Two turtles with soft tissue preservation from the platy limestones of Germany provide evidence for marine flipper adaptations in Late Jurassic thalassochelydians.

ABSTRACT: Late Jurassic deposits across Europe have yielded a rich fauna of extinct turtles. Although many of these turtles are recovered from marine deposits, it is unclear which of these taxa are habitually marine and which may be riverine species washed into nearby basins, as adaptations to open marine conditions are yet to be found. Two new fossils from the Late Jurassic of Germany provide unusually strong evidence for open marine adaptations. The first specimen is a partial shell and articulated hind limb from the Late Jurassic (early Tithonian) platy limestones of Schernfeld near Eichstätt, which preserves the integument of the hind limb as an imprint. The skin is fully covered by flat, polygonal scales, which stiffen the pes into a paddle. Although taxonomic attribution is not possible, simil

SUBMITTER: Joyce WG 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8174742 | biostudies-literature | 2021

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature