Non-coelurosaur theropods are best known for comprising most carnivorous dinosaurs such as the iconic Allosaurus, Ceratosaurus, Dilophosaurus, and Spinosaurus. Even though the dentition of most non-coelurosaur theropods retained the blade-shape denticulated teeth of their dinosaur ancestors, a few carnivorous clades such as spinosaurids and noasaurids deviated from this plesiomorphic morphology whereas some herbivorous taxa evolved leaf-shaped teeth and even lost their teeth entirely. The discovery and study of theropod teeth are closely tied to the earliest discoveries and research on dinosaurs themselves and despite the numerous studies on theropod teeth, none have addressed the evolution of their external dentition in detail. This study comprehensively explores dental evolution in non-coelurosaur theropods based on a data matrix of 44 external dental characters scored in 80 saurischian taxa and mapped onto six topological trees representing alternative hypotheses of theropod relationships. Results of this study show that zero to one dental apomorphy diagnoses most major non-coelurosaur theropod clades whose dentition typically evolved through minor dental changes in a mainly carnivorous group. The early dental evolution of theropods is characterised by an enlargement of mesial dentary teeth in neotheropods and the anterior displacement of the upper tooth at the level of the lachrymal in non-coelophysoid neotheropods. The first important dental change in early theropods, which likely resulted from a consumption of larger prey items, occurred during the radiation of the clade encompassing Dilophosaurus and averostrans, which is marked by a reduction in dentary and maxillary tooth count, an increase in crown height, and an enlargement of distal denticles in lateral teeth. Among ceratosaurs, ceratosaurids developed particularly tall maxillary crowns, some noasaurids acquired strongly procumbent fluted mesial teeth, and abelisaurids evolved a weaker variation of the crown size along the maxillary tooth row, with the tallest crowns positioned in the middle part of the maxilla. Dental evolution in Carnosauria was primarily marked by changes in premaxillary, maxillary, and dentary tooth count but a few clades also evolved apomorphic dental features such as teeth with a notable difference in size between mesial and distal denticles in piatnitzkysaurids and tall, poorly recurved crowns with pronounced marginal undulations in carcharodontosaurines. The most significant shifts in non-coelurosaur theropod dental evolution took place during the radiation of "chilesaurs" and spinosaurids in the Middle or Late Jurassic. Both lineages exhibit numerous apomorphic dental features, including a fully procumbent folidont dentition with unserrated teeth in "chilesaurs" and a strongly heterodont dentition made of fluted, conical crowns bearing minute denticles or non-denticulated carinae in spinosaurids. Both dental transitions are explained by a shift in dietary habit, from a strictly faunivorous to an herbivorous diet in "chilesaurs" and from an occasionally piscivorous to a primarily ichthyophagous feeding ecology in spinosaurids.
Within the Italian southern Alps, the Lessini Veronesi Mountains (western Veneto) represent a mildly tilted portion of the foreland located along the south margin of the south-Alpine chain, and only slightly affected by thrust faulting. The present setting is mainly controlled by a pronounced regional flexure toward the Apennine chain, which caused the tilting of the Lessini Veronesi Mountains and the uplift of their northern margin. The analysis of karst, fluvioglacial, and glacial deposits, together with the morphology of the Lessini tableland, provides key insights into the environmental and geomorphic processes that shaped the area. Based on recent studies, the Lessini plateau’s evolution from the first evidence of its emergence to the current geomorphological setting is depicted. Since the first phases of the uplift of the Lessini plateau, the karst cavities have played a crucial role in the conservation of continental sediments, witnessing ancient environments. On the other hand, starting from the Pleistocene, karst and river modelling overprinted the morphologies and deposits relative to several Pleistocene glacial cycles.
