Quantitative subsidence analysis of 26 wells in the Lusitanian basin provides new constraints on the western Iberian Mesozoic passive margin development. Backstripped tectonic subsidence curves show a three-fold subdivision of vertical motions from Late Triassic onward. Continental rifting was initiated during the Late Triassic and Early Jurassic. From Middle Jurassic onward a distinct differen...

[1] In the Shiquanhe area of far-western Tibet, midCretaceous strata lie unconformable on ophiolitic melange and Jurassic flysch associated with the Bangong-Nujiang suture zone. On the basis of our mapping and geochronologic studies, we suggest that these Cretaceous strata were shortened by >57% over a north south distance of 50 km during Late Cretaceousearly Tertiary time. The Late Cretaceous ...

Eremochaetidae is a rare family found from the Late Jurassic to the Early Cretaceous. So far, only 8 genera with 12 species have been recorded. Herein, we describe a new species, Dissup clausus sp. nov., and the first male of Eremomukha (E.) tsokotukha Mostovski, 1996, from the Yixian Formation, the Early Cretaceous of Northeastern China. Additionally, E. (E.) insidiosa Mostovski, 1996 is consi...

The sauropod of El Oterillo II is a specimen that was excavated from the Castrillo de la Reina Formation (Burgos, Spain), late Barremian-early Aptian, in the 2000s but initially remained undescribed. A tooth and elements of the axial skeleton, and the scapular and pelvic girdle, represent it. It is one of the most complete titanosauriform sauropods from the Early Cretaceous of Europe and presen...

BACKGROUND Basal iguanodontian dinosaurs were extremely successful animals, found in great abundance and diversity almost worldwide during the Early Cretaceous. In contrast to Europe and Asia, the North American record of Early Cretaceous basal iguanodonts has until recently been limited largely to skulls and skeletons of Tenontosaurus tilletti. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS Herein we descri...

the study area is situated in the middle part of the tabas block. it contains outcrops of rocks that formed along longitudinal faults in early cimmerian orogenic phase. the basin subsided along these faults from the late triassic to early cretaceous, which include two sedimentary cycles. a sedimentary cycle, related to upper triassic to bajocian is known as shemshak group. another sedimentary c...

A new genus and species of eutherian mammal, Acristatherium yanensis gen. et sp. nov., is described from the Early Cretaceous Jehol biota, China. The new taxon is based on a partial skull that is preserved in three dimensions from the Lujiatun bed of the Yixian Formation and dated 123.2+/-1.0 Ma. Its right upper and lower dentitions are nearly complete and it has a dental formula 4.1.5.3/3.1.5....

Cretaceous represents one of the hottest greenhouse periods in the Earth's history, but some recent studies suggest that small ice caps might be present in non-polar regions during certain periods in the Early Cretaceous. Here we report extremely negative δ(18)O values of -18.12‰ to -13.19‰ for early Aptian hydrothermal zircon from an A-type granite at Baerzhe in northeastern China. Given that ...

This paper presents evidence on Mesozoic inversion of basin bounding faults within the Taleqan-Gajereh-Lar Paleograben (TGLP) in Central Alborz Range. For this purpose, well documented stratigraphy data across the TGLP together with the new acquired structural data on the geometry and kinematics of the paleograben basin bounding faults are utilized. The TGLP has evolved through the Early and Mi...

The reconstruction and timing of the early stages of social evolution, such as parental care, in the fossil record is a challenge, as these behaviors often do not leave concrete traces. One of the intensely investigated examples of modern parental care are the modern burying beetles (Silphidae: Nicrophorus), a lineage that includes notable endangered species. Here we report diverse transitional...