SVP

The University of Utah is offering a new course this summer - Computational Paleophysiology, which will include both a lab component and a week in the field with Dr. Jim Kirkland the Utah State Paleontologist.  Learn more.

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DEERFIELD, IL (April 2012) – Coelacanths are iconic fishes, well-known as ‘living fossils.’ The group was thought to have died out with the dinosaurs until a living one was caught in 1938 off the coast of South Africa, sending shock waves through the scientific world. More than 70 years later, a new extinct coelacanth is causing more waves in the scientific community because it had a tuna-like forked tail and was probably a fast-moving, shark-like predator. This contrasts with living coelacanths, which are slow-moving fishes with peculiar broad tails bearing 3 lobes. The most complete fossils of this stunning 240 million-year-old species were found by collectors from the Peace Region Palaeontology Research Centre in Tumbler Ridge, British Columbia, and are described by two University of Alberta scientists in the most recent issue of Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology.

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The new form, named Rebellatrix, meaning the ‘rebel coelacanth’ was a 3-foot long fish with a massive symmetrical forked tail quite unlike the tails of any other living or fossil coelacanths. The structure of this new fish is so unusual that it has been put in its own family. The fossils were discovered on rocky slopes in the Hart Ranges of Wapiti Lake Provincial Park, British Columbia, which at the time the fish was alive was off the western coast of the supercontinent Pangaea.

Rebellatrix represents the first major change in body shape for the coelacanth group in more than 70 million years. The reason for its unusual shape comes down to two possibilities, says lead author Andrew Wendruff from the University of Alberta. Either the fossil record of coelacanths is vastly undiscovered and there are others like it yet to be found, or this was a specific response following the Earth’s greatest mass-extinction event at the end of the Permian (250 million years ago), as coelacanths evolved to fill a vacant niche unoccupied by other predatory fishes.

Dr. Mark Wilson, co-author of the study, noted that both the shape and the stiffness of the tail fin are unique amongst coelacanths. Similar tail fins occur today in fast swimming predatory fishes such as tuna or barracuda, strongly suggesting that Rebellatrix was an active predator capable of fast bursts of swimming and high-speed cruising to search for and catch other fishes living in the ancient sea.

 “This is an amazing discovery which overturns the age old image of coelacanths as slow moving fishes and shows the resilience of the group to come back in true fighting form after surviving the world’s most devastating mass extinction event,” says Dr. John Long of the Natural History Museum of LA County, an expert in fossil fishes who was not involved in the study.

Coelacanths are lobe-finned fishes (technically termed sarcopterygians) that straddle the evolutionary boundary between most bony fishes and four-legged land animals (tetrapods). This is based on many characteristics shared by the two groups, such as thick robust limbs, specialised skull features, and a hinged braincase. Coelacanths reached their evolutionary peak back in the age of dinosaurs, but since then are known from just two living forms.

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ADDITIONAL LANGUAGE VERSIONS

Japanese    
Spanish

ABOUT THE SOCIETY OF VERTEBRATE PALEONTOLOGY
Founded in 1940 by thirty-four paleontologists, the Society now has more than 2,300 members representing professionals, students, artists, preparators and others interested in Vertebrate Paleontology. It is organized exclusively for educational and scientific purposes, with the object of advancing the science of vertebrate paleontology.

Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology
The Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology (JVP) is the leading journal of professional vertebrate paleontology and the flagship publication of the Society. It was founded in 1980 by Dr. Jiri Zidek and publishes contributions on all aspects of vertebrate paleontology.

For complimentary access to the full article beginning May 4, visit: http://www.tandfonline.com/toc/ujvp20/current

The article appears in the Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology 32(3) published by Taylor and Francis.

Citation:

Wendruff, A. and M.V.H. Wilson. 2012. A fork-tailed coelacanth, Rebellatrix divaricerca, gen. et sp. nov. (Actinistia: Rebellatricidae, fam. nov.), from the Lower Triassic of western Canada. Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology (32)3: pp. 499-511.

Journal Web site: Society of Vertebrate Paleontology: http://www.vertpaleo.org
Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology at Taylor & Francis: http://www.tandfonline.com/toc/ujvp20/current

AUTHOR CONTACT INFORMATION

Andrew J. Wendruff
University of Alberta
Edmonton, AB, Canada
+1-732-232-2158 cell
wendruff@ualberta.ca

Dr Mark V. H. Wilson
+1-780-492-5408 office
+1-780-244-8382 home
+1-780-231-7724 cell
mark.wilson@ualberta.ca

OTHER EXPERTS NOT ASSOCIATED WITH THE STUDY 

Dr. John Long
Natural History Museum of LA County, Los Angeles, CA, USA
+1-213-763-3367 phone:
+1-310-321-2316 cell
jlong@nhm.org

Dr. Richard Cloutier
University du Quebec a Rimouski, Rimouski, QC, Canada
+1- 418 723-1986 ext.1771
richard_cloutier@uqar.qc.ca

IMAGES

Image 1. The fast-swimming coelacanth Rebellatrix chasing smaller species of fishes in the Early Triassic ocean west of Pangaea. Artwork by Michael Skrepnick.

