First pan‐trionychid turtle (Testudines, Pan‐Trionychidae) from the Palaeogene of Africa

Abstract

Pan-trionychids (soft-shelled turtles) are known from the Neogene and Quaternary fossil record of Africa. They have so far been totally absent in Palaeogene localities of the continent although they are commonly found in Palaeogene localities across Europe, North America, and Australasia; as such, their absence from the Palaeogene of Africa has been envisaged to be genuine. Here, I describe a large costal from the Eocene of Mali, which documents for the first time the presence of pan-trionychid turtles in the Palaeogene of the then isolated Afro-Arabia. The affinities of the new Malian pan-trionychid with Neogene and Quaternary forms from Africa are discussed, as well as its biogeographic origins and potential dispersal scenarios from other landmasses to Afro-Arabia during the Palaeogene.

The cranial and postcranial morphology of Hutchemys rememdium and its impact on the phylogenetic relationships of Plastomenidae (Testudinata, Trionychidae)

“…Softshell turtles ( Pan-Trionychidae ) are an unusual clade of reptiles easily recognized in the fossil record by their reduced carapace that lacks pygals and peripherals, the lack of scutes, a reduced plastron, and a distinctive shell surface texture that allows even shell fragments to be diagnosed to the group (Hutchison et al, 1986 ; Meylan, 1987 ; Scheyer et al, 2007 ; Vitek & Joyce, 2015 ; Georgalis & Joyce, 2017 ). The clade has a rich and relatively continuous record in North America since the Santonian (Adrian et al, 2019 ; Brinkman, 2003 ; Edgar et al, 2022 ; Vitek & Joyce, 2015 ), but apparently originated in Asia during the Early Cretaceous (Georgalis, 2021 ; Georgalis & Joyce, 2017 ; Li et al, 2015 ). The clade has a geographically widespread fossil record with specimens reported from Asia, Europe, and Africa, and to a lesser degree from Australia and South America (Georgalis, 2021 ; Georgalis & Joyce, 2017 ; Li et al, 2015 ; Vitek & Joyce, 2015 ).…”

“…The clade has a rich and relatively continuous record in North America since the Santonian (Adrian et al, 2019 ; Brinkman, 2003 ; Edgar et al, 2022 ; Vitek & Joyce, 2015 ), but apparently originated in Asia during the Early Cretaceous (Georgalis, 2021 ; Georgalis & Joyce, 2017 ; Li et al, 2015 ). The clade has a geographically widespread fossil record with specimens reported from Asia, Europe, and Africa, and to a lesser degree from Australia and South America (Georgalis, 2021 ; Georgalis & Joyce, 2017 ; Li et al, 2015 ; Vitek & Joyce, 2015 ).…”

Phylogeny and phylogeography of chelonians from sub-Saharan Africa—A review of current knowledge in tribute to Margaretha D. Hofmeyr

“…Soft-shelled turtles (Trionychidae) are one of the most distinctive and most ancient turtle families dating back to the Early Cretaceous (Brinkman et al 2017;Georgalis and Joyce 2017), although the oldest record from Africa (Mali) dates only to the Eocene (Georgalis 2021). Both extant subfamilies, Trionychinae and Cyclanorbinae, occur in Africa.…”

Redescription of the soft-shell turtleRafetus bohemicus(Testudines, Trionychidae) from the Early Miocene of Czechia

“…Trionychids originated in Asia during the Early Cretaceous and expanded into North America and Europe by the Late Cretaceous. They reached Africa and Australasia during the Paleogene and, for a short period, they also inhabited Central and South America during the Neogene ( Nessov, 1995 ; Sánchez-Villagra et al, 2004 ; Head, Aguilera & Sánchez-Villagra, 2006 ; Vitek & Danilov, 2010 ; Cadena et al, 2012 ; Scheyer, Mörs & Einarsson, 2012 ; Hirayama, Isaji & Hibino, 2013 ; Li, Joyce & Liu, 2015 ; Li et al, 2015 ; Vitek & Joyce, 2015 ; Georgalis & Joyce, 2017 ; Li et al, 2017 ; Georgalis, 2021 ; Selvatti et al, 2023 ). Extant soft-shell turtles are distributed in Asia, North America, Africa, Australia and occasionally also in the Dodecanese Islands of southeastern Europe ( Engstrom, Shaffer & McCord, 2004 ; Georgalis & Joyce, 2017 ; Li et al, 2017 ).…”