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The early/middle Eocene Palaeotis weigelti is a flightless bird, which occurs in the fossil localities Messel and Geiseltal (Germany). The species is assigned to the Palaeognathae and some authors considered it to be a stem group representative of the Struthionidae (ostriches). Even though several partial skeletons have been found, the osteology of P. weigelti is incompletely known. In the present study, new details of the hindlimb morphology of the species are reported based on unpublished and previously described fossils from the Geiseltal. These data show that the recently described Galligeranoides boriensis from the early Eocene of southern France is another representative of the Palaeotididae and the oldest record of the taxon. It is further noted that Palaeogrus princeps from the middle Eocene of Italy, which was previously assigned to the Gruidae (cranes), may be another representative of the Palaeotididae. Galligeranoides was before assigned to the North American Geranoididae, a taxon mainly known from hindlimb elements. The Geranoididae are usually considered to be closely related to the Asian Eogruidae and both taxa are currently classified in the Gruiformes (cranes and allies). However, as detailed in the present study, derived similarities suggest close affinities between the Palaeotididae and Geranoididae. Eogruids were identified as stem group representatives of the palaeognathous Struthionidae by some earlier authors, and if close affinities between Palaeotididae and Geranoididae are corroborated in future analyses, palaeognathous affinities of the Eogruidae need to be critically revisited.

The anatomy and phylogenetic systematics of a well preserved hadrosauroid dentary collected in the 1990s from uppermost Maastrichtian strata (within chron C29r) of the Figuerola Formation, in the Àger syncline of the southern Pyrenees in northeastern Spain are revised. The specimen represents a new genus and species of basally branching hadrosauroid dinosaur, Fylax thyrakolasus gen. et sp. nov. This taxon is the third hadrosaurid outgroup species erected in Europe so far and the stratigraphically youngest non-hadrosaurid hadrosauroid known to date. It is diagnosed on the basis of a unique combination of characters such as a dorsal region of the coronoid process that is at least as wide anteroposteriorly as 30% of dental battery length, a coronoid process inclined anteriorly less than 80º relative to the alveolar margin of the dentary, steeply inclined and flat occlusal surface of the dental battery, and dentary tooth crowns 2.8-3.3 times taller than wide without marginal denticles and with a pair of major long ridges on the enameled lingual surface. The parsimony analysis confirmed that F. thyrakolasus gen. et sp. nov. is a close outgroup to Hadrosauridae. However, we also found that it is sister to the hadrosauroid Tethyshadros insularis form the late Campanian-early Maastrichtian Adriatic-Dinaric Carbonate Platform (present-day Italy). Maximum likelihood reconstruction of ancestral areas on the time calibrated phylogeny revealed that the ancestry of the Fylax-Tethyshadros clade has Appalachian roots. This study supports an Asian origin for hadrosauroids and subsequent dispersal to Appalachia, where Hadrosauridae likely originated. In this scenario, the Late Cretaceous European Archipelago could have facilitated the dispersal of hadrosaurid outgroups from Asia to Appalachia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The early/middle Eocene Palaeotis weigelti is a flightless bird, which occurs in the fossil localities Messel and Geiseltal (Germany). The species is assigned to the Palaeognathae and some authors considered it to be a stem group representative of the Struthionidae (ostriches). Even though several partial skeletons have been found, the osteology of P. weigelti is incompletely known. In the present study, new details of the hindlimb morphology of the species are reported based on unpublished and previously described fossils from the Geiseltal. These data show that the recently described Galligeranoides boriensis from the early Eocene of southern France is another representative of the Palaeotididae and the oldest record of the taxon. It is further noted that Palaeogrus princeps from the middle Eocene of Italy, which was previously assigned to the Gruidae (cranes), may be another representative of the Palaeotididae. Galligeranoides was before assigned to the North American Geranoididae, a taxon mainly known from hindlimb elements. The Geranoididae are usually considered to be closely related to the Asian Eogruidae and both taxa are currently classified in the Gruiformes (cranes and allies). However, as detailed in the present study, derived similarities suggest close affinities between the Palaeotididae and Geranoididae. Eogruids were identified as stem group representatives of the palaeognathous Struthionidae by some earlier authors, and if close affinities between Palaeotididae and Geranoididae are corroborated in future analyses, palaeognathous affinities of the Eogruidae need to be critically revisited. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The new expeditions to the Axios Valley (Macedonia, Greece) provided a new set of fossils from the various localities. Among the material collected from the Late Miocene hominoid bearing mammal locality Ravin de la Pluie (RPl) were some remains of Hipparion macedonicum, which was originally described from this locality. The most important is the skull and associated mandible, the first from the type locality. The new material is compared with the previously collected material of the taxon from the Vallesian and Turolian levels of Greece, as well as with corresponding material from Eurasia. The RPl skull is compared with the type skull of H. matthwei, a taxon, which several times has been referred as synonym to H. macedonicum. The comparison indicated several differences which distinguish the two species. Hipparion macedonicum has a continuous stratigraphic range from the Vallesian to middle Turolian and it is possibly present in the late Turolian. The comparison of the chronologically different samples of H. macedonicum indicates that the Vallesian form of H. macedonicum has larger size, shorter narial opening, longer tooth rows, rich enamel plication, more elongated and narrow plis, more robust metapodials and less running legs than the Turolian form. Some of the morphological changes are related to the habitat, which was more closed, warmer and wetter in the Vallesian than Turolian.

The new expeditions to the Axios Valley (Macedonia, Greece) provided a new set of fossils from the various localities. Among the material collected from the Late Miocene hominoid bearing mammal locality Ravin de la Pluie (RPl) were some remains of Hipparion macedonicum, which was originally described from this locality. The most important is the skull and associated mandible, the first from the type locality. The new material is compared with the previously collected material of the taxon from the Vallesian and Turolian levels of Greece, as well as with corresponding material from Eurasia. The RPl skull is compared with the type skull of H. matthwei, a taxon, which several times has been referred as synonym to H. macedonicum. The comparison indicated several differences which distinguish the two species. Hipparion macedonicum has a continuous stratigraphic range from the Vallesian to middle Turolian and it is possibly present in the late Turolian. The comparison of the chronologically different samples of H. macedonicum indicates that the Vallesian form of H. macedonicum has larger size, shorter narial opening, longer tooth rows, rich enamel plication, more elongated and narrow plis, more robust metapodials and less running legs than the Turolian form. Some of the morphological changes are related to the habitat, which was more closed, warmer and wetter in the Vallesian than Turolian. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]