Image 2. The skeleton of the stiff, forked tail of Rebellatrix that indicates its active, high-speed, predatory lifestyle. Specimen in the Royal Tyrrell Museum of Palaeontology. Photo by Andrew Wendruff and Mark Wilson.

Deadline Extended to Friday, April 13 at Noon Central Time USA

Don't delay! Submit an abstract for the Romer Prize and Colbert presentations.

Earn recognition from your peers in the vertebrate paleontology community. Submit your abstract today for these awards, which recognize outstanding predoctoral and student work.

The Alfred Sherwood Romer Prize recognizes an outstanding scientific contribution in vertebrate paleontology by a predoctoral student. Selection for participation in the Romer Prize Session at the SVP Annual Meeting is based on the scientific value and quality of an abstract summarizing an original research project, and the Romer Prize is awarded on the basis of the scientific value and quality of the oral presentation of that research during the Romer Prize session at the SVP Annual Meeting. The Romer Prize award for 2012 is $750.

Selected and presented on site at the Society of Vertebrate Paleontology's Annual Meeting, the Edwin H. and Margaret M. Colbert Prize recognizes an outstanding poster presentation by a student. The prize was named in honor of the Colberts' contributions to vertebrate paleontology. The winner of the 2012 Colbert Prize will be presented with a check for $600 and a poster ribbon.
 
Visit the SVP website for complete information about abstract submission and presentation guidelines.

Photo courtesy of R. Ewan Fordyce.

Courtesy of Dr. Annalisa Berta

Frank C. Whitmore, Jr., last surviving founding member of the Society of Vertebrate Paleontology, passed away on Sunday, March 18, at the age of 96. Frank was widely recognized for his contributions to fossil cetacean systematics and biogeography and for his role as a mentor to many marine mammalogists. Frank's  biography is in a festschrift dedicated to him: Eshelman, R.E. and L.W. Ward (1994) Tribute to Frank Clifford Whitmore, Jr. In A. Berta and T. Demere "Contributions in Marine Paleontology Honoring Frank C. Whitmore, Jr."  Proceedings of the San Diego Society of Natural History 29."

Read his obituary from The Washington Post.

Apply for the NEW Albert E. Wood Award by May 7

The SVP is excited to announce a new award named in honor of Dr. Albert E. Wood. He was a charter member of the SVP and unofficially served as curator of the vertebrate paleontological collections of Amherst College’s Pratt Museum of Geology, which included the famous “fossil bird” footprints. Learn more about Dr. Wood.

The purpose of the award is to support student research that involves museum and university vertebrate fossil and/or natural history collections. Both undergraduate and graduate students are eligible to apply.  Applicants and their sponsors must be SVP members or pending members. Proposals for the Albert E. Wood Award must be for collection-based work on some aspect of vertebrate evolution, and special attention will be given to proposals that greatly enhance the value of fossil material already residing in collections. Funds may be used for travel to collections and/or supplies that aid research. The Wood Award may be used to supplement other sources of funding (and vice versa); if such funding is currently available, please include this information in the budget section of the application form. If completion of the project depends upon securing other funding, indicate this as well.

Applications are due by e-mail on Monday, May 7, 2012, at Noon Central Time USA, and signed applications must be postmarked no later than Monday, May 14, 2012. Visit the SVP website to download the application.

For more details about the SVP 72nd Annual Meeting, download the meeting circular today! (PDF, 5MB)

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DEERFIELD, IL (February 2012) – Penguins are hot today, despite being usually found in the cold.  They've become icons of wildlife as they walked with their Happy Feet into pop-culture.  They've been popular with paleontologist as well, and new finds in New Zealand have shed light on the early fossil members of this intriguing group of birds.

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An international team, centered at Otago University, have found and described two new fossil penguin species, including what may be the tallest penguin to have ever lived.  The findings are revealed in a new article authored by Daniel Ksepka of North Carolina State University, Ewan Fordyce of Otago University and former Otago students Tatsuro Ando and Craig Jones in the latest issue of the Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology.

Modern penguins are known for living in the southern hemisphere and having lost their ability to fly.  Instead they use their wings to swim, and waddle up onto land to escape ice-choked seas and to raise their young.  New Zealand has the largest collection of modern penguin species, and the same is true of their fossil relatives.  This recent find helps scientists sort out some of the incredible diversity in these early forms.

