Quick Search:    advanced search

GSW Home   GeoRef Home   My GSW Alerts   Contact GSW   About GSW   Journals List   Help

Journal of Paleontology

This Article Figures Only Full Text Full Text (PDF) Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Services Email this article to a friend Similar articles in this journal Similar articles in ISI Web of Science Alert me to new issues of the journal Download to citation manager Citing Articles Citing Articles via ISI Web of Science (1) Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Articles by HERBERT, G. S. Articles by DEL RÍO, C. J. Search for Related Content GeoRef GeoRef Citation

DESCRIPTION OF ARGENTHINA EMILYAE, A NEW GENUS AND SPECIES OF OCENEBRINE MURICID GASTROPODS FROM THE EARLY MIDDLE MIOCENE OF ARGENTINA

¹ Department of Geology and Center for Population Biology, University of California, Davis 95616;
² New address: Department of Geology, University of South Florida, Tampa 33620, <gherbert{at}cas.usf.edu>;
³ Museo Argentino de Ciencias Naturales, Angel Gallardo 470, 1405 Buenos Aires, <cdelrio{at}macn.gov.ar>

Argenthina emilyae is a new genus and species of extinct muricid gastropods from the early Middle Miocene of southern Argentina. Most of its shell features are consistent with those of the Acanthina-clade of Thais-like ocenebrines, including a broad, rounded body whorl, a large aperture lacking ornamentation, and a short, open siphonal canal, although other characters are consistent with the Ocinebrina-like ocenebrines, such as the differentiation of axials into varices and intervaricals and complex spiral sculpture. This combination of traits is unique in the Ocenebrinae. It is not yet clear whether this new taxon represents an episode of morphological experimentation by a stem group of Thais-like ocenebrines resulting in convergence on the Ocinebrina-like shell form or an evolutionarily intermediate step between Thais-like and Ocinebrina-like ocenebrines. Intermediates are expected from previously published phylogenetic hypotheses for the Ocenebrinae that suggest Ocinebrina-like ocenebrines have evolved multiple times from Thais-like ocenebrines. Until now, however, such intermediates have not been reported from the fossil record.