This study investigates the building materials and techniques used in the Tempio di Apollo, located in the Phlegraean Fields (southern Italy), an area of active volcanoes with caldera-forming eruptions in the past and also characterised by present-day bradyseism. The availability of pyroclastic deposits strongly addressed the local building practices. Mortar and brick samples were collected from selected structural sectors of the monument, adopting a minimally invasive sampling approach. Analytical investigations were carried out through Polarized Light Microscopy (PLM), X-ray Powder Diffraction (XRPD), and Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM). The mortars are lime-based and show variable degrees of cohesion. The binder appears micritic to cryptocrystalline, with frequent lime lumps. The aggregates are mainly composed of volcanic fragments such as pumice, with occasional ceramic fragments. XRPD data confirm calcite as the dominant binder phase, reflecting the original choices in raw material; the presence of gypsum and halite reflect subsequent alteration processes. These results underline the deliberate use of local volcanic products and illustrate the technological strategies adopted by Roman builders to ensure durability and structural performance. The study contributes to a broader understanding of ancient construction practices in dynamic volcanic landscapes.
The Central Cryptoporticus on Rome's Palatine Hill is a key underground monument of the Imperial period whose accessibility and long-term conservation are increasingly constrained by localised deformation, differential settlement, and cavity-related instability. Because these hazards are strongly conditioned by the nature and evolution of the foundation interface, we investigated how stratigraphy, mineralogy, and microstructure interact to control present-day vulnerability. Lithofacies logging from three boreholes (S1, S2, 1MS) and a trench site was integrated with portable X-ray fluorescence (pXRF), X-ray diffraction (XRD), petrography, and soil micromorphology on representative foundation units: pedogenised floodplain deposits of the Aurelia formation (AEL), variably altered and cemented volcaniclastic deposits of the Villa Senni formation (VSN), and underlying fluvial sand-silt deposits of the Fosso del Torrino formation (FTR). Results show that AEL is best interpreted as a structured, compound palaeosol shaped by polyphase wetting-drying and pedogenic redistribution. Alluvial clay coatings, vertic fabrics/slickensides, Fe-Mn redox features, and carbonate nodules produce a centimetrescale mosaic of contrasting porosity and hydraulic behaviour, implying strong sensitivity to moisture change and water routing. In VSN, two end-member petrofacies coexist: a friable, pedogenised ash-rich facies where vitricderived material is extensively transformed into clays and secondary phases, and a more coherent lithoid facies strengthened by zeolite and calcite cementation. Although cementation increases cohesion locally, hydrous secondary phases and alteration pathways create moisture-sensitive fabrics that can promote microcracking and softening where saturation persists. Across the foundation profile, rainwater infiltration, percolation, and capillary rise couple AEL and VSN, driving shrink-swell deformation, alteration and cement redistribution, and spatially patchy CaCO3 re-precipitation that is insufficient to offset ongoing weakening. Where these moisture-sensitive horizons intersect a dense network of anthropogenic voids, the likelihood of deformation and local collapse increases, making differential settlement and cavity-roof instability the dominant hazards for the monument. The findings support conservation priorities focused on surface- and groundwater control, targeted stabilisation of the most compressible or voided foundation sectors, and long-term hydro-geotechnical monitoring.
Tripneustes gahardensis (Seunes, 1896) is an extinct echinoid belonging to the family Toxopneustidae, noticeable for its widespread distribution in Miocene sediments throughout the Mediterranean Basin. While this species is commonly found in France and Spain, its presence in Algeria has never been documented so far. Recent discoveries in the Oran region, specifically from the Upper Miocene deposits of a quarry near the M’sila forest at the top of Jebel Bougoug, yielded specimens now herein attributed to T. gahardensis.
