The eutherian, family-level clade Zhelestidae is consistently although weakly supported in five phylogenetic analyses that we performed on all Cretaceous eutherians. Additionally in the fifth analysis, which included some placentals, Zhelestidae is placed as a stem eutherian clade rather than grouping within the crown clade Placentalia as argued in some previous studies but not others. The subf...

Five pterosaur localities are currently known from the Late Cretaceous in the northeastern Aral Sea region of Kazakhstan. Of these, one is Turonian-Coniacian in age, the Zhirkindek Formation (Tyulkili), and four are Santonian in age, all from the early Campanian Bostobe Formation (Baibishe, Akkurgan, Buroinak, and Shakh Shakh). All so far collected and identifiable Late Cretaceous pterosaur bon...

A skeleton discovered in the Upper Cretaceous Sierra Barrosa Formation (Turonian-Coniacian) of Neuquén Province, Argentina represents a new species of theropod dinosaur related to the long snouted, highly pneumatized Megaraptoridae. The holotype specimen of Murusraptor barrosaensis n.gen et n.sp. (MCF-PVPH-411) includes much of the skull, axial skeleton, pelvis and tibia. Murusraptor is unique ...

The Late Cretaceous echinoid genus Micraster (irregular echinoids, Spatangoida) is one of the most famous examples of a continuous evolutionary lineage in invertebrate palaeontology. The influence of the environment on the phenotype, however, was not tested so far. This study analyses differences in phenotypical variations within three populations of Micraster (Gibbaster) brevis from the early ...

In South America, most titanosaur species are represented by incomplete skeletal elements lacking well-preserved cervical vertebrae. In this context, the discovery of cervical remains assigned to Mendozasaurus neguyelap González Riga is relevant from a systematic viewpoint. The fossils were found in the paleontological site and assemblage of the holotype, Río Neuquén Subgroup, late Turonian – l...

The Upper Cretaceous (?Santonian) Aitym Formation in the central Kyzylkum Desert, Uzbekistan, produced remains of a cimolodontan multituberculate (Uzbekbaatar wardi), a spalacotheriid symmetrodont (cf. Shalbaatar sp.), a deltatheroidan (cf. Deltatherus sp.), possibly the asioryctithere aff. Daulestes sp., possibly two zalambdalestids (Kulbeckia sp. cf. K. kulbecke and aff. Kulbeckia sp.), two s...

Chemistry of detrital garnets, chrome spinels and tourmalines of 30 selected samples in combination with the general heavy mineral distribution from 523 sandstone samples of the Upper Cretaceous to Eocene Gosau Group of the eastern part of the Eastern Alps and the western West Carpathians result in an advanced picture of sedimentary provenance and palaeogeographic evolution of that area. Garnet...