The new species of antarctic skates was described from waters near Elephant Island, as a Raja rakusai sp. n.
During fieldwork in the early 1990s at the then still active quarry near Nasiłów, on the left bank of the River Vistula (Wisła), accompanied by Professor Andrzej Radwański, some lobster remains were collected. A fragmentary anterior portion of a decapod crustacean carapace, recovered from a level about 2 m below the Cretaceous–Paleogene (K/Pg) boundary, in a siliceous chalk unit locally referred to as ‘opoka’, constitutes the oldest record of the thaumastocheliform genus Dinochelus Ahyong, Chan and Bouchet, 2010, D. radwanskii sp. nov. The other, more complete, individual is from c. 3 m above the K/Pg boundary, coming from marly gaizes or ‘siwak’; this is ascribed to a new species of Hoploparia M’Coy, 1849, H. nasilowensis sp. nov., the first to be recorded from Danian (lower Paleocene) strata. Although both ‘opoka’ and ‘siwak’ facies in the Nasiłów area are very rich in diverse biota, including some brachyurans, no macruran remains had so far been recorded from the region.
The Cleveland Shale fauna represents a unique view of the time after a major Devonian extinction event
(Frasnian–Famenian) with the recovery of arthrodires (Placodermi) best represented by this most specious
North American fauna. This time was followed by an additional event (Hangenberg Biocrisis) leading to the
extinction of arthrodires (and all other placoderms). An understanding of the diversity and interrelationships of
North American arthrodires can aid our understanding of this critical time in vertebrate evolution. A new aspinothoracid
arthrodire Hlavinichthys jacksoni gen. et sp. nov. is described from the Late Devonian of northern
Ohio, U.S.A., which adds to our knowledge of this group. It provides a point of comparison to other members
of the fauna whose interrelationships are poorly known. A phylogenetic analysis supports an assignment of
Hlavinichthys jacksoni gen. et sp. nov. among the aspinothoracid arthrodires. This work has drawn attention to
the continued need for descriptive and phylogenetic analyses of this unique fauna. Decades old species descriptions
need revision along with preparation and description of new taxa. The work on Hlavinichthys jacksoni
gen. et sp. nov. here is one step in that process.
A few specimens of a macroporid bryozoan were collected, from the Eocene La Meseta Formation from Seymour (Marambio) Island, Antarctic Peninsula. Based on the morphology of the studied specimens Macropora antarctica sp.n. has been erected. This is the stratigraphically oldest species of the genus which exhibits a number of similarities with the Tertiary fossils and some Recent macroporids reported from the Southern Hemisphere i.e., Australia, New Zealand and South America.
Formerly reported as maritime Antarctic Bacidia sp. A has been re-named here as B. chrysocolla Olech, Czarnota et Llop. Another new species, B. subcoprodes Olech et Czarnota, found in the continental and maritime Antarctic has also been described here. A placement of both taxa within Bacidia De Not. is probably tentative because they are not congeneric with the type of this genus, B. rosella (Pers.) De Not. Similarities to other Bacidia with Laurocerasi-brown hypothecium and mostly 3-septate ascospores are discussed.
Until now Eocene chimeroid holocephalians of Antarctica have been known from only a few specimens attributed to two species from the Eocene of Seymour Island. New material collected by Polish and English field parties includes numerous tooth plates and fin spine fragments from the Eocene La Meseta Formation. We describe a new species, Callorhinchus stahli, based on two mandibular and a single fragmentary palatine tooth plate. In addition, the stratigraphic distribution and diversity of Eocene Antarctic chimeroids is discussed. The chimeroid Ischyodus shows the greatest stratigraphic distribution with its greatest abundance in the middle parts of the La Meseta Formation while Chimaera and Callorhinchus are restricted to the lower ones. Changes in the environment and habitat availability most probably triggered the distributional pattern and the disappearance of chimeroids.