Taphonomy of a late Cretaceous mammal-bearing microvertebrate assemblage from the Deccan inter-trappean beds of Naskal, peninsular India

Isotaphonomy in concept and practice: an exploration of vertebrate microfossil bonebeds in the Upper Cretaceous (Campanian) Judith River Formation, north-central Montana

“…In these studies, general taphonomic observations are gathered to provide context for associated faunal reconstructions, and related data sets are typically limited in scope. Reports that delve more deeply into the taphonomy of VMBs are relatively few (e.g., Mellett 1974; Maas 1985; Eberth 1990; Blob and Fiorillo 1996; Khajuria and Prasad 1998; Brinkman et al 2004; Wilson 2008; Rogers and Brady 2010; Peterson et al 2011) and have mostly focused on questions of how these types of sites originate and how they might express potential bias.…”

The oldest known catfish (Teleostei: Siluriformes) from Asia (India, Late Cretaceous)

“…Based on sedimentological and paleontological evidence, Pra sad and Khajuria (1996) concluded that the inter-trappean beds of Naskal were deposited in a shallow, flood plain alkaline lake which was intermittently exposed to subaerial conditions leading to the development of pedogenic features. Taphonomic analysis of the Naskal inter-trappean microvertebrate assemblage also in dicates that the accumulation of skeletal elements took place in a shallow flood plain lake, which could have acted as a natural death trap, attracting terrestrial animals to the source of food and water during prolonged drought conditions (Khajuria and Prasad, 1998). Although the terrestrial and semi-aquatic forms indicate short distance transport before deposition, the disarticulated, frag mented, largely unabraded nature and flaking and spongy struc ture of the skeletal remains is suggestive of subaerial exposure before final burial.…”

“…One of us (G.V.R.P.) has been studying the vertebrate assem blages from the late Cretaceous inter-trappean beds of peninsular India for several years (e.g., Prasad, 1987;Prasad and Sahni, 1988;Prasad andRage, 1991, 1995;Rage and Prasad, 1992;Pra sad and Cappetta, 1993;Prasad and Godinot, 1994;Prasad and Khajuria, 1996;Krause et al, 1997;Khajuria and Prasad, 1998). Recently, the authors found a catfish spine from an intertrappean bed exposed near the village Naskal, Andhra Pradesh (Fig.…”

Dispersal vs. vicariance: the origin of India’s extant tetrapod fauna

“…The granitic islands of the Seychelles sit above a Gondwanan fragment that separated from peninsular India around 65 Ma and the divergence date for these two families is consistent with this geological date.Additionally, the divergence of Nasikabatrachidae-Sooglossidae lineage from the ranoid frogs of the Old World fits with the geological time for the separation between Indomadagascar and Africa. The Upper Cretaceous anuran fossils of India are represented by groups that are currently not found in India, including Discoglossidae, Hylidae, Pelobatidae and Myobatrachidae(Khajuria and Prasad 1998, Khosla andSahni 2003). Lower Eocene anuran fossils from Vastan mines in Gujarat, western India consists of Bombinatoridae (super family Discoglossoidea), Pelobatidae, Rhacophoridae and Ranidae(Folie et al 2013), but only the last two are currently found on the subcontinent.…”