This study investigates microbiological methods for reinforcing sandy and eroded soils to mitigate desertification effectively. The research was carried out on sandy soil samples collected from arid regions, assessing their vulnerability to erosion and degradation. The focus is on microbially induced calcium carbonate precipitation and microbial polysaccharide production, which enhance soil cohesion and mechanical stability. Selected bacterial strains, including Bacillus cereus, facilitated calcium carbonate deposition and biopolymer formation, improving soil structure and stability. Experiments conducted in laboratory settings and field trials demonstrated that these microbial techniques significantly bolster soil resistance to erosion by increasing cohesion through mineral precipitation and biopolymer-induced aggregation. Comparative analysis with conventional stabilisation methods, such as mechanical anchoring, afforestation, and geotextile applications, indicates the superior sustainability and cost-efficiency of microbiological approaches. The introduction of specialised microbial communities enhances soil stability, nitrogen fixation, and organic matter decomposition, improving soil fertility. Additionally, polysaccharide-producing bacteria promote durable soil aggregation, essential for long-term desertification control. The results from both laboratory and field tests confirm the feasibility of scaling microbiological soil stabilisation technologies for practical implementation, highlighting their potential for environmentally sustainable soil management.
The Serravallian shallow-water marine deposits of the Ain Kihal Sandstone Formation from the Tafna Basin (northwestern Algeria) have been studied. The sandstone marl succession revealed numerous sedimentary structures (e.g., ripple marks, hummocky cross stratification, and linguoid ripples). However, the most striking feature of these Serravallian deposits is the abundance of soft-sediment deformation structures (SSDS), such as slumps, convolutions, pseudonodules, dish and pillars structures, autoclastic breccias, contorted laminations, pillow bed, ball and pillow structures, load casts, flame structures, dykes and water escapes structures. The microscopic investigation displayed fine-medium to coarse quartz grains, with feldspar, and oyster fragments. Based on sedimentary structures, the depositional environments of these intercalated marls and sandstones range from shoreface to upper offshore. This allowed us to link these SSDS to palaeoearthquakes. Comparison of the observed SSDS with previously published data suggests seismic activity of moderate to strong magnitude (over 5 degrees on the Richter scale).
This article reviews the entire late Neoproterozoic to Eocene evolution of the northern Indian continental margin. In the NW Himalaya, the Cambrian succession is overlain with angular unconformity by Ordovician conglomerates, testifying to a Pan-African orogenic event. At the top of the pre-rift sequence, an unconformity truncates Tournaisian limestones or older strata testifying to the onset of Neotethyan rifting. The up to similar to 1.5 km-thick rift sequence chiefly consists of quartz-rich white sandstones and black mudrocks. Four diamictite intervals in South Tibet testify to shore ice in the Visean-Serpukhovian, followed by two transgressive fossiliferous intervals (Bashkirian Fenestella Shales and Moscovian Chaetetid Shales). Glacio-marine diamictites containing volcanic detritus document renewed glaciation at Kasimovian-Gzhelian to Asselian times during the climax of rifting. At the base of the drift sequence, mid-Sakmarian glauconitic arenites are followed by basaltic eruptions during the initial development of the Neotethyan volcanic passive margin. Final submergence of rift shoulders is documented by middle to upper Permian strata followed by condensed ammonoid-bearing Lower Triassic pelagic limestones and by Middle Triassic shelfal marls and marly limestones. Thick Upper Triassic strata containing bimodal volcanic detritus indicate intraplate extension during the separation of the Lhasa Block from Gondwana. The Lower Jurassic carbonate platform contains a dark-mudrock interval with frequent storm layers testifying to the early Toarcian "oceanic anoxic event". The disconformity at platform top is onlapped by widespread upper Middle Jurassic condensed horizons with iron ooids, overlain by ammonoid-rich Upper Jurassic black shales. Lower Cretaceous sandstones indicate renewed intraplate extension and volcanic activity during the final breakup of Gondwana. Condensed glauco-phosphorites deposited during the latest Albian to latest Cenomanian "oceanic anoxic events" OAE1d and OAE2 marked the synchronous drowning of the clastic shelf. Upper Cretaceous foraminiferal oozes are overlain by a regressive marly/sandy sequence deposited during the initial impingement of the Deccan plume at the base of Indian lithosphere. After the India/Asia collision onset at similar to 60 Ma, shallow-marine carbonates record a Paleocene/Eocene disconformity interpreted as induced by the flexural wave propagating from the suture zone. The passive-margin succession is unconformably sealed by volcaniclastic redbeds containing grains of ultramafic mantle rocks fed by the Transhimalayan arc-trench system during obduction onto India and initial development of the Himalayan thrust belt.
