A fossilized turtle egg clutch with embryos from the upper cretaceous Oldman formation, southeastern Alberta: description, taxonomic identity, and embryonic staging

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dc.contributor.advisorZelenitsky, Darla Karen
dc.contributor.authorMcGee, Amanda Rea
dc.date.accessioned2017-12-18T22:27:41Z
dc.date.available2017-12-18T22:27:41Z
dc.date.issued2012
dc.descriptionBibliography: p. 91-103en
dc.descriptionSome pages are in colour.en
dc.description.abstractFossilized turtle clutches containing embryos are heretofore undescribed. Here the description of such a specimen from the Upper Cretaceous of Alberta sheds light on the taxonomic identity and paleobiology of the turtle that laid the clutch. Examination of the clutch reveals 33 rigid-shelled, spherical eggs arranged in a layered cluster. Clutch size and the paleoenvironment of the nest site suggest that the fossil clutch belongs to a large, freshwater turtle. Numerous embryonic bones described from virtual reconstructions of computed tomographic data reveal that the embryonic bones are well-ossified. Comparisons with modem turtles indicate the fossil embryos were at a late stage of development, near batching, at the time of death. Morphology of the maxillae, dentary, and plastron suggests affinities with Adocidae, an extinct freshwater turtle clade. Additional lines of evidence, including egg and eggshell morphology, the predicted size of the female, and geographic and stratigraphic location, also suggest that the fossil clutch belongs to adocids.
dc.format.extentx, 127 leaves : ill. ; 30 cm.en
dc.identifier.citationMcGee, A. R. (2012). A fossilized turtle egg clutch with embryos from the upper cretaceous Oldman formation, southeastern Alberta: description, taxonomic identity, and embryonic staging (Master's thesis, University of Calgary, Calgary, Canada). Retrieved from https://prism.ucalgary.ca. doi:10.11575/PRISM/4558en_US
dc.identifier.doihttp://dx.doi.org/10.11575/PRISM/4558
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/1880/105559
dc.language.isoeng
dc.publisher.institutionUniversity of Calgaryen
dc.publisher.placeCalgaryen
dc.rightsUniversity of Calgary graduate students retain copyright ownership and moral rights for their thesis. You may use this material in any way that is permitted by the Copyright Act or through licensing that has been assigned to the document. For uses that are not allowable under copyright legislation or licensing, you are required to seek permission.
dc.titleA fossilized turtle egg clutch with embryos from the upper cretaceous Oldman formation, southeastern Alberta: description, taxonomic identity, and embryonic staging
dc.typemaster thesis
thesis.degree.disciplineGeoscience
thesis.degree.grantorUniversity of Calgary
thesis.degree.nameMaster of Science (MSc)
ucalgary.item.requestcopytrue
ucalgary.thesis.accessionTheses Collection 58.002:Box 2075 627942919
ucalgary.thesis.notesUARCen
ucalgary.thesis.uarcreleaseyen
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