晚新元古代瓮安生物群研究新进展

产于贵州瓮安，福泉，开阳地区晚新元古代陡山陀期磷块岩中的多细胞藻类，大型带刺疑源类，蓝菌丝状体和细菌化石，球状微体化石，后生动物化石等构成的瓮安生物群是世界上目前发现保存最完美的一个古生物群之一，本文在简单介绍翁安生物群研究现状的基础上，首次批露了笔者近些年来觅获和初步研究的单细胸原生动物，多细胞类海绵动物和类腕足类后生动物等一批新的动物化石资料，为地球早期动物起源，早期生物组织分化，适应辐射，生物多样化和早期海洋生物生态系统提供了珍贵的化石实证材料，此外，还论述了瓮安生物群发现的科学意义。     

辽西热河生物群中的水虿化石新发现

本文描述了热河生物群中2个水虿新种：Gomphus? biconuexus sp．nov,和Aeschna?acrodonta sp．nov．,它们分别属于Gomphidae科和Aeshnidae科。化石采自辽西北票黄半吉沟义县组下部(晚侏罗世-早白垩世早期)。     

辽西晚中生代热河生物群中首次发现具胚胎的软壳蛋化石

本文详细记述了辽宁省锦州市义县晚中生代热河生物群中两类爬行动物的蛋化石,其中离龙类蛋化石发现于早白垩世九佛堂组上部,翼龙类蛋化石发现于早白垩世义县组上部的金刚山层。经研究,离龙类蛋化石不仅含有胚胎,而且为软壳蛋。翼龙类蛋化石没有显示硬壳结构,很可能同样为软壳蛋。这些蛋化石的发现对于我们了解这两类爬行动物的生殖方式和发育演化历史将具有重要科学意义。     

Dinomischus from the Middle Cambrian Kaili Biota, Guizhou, China

Dinomischus is a rare solitary epifaunal suspension feeder. The over-all morphology of Dinomischus consists of a conical calyx surrounded with elongate bracts and an elongate stem. Visceral mass and stomach sac are evident in the body cavity. Dinomischus is interpreted as a primative ancestor of living entoprocts based on similarities in morphology and mode of life. Previously, Dinomischus is only known in two localities： the mid-Middle Cambrian Burgess Shale Biota and the Early Cambrian Chengjiang Biota. A single specimen of Dinomischus cf. D. isolatus Cowry Morris, 1977 from the Kaili Biota, Guizhou, China is reported here. The discovery of Dinomischus in the Kaili Biota extends its geographical range and indicated that the rare Dinomischus could tolerate deeper water settings during the Middle Cambrian.     

中国早白垩世翼龙动物群及其多样性对比

中国西北和东北地区发育中生代河湖相沉积的陆相盆地,其中赋存丰富的脊椎动物化石群,包括天山北部准噶尔盆地的乌尔禾翼龙动物群、天山南部吐哈盆地的哈密翼龙动物群和辽西热河生物群富含翼龙化石。乌尔禾和哈密翼龙动物群都发现于下白垩统吐谷鲁群中,两者的繁盛时间大致相当,这两个动物群的翼龙个体数量巨大,但是物种多样性很低。乌尔禾翼龙动物群的化石多保存在半深湖环境沉积的细砂岩和粉砂岩中,化石保存较为完整,主要为正常死亡;哈密翼龙动物群的化石富集保存在滨浅湖环境事件沉积的风暴岩中,大都经过了大型风暴的短距离搬运和快速埋藏,骨架分散,但几乎所有单个骨骼完整。东北地区的热河生物群翼龙种类众多,共生包括鱼类、两栖类、恐龙等其他爬行类、鸟类和哺乳类等脊椎动物,生物多样性极为丰富,大多保存在半深湖-深湖环境形成的页岩中,骨架多为完整保存,是火山爆发事件导致其集群死亡,并被火山灰快速埋藏,与新疆的动物群面貌明显不同。根据天山南北的翼龙动物群初步对比,乌尔禾翼龙动物群的主要优势类群准噶尔翼龙类,在天山北部的准噶尔盆地及相邻的蒙古西部地区都有分布,与天山南部的哈密翼龙动物群中已知唯一翼龙类群哈密翼龙完全不同,两者亲缘关系很远。因此认为在中生代,天山的隆升就已经达到了一定的高度,并对翼龙的南北迁徙交流形成了有效的地理阻隔。依据中国东北和西北地区早白垩世翼龙动物群对比,认为辽西及相邻周边地区由于华北克拉通破坏,导致大量火山活动,造成了生态环境的多样性和生物种类的快速更替,从而形成了热河生物群独有的极高的生物多样性,而缺少火山活动、环境相对单一的西北陆相盆地,虽然翼龙类具有数以千万计的庞大居群,但是物种多样性很低。华北克拉通破坏导致的辽西地区频繁而强烈的火山活动,是形成中国西北和东北早白垩世生物多样性差异的重要原因。     

辽西热河生物群一新的巨龙型类恐龙

初步研究了辽西地区热河生物群的一具近完整的蜥脚类恐龙骨架,其代表了一新的巨龙型类恐龙——中国辽宁巨龙(Liaoningotitan sinensis gen.et sp.nov)。其主要特征为:上颌骨腹缘下凸,上颌齿列短且位于前部;颧骨前端近平齐于眶前窗的前缘;翼骨的方骨支基部收缩;上颌齿呈叠瓦状排列;上颌齿冠窄勺形,切面呈D字形,缺失唇侧沟和小锯齿;下颌齿9枚,明显小于上颌齿,排列稀松;下颌齿冠不对称,切面呈椭圆形,舌侧的沟和嵴发育,齿冠基部向舌侧膨大;肱骨近端扩展,约为长度的54.9%;肠骨前髋臼突前端较尖。初步的支序分析显示,辽宁巨龙属于巨龙型类恐龙,是比盘足龙和梁龙更为进步的类群。     

There is no such thing as the ‘Ediacara Biota'

The term‘Ediacara Biota’(or many variants thereof)is commonly used to refer to certain megascopic fossils of Precambrian and early Palaeozoic age e but what does the term actually mean?What differentiates a non-Ediacaran‘Ediacaran’and an Ediacaran‘Ediacaran’from an Ediacaran non-‘Ediacaran’?Historically,the term has been used in either a geographic,stratigraphic,taphonomic,or biologic sense.More recent research and new discoveries,however,mean that the term cannot actually be defned on any of these bases,or any combination thereof.Indeed,the term is now used and understood in a manner which is internally inconsistent,and unintentionally implies that these fossils are somehow distinct from other fossil assemblages,which is simply not the case.Continued use of the term is a historical relic,which has led in part to incorrect assumptions that the‘Ediacara Biota’can be treated as a single coherent group,has obscured our understanding of the biological change over the PrecambrianeCambrian boundary,and has confused research on the early evolution of the Metazoa.In the future,the term‘Ediacaran’should be restricted to purely stratigraphic usage,regardless of affnity,geography,or taphonomy;suffcient terminology also exists where reference to specimens on a geographic,taphonomic,or biologic basis is required.It is therefore time to abandon the term‘Ediacara Biota’and to instead treat equally all of the fossils of the Ediacaran System.     

辽宁建昌国家级化石集中产地化石分布特征及保护区划研究

古生物化石是地球历史的见证,是研究生命起源和演化的重要科学依据.辽宁建昌国家级化石集中产地是世界上最重要的燕辽生物群和热河生物群的化石产地,化石种类和化石数量丰富,是受到中外古生物学者关注的热点研究区域.根据近年来的研究成果,对建昌中生代生物化石的地理分布、赋存层位和化石属种等进行归纳介绍,并对古生物化石产地进行保护区...     

Survey and establishment of Nanshimenzi Bed of Tiaojishan Formation in Qinglong,northern Hebei,China

In recent years,many fossil vertebrates,including feathered dinosaurs,have been discovered at Nanshimenzi village,Gangou Town,Qinglong County,Hebei Province,China.A geological section including the fossil-bearing strata was measured at Nanshimenzi,to determine the exact geological age and sedimentary characteristics of the section,and a new lithostratigraphic unit was named as the Nanshimenzi Bed.The Nanshimenzi Bed is about 56.6 m in thickness,mainly consisting of gray sandstones and siltstones and containing fossil vertebrates and several coal streaks.On the basis of survey and comparison,the Nanshimenzi Bed should be assigned to Tiaojishan Formation and probably to the upper part of the formation.     

New Benthic Fossils from the Late Ediacaran Strata of Southwestern China

The Jiangchuan Biota from the Jiucheng Member (Mb.) of the Dengying Formation (Fm.), discovered in Jiangchuan, eastern Yunnan, China, is marked by copious macrofossils at the apex of the Ediacaran strata. This fauna features benthic algae with varied holdfasts and other fossils of indeterminate taxonomic affinity and is compositionally unique compared to the Shibantan and Gaojiashan biotas of the Dengying Fm. and the Miaohe and Wenghui biotas of the Doushantuo Fm., elsewhere in China. One novel benthic saccular macroalgal fossil, named here Houjiashania yuxiensis gen. and sp. nov., from the Jiangchuan Biota is based on fossils that are sausage-shaped, elongate, tubular, ranging from 0.3 to 4 cm in length, and up to 0.8 cm in diameter. One terminus is blunt and rounded to an obtuse angle, the other is bent with a spread-out surface resembling a holdfast, suggesting a three-dimensional thallus. Thin, stipe-shaped outgrowths, likely vestiges of sessile saccular life forms, are prevalent in macroalgal fossils of analogous size and shape, as well as present brown algae Scytosiphonaceae, such as Colpomenia and Dactylosiphon. The new findings augment the diversity of benthic algae, such as those known from the Early Neoproterozoic Longfengshan Biota in North China. The benthic algal macrofossils in the Jiucheng Mb. add to knowledge of Late Ediacaran metaphyte diversification and offer more clues about the evolutionary positioning of primitive macroalgae. The co-occurrence of numerous planktonic and benthic multicellular algae and planktonic microbes might have facilitated ecologically the more extensive later Cambrian explosion evidenced by the Chengjiang Biota in Yunnan.