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The new species, named Kairuku waitaki and Kairuku grebneffi were part of a diverse penguin community from 27 million years ago.  Kairuku (whose name means 'food diver' in the native New Zealand Maori tongue) is represented by nearly complete skeletons, which allowed scientists to determine that it had a unique form compared to other penguins, fossil or living.  These penguins were slim, with elongate flippers and stout hind limbs.  Based on the nearly complete skeleton, Kairuku grebneffi may have stood 1.3 meters (nearly 5 feet) tall, making it the tallest penguin to have lived.

Says Ksepka, "It is thrilling to see a completely new type of penguin turning up in the fossil record.  Kairuku joins a cadre of extinct forms including the "proto-penguin" Waimanu, spear-billed penguins, and tiny divers. Each new discovery expands our picture of the incredibly diverse radiation of now-extinct penguins – now surpassing 50 species."

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The fossils were actually found years ago, and are only now being described.  "The three key specimens were found serendipitously during field exploration for fossil whales and dolphins between the late 70s and early 90s. That work, and subsequent field study, places New Zealand's Waitaki Region as an important source of southern hemisphere marine vertebrates," said Ewan Fordyce, a Professor of Geology at University of Otago who discovered the penguins and organized the study.

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Fossil penguins have been studied for more than 150 years, going back to Thomas Huxley, and these new finds are some of the best in that entire history, and speak to the reason why we still find these birds so fascinating.  Says Ksepka, "New Zealand is a center of diversity for penguins today, and in the past Zealandia was even more of a penguin paradise. So far, ten different species spanning a large range of shapes and sizes have been discovered in similar aged deposits.  The warm, shallow seaways and isolated coastlines of the time would have been a perfect environment for feeding and nesting."

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ADDITIONAL LANGUAGE VERSIONS

Japanese: http://www.vertpaleo.org/JVP_32_2_Press_Release_Japanese.htm
Spanish: http://www.vertpaleo.org/JVP_32_2_Press_Release_Spanish.htm

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ABOUT THE SOCIETY OF VERTEBRATE PALEONTOLOGY
Founded in 1940 by thirty-four paleontologists, the Society now has more than 2,300 members representing professionals, students, artists, preparators and others interested in Vertebrate Paleontology. It is organized exclusively for educational and scientific purposes, with the object of advancing the science of vertebrate paleontology.

Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology
The Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology (JVP) is the leading journal of professional vertebrate paleontology and the flagship publication of the Society. It was founded in 1980 by Dr. Jiri Zidek and publishes contributions on all aspects of vertebrate paleontology.

For complimentary access to the full article beginning February 29, 2012, visit: http://www.tandfonline.com/loi/ujvp20

The article appears in the Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology 32(2) published by Taylor and Francis.

CITATION
Ksepka, D.T., R.E. Fordyce, T. Ando, & C.M. Jones. 2012. NEW FOSSIL PENGUINS (AVES, SPHENISCIFORMES) FROM THE OLIGOCENE OF NEW ZEALAND REVEAL THE SKELETAL PLAN OF STEM PENGUINS. Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology 32(2): 235-254.

Journal Web site: Society of Vertebrate Paleontology: http://www.vertpaleo.org

AUTHOR CONTACT INFORMATION
Daniel T. Ksepka
North Carolina State University
Raleigh, North Carolina 27695, U.S.A.
Phone: +1-973-907-0047
dtksepka@ncsu.edu

Ewan Fordyce
University of Otago
Dunedin, New Zealand
Phone: +64-3-479-7510
ewan.fordyce@stonebow.otago.ac.nz

Tatsuro Ando
Ashoro Museum of Paleontology
Konan 1 cho-me
Ashoro-cho
J-089-3703 JAPAN
Phone: +81-156-25-9100
tatsuro.ando@gmail.com

Craig T. Jones
Institute of Geological and Nuclear Sciences
PO Box 30368
Lower Hutt
Wellington 5011, New Zealand
Phone: +64-4-570-4858 
c.jones@gns.cri.nz

Other Experts Not Associated with this Study

Stig Walsh
Senior Curator of Vertebrate Palaeontology, National Museums Scotland
Phone: +44 (0) 23 9284 3008
s.walsh@nms.ac.uk

Nicholas Pyenson
Curator, Smithsonian Institution
Phone: +1-202-633-1366
pyensonn@si.edu

Julia Clarke
Associate Professor, The University of Texas at Austin
Phone: +1-512-232-7563
julia_clarke@jsg.utexas.edu

Helen James
Curator, Smithsonian Institution
Phone: +1-202-633-0792
jamesh@si.edu

Nathan D. Smith
Postdoctoral Researcher, Field Museum of Natural History,
Phone: +1-319-321-6708
smithnd@uchicago.edu

Anthony Friscia (SVP Media Liaison Committee)
University of California, Los Angeles
Dept. of Integrative Biology and Physiology
Los Angeles, CA USA
Phone: +1-310-206-6011
tonyf@ucla.edu

IMAGES
Image 1: Two Kairuku penguins come ashore, passing a stranded Waipatia dolphin.  Artwork by Chris Gaskin, owner and copyright owner: Geology Museum, University of Otago. Used with permission.

Image 2: Articulated flipper of Kairuku grebneffi with the flipper of extant New Zealand endemic Yellow-Eyed Penguin (Megadyptes antipodes) for comparison.  Photo by R. Ewan Fordyce.

Image 3:  Discovery site of Kairuku grebneffi specimen OU22065. Outcrop of the Kokoamu Greensand along the bank of the Waihao River, South Canterbury, New Zealand.  Dan Ksepka in foreground. Above the unconformity, the Otekaike Limestone is exposed. Photo by R. Ewan Fordyce.

Image 4: Discovery site of Kairuku waitaki holotype.  Outcrop of the Kokoamu Greensand along the bank of the Waihao River, South Canterbury, New Zealand.  Dan Ksepka and Daniel Thomas in foreground. Photo by R. Ewan Fordyce.

Image 5: Dan Ksepka examines a specimen of Kairuku in a display case at the Geology Museum.  The small penguin to the left is an extant Little Blue Penguin (Eudyptula minor). Photo by R. Ewan Fordyce.

Image 6: R. Ewan Fordyce prospects for penguins in the Hakataramea Valley. Photo by Dan Ksepka.

Jesse Arnold Shotwell passed away on February 10, 2012 at age 88. Shotwell was a full professor of Biology at the University of Oregon where he taught Paleontology and served as curator of the Museum of Natural History. Learn more.

Change in SVP Management Association
2012, February 22nd

I am writing to notify you of a change in the association that manages the SVP. In June 2012, the Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biologists (FASEB) will take over management of the society from the Sherwood Group. The SVP Executive Committee reached this decision after several months of assessing our current levels of service, assessing the Sherwood Group and other management associations, and evaluating the costs and benefits of each management association.

An ad-hoc committee of current and former members of the SVP Executive Committee was formed in the Spring of 2011 to review and assess SVP’s needs in terms of management services. It was decided to seek bids for SVP management, mainly as a matter of due diligence (evaluating the performance of Sherwood in relation to the expense, and determining whether or not we would be served better by a different management association). This was the first time that such an assessment has occurred since Sherwood started to manage SVP in 1999.

The committee invited ten association-management companies, including Sherwood, to submit proposals for SVP management. After reviewing three bids, the committee interviewed two—Sherwood and FASEB—at the SVP meetings in Las Vegas. Various committee chairs also participated in the interviews. We had numerous follow-up communications with both organizations about costs, personnel allocations, specific services, and transition costs.

Our decision to make the transition to FASEB was made with deliberation after a detailed comparison of personnel, services and expenses. We have received good service from the Sherwood Group for more than a decade, and are grateful for the work and commitment of the Sherwood staff. The transition period will involve extra work on the part of many and entail the termination of some long-standing relationships. However, our decision reflects our judgment that SVP will function with great vitality and efficiency with FASEB. The FASEB staff has considerable experience managing a range of scientific organizations, has a robust management structure, has received positive reviews from members of other organizations who have worked with FASEB, and has a cost-effective fee structure. The change will not incur a substantial increase in expenses for SVP, and should entail some new operational efficiencies.

The contracts have been signed, and the transition is underway. By mid-June, most of the daily management of the SVP will transfer from Sherwood to FASEB. This will include membership issues, the website and most committee work not directly involved with the annual meeting. Sherwood and FASEB will both be involved in making the 2012 SVP meeting in Raleigh a success, with the former handling the abstract system, the development of awards, and general management of the meeting. Registration, business and committee meetings, and general SVP management will be handled by FASEB. Both companies are working closely together to make the transition as smooth and seamless as possible.

Your experiences with the day-to-day operations of the society should continue without any noticeable interruptions or changes; however, you will probably encounter minor differences in procedures, addresses and personnel as the transition progresses. And we hope you will personally join us in Raleigh to acknowledge and thank personnel of Sherwood for their long years of service to your Society, and to welcome key staff of FASEB who will be responsible for carrying us forward in the future.

With best wishes,
Philip J. Currie, President

The Society of Vertebrate Paleontology is now accepting abstracts for the SVP 72nd Annual Meeting, October 17-20, 2012 in Raleigh, North Carolina.  Learn more.

We also encourage you to apply, or nominate a worthy colleague, for an SVP award, prize or grant.  Learn more.