gaffney, 1979b;Lyson & Joyce, 2011;Rollot et al, 2021a;Rollot, Evers, Cifelli, et al, 2022), and thus part of the clade Pleurosternidae (=formerly "Glyptopsidae"; see Lyson & Joyce, 2011). However, paracryptodiran phylogeny is not very stable, and multiple studies have recovered alternative positions for Glyptops ornatus outside of Pleurosternidae (e.g., Rollot, Evers, Pierce et al, 2022;Tong et al, 2022Tong et al, , 2023. Due to the phylogenetic definition of the clade Paracryptodira as the maximally inclusive clade containing P. bullockii (i.e., Pleurosternidae) and Baena arenosa (i.e., Baenidae) (Joyce, Anquetin, et al, 2021;Lyson & Joyce, 2011), the taxonomic content of Paracryptodira more widely is also uncertain, with multiple groups or species such as compsemydids, helochelydrids, or Kallokibotion bajazidi having been variably recovered within or outside of Paracryptodira (e.g., Rollot et al, 2021a;Rollot, Evers, Cifelli et al, 2022;Rollot, Evers, Pierce et al, 2022;Tong et al, 2022Tong et al, , 2023.…”

“…However, paracryptodiran phylogeny is not very stable, and multiple studies have recovered alternative positions for Glyptops ornatus outside of Pleurosternidae (e.g., Rollot, Evers, Pierce et al, 2022;Tong et al, 2022Tong et al, , 2023. Due to the phylogenetic definition of the clade Paracryptodira as the maximally inclusive clade containing P. bullockii (i.e., Pleurosternidae) and Baena arenosa (i.e., Baenidae) (Joyce, Anquetin, et al, 2021;Lyson & Joyce, 2011), the taxonomic content of Paracryptodira more widely is also uncertain, with multiple groups or species such as compsemydids, helochelydrids, or Kallokibotion bajazidi having been variably recovered within or outside of Paracryptodira (e.g., Rollot et al, 2021a;Rollot, Evers, Cifelli et al, 2022;Rollot, Evers, Pierce et al, 2022;Tong et al, 2022Tong et al, , 2023. Some studies have even failed to recover a monophyletic Paracryptodira altogether (e.g., Tong et al, 2022).…”