Displaced and well-preserved Quaternary landforms, such as terrace risers and offset-beheaded streams, provide evidence of active intraplate deformation along the Gafsa Fault system. Their northern and southern Sidi Ahmed Zeroug Fault Strands (NSAZF and SSAZF) exhibit a complex history of right-lateral strike-slip and dip-slip motion within the Southern Tunisian Atlas located hundreds of kilometers away from the active African-Eurasian plate boundary. Geomorphic analysis of displaced stream channels along the SSAZF reveals a most recent earthquake offset of 3-4 m, with cumulative offsets reaching up to 35 m, corresponding to approximately 4 m per seismic event. Slip rate estimations indicate a Late Pleistocene right-lateral displacement rate of 3.53 mm/year along the NSAZF, which decreases by 60% in the Holocene to 1.44 mm/year. The vertical slip rate for the NSAZF is 0.13 mm/year in the Late Pleistocene, increasing to 0.21-0.34 mm/year in the Holocene, likely due to intensified regional compressive stress. The SSAZF exhibits nearly equal lateral and vertical slip rates, averaging 0.350.37 mm/year. Structural complexities such as restraining bends and secondary NW-oriented faults contribute to variations in slip distribution. Seismic hazard analysis suggests that the Gafsa Fault system is capable of generating earthquakes with a maximum moment magnitude of M6.7 +/- 0.2, with an estimated recurrence interval of 300-5000 years. These findings provide critical insights into the neotectonic activity of the study region and its implications for seismic hazard assessment.
We report here the first anomoepodid track from the Upper Cretaceous of Europe referred to the ichnogenus Neoanomoepus. The track was found very recently in the upper Campanian strata of Roztocze Hills, in southeastern Poland. This region was located on the northeastern margin of Kukernitz Island, which was a part of the Late Cretaceous European archipelago. Anomoepodid morphology of the newly found track together with its stratigraphic and palaeogeographic location speak in favour of its rhabdodontid affinity. We also discuss here associated tetrapod ichnotaxa from the late Campanian of Roztocze Hills. Discussed and partly reviewed tetrapod ichnoassemblage of Roztocze includes such ichnogenera like cf. Wakinyantanka isp., Hadrosauropodus, Dromaeosauripus isp., cf. Saurexallopus isp. and cf. Haenamichnus isp.
The shallow and deep water sediments and fossils of Tuscany have been studied for centuries, but uncertainties still exist regarding the chronostratigraphy and the tectonic regime controllingthe basin development. In an overall extensional tectonic regime, related to the opening of the Tyrrhenian Sea, Neogene-Quaternary Tuscan basins have been interpreted either as bowl-shaped basins evolving into graben bounded by normal faults, or as thrust-top basins (broken foreland basins). To better understand the dynamics of Tuscan basin infill, we present an integrated stratigraphic study of a succession exposed at the Belvedere waste facility near Legoli (municipality of Peccioli, Pisa, Italy), in the Valdera-Volterra basin (VVB). The section consists of clays and sandy clays interrupted by two sandy intervals and topped by a mainly sandy succession. We reconstruct depositional dynamics through sedimentary facies analysis and palaeoecology, and we use biostratigraphy and palaeomagnetism for chronostratigraphic assignment of the succession. The bio-magnetostratigraphic data indicate that the section falls at the Zanclean/ Piacenzian transition, encompassing the Gilbert reversed chron (C2Ar) to the Gauss (C2An.3n) normal chron transition dated 3.6 Ma. Our study constrains the sedimentary infill of the VVB at Legoli between the latter part of the Zanclean and the early Piacenzian, at the onset of the first signs of a Northern Hemisphere glaciation. The section shows a shallow tilting towards the WNW, tilting that decreases towards the top of the section, pointing to tectonic control on deposition at a time of increased sediment accommodation due to basin subsidence. Our results