A new bioerosion trace fossil, the rosette-shaped microboring Neodendrina carnelia igen. et isp. n., is described from a giant clam (Tridacna maxima) discovered in Pleistocene to Holocene coral reef deposits of the Egyptian Red Sea coast. The trace was formed as a complex attachment scar after the host had ceased. The biological identity of the trace maker, probably either a benthic foraminiferan or a macrophyte, is discussed.

Extant beaked whales perform deep dives to forage for squids. We studied the morphology of the fossil ziphiid Messapicetus gregarius to evaluate its ability to perform such dives. Our analysis suggests an enlargement of the pterygoid sinus system in deep divers. In M. gregarius, the pterygoid sinus is enlarged, but other lines of evidence indicate that the coastal environment also represented an important part of its home range.

The objective was to investigate inner ears and in particular the morphology of the cochlea of fossil and Recent baleen whales to reconstruct the occurrence of low-frequency hearing. Our results of cochlear shape analysis indicate that very low-frequency hearing appeared in the middle Miocene, and infrasonic hearing had evolved by the late Miocene. Cochlear coiling shape is suitable for estimating hearing limits in whales, closely approximated by cochlear length times number of cochlear turns.

Natural history museums harbor millions of collection items. To exchange and publish the associated data, an appropriate standard is essential. ABCD (Access to Biological Collection Data) enables together with its extension EFG (Extension for Geoscience) sharing and publishing of data related to biology, paleontological, mineralogical, and petrological objects. Here, we review the history of ABCDEFG and highlight its usage by different initiatives and for the data publication in various portals.

We describe a biting trace on the oral surface of a large Maastrichtian holasteroid echinoid Echinocorys ovata from Hemmoor (northern Germany) which exhibits four circular punctures, arranged in a semi-circular arc. The punctures were not lethal to the sea urchin as is indicated by progressed skeletal regeneration and closure of the fractures. The shape and arrangement of the biting trace are analyzed suggesting that it was produced most likely by a globidensine mosasauroid.

Selected specimens from the Jurassic ammonoid Pararnioceras sp. revealed striking changes in the conch morphology due to a syn vivo growth through a parasitic serpulid. Changes in its ontogenetic development are compared with specimens without epizoans. The ecological interpretation of the morphometric data allows the conclusion that the host possessed the ability to counteract the parasitic conch abnormalities by adapting the housing growth, thus ensuring its survival.

This paper presents a description of an extremely well-preserved and articulated skeleton of a temnospondyl amphibian from the early Permian of Oklahoma. Postcranial material is not often well-preserved or well-described in the literature for this group, known as dissorophids, and acquiring new data on this region of the skeleton is important for understanding the evolution of the group. It also represents the first documentation at this site of a genus that was otherwise known only from Texas.

A new species of a group of extinct fishes with a worldwide distribution during the Cretaceous, about one hundred million years ago, is described. Motlayoichthys sergioi is an outstanding fossil fish from Mexico with unique characters within the Pachyrhizodontidae. This fish is part of a diverse fauna found in a limestone quarry in Central Mexico. The goal of this paper was to contribute to the knowledge of the family and to continue the study of the Muhi Quarry fish, endemic to Mexico.

Mesosaurs were reptiles that lived around 280 mya. They were the first land reptile group to return to the water. Study of a fossil from the Museum für Naturkunde, Berlin reveals a previously unobserved baby skeleton near the adult. This small skeleton can tell us about how these creatures grew; the lower segment of the hind limb is already proportionally larger than the upper hind limb and the lower and upper forelimbs. This may be because young mesosaurs needed to swim right from birth.

The Spanish Algorachelus peregrinus is the oldest pleurodiran turtle known in the Northern Hemisphere. New material is presented, including several shells. The patterns by which some of them were disarticulated are analyzed. Several pathologies are identified. The knowledge about the anatomy and intraspecific variability is improved. Algorachelus is recognized in the Middle East and North America. The oldest known dispersal event of Pleurodira from Gondwana to Laurasia is characterized.

Paleopathologies among fossil members of modern groups of amphibians are poorly documented. We describe pathologies of the fossil salamander Eoscapherpeton asiaticum from the Late Cretaceous of Uzbekistan. These pathologies can result from trauma, infection from trauma and congenital disorders. The occurrence of several traumatic femoral pathologies in Eoscapherpeton could result from intraspecific aggressive behavior. Bone pathologies are described for the first time in fossil salamanders.

With the support of CT data, a morphometric analysis was performed with the aim of investigating the rostrum size differences between two Toarcian belemnite accumulations. A decrease in size from the Early Toarcian to the Middle Toarcian is recognized. It is also demonstrated that diameter-based measurements or maximum preserved length are not reliable proxies for rostrum size, and therefore apical length or three-dimensional approximations are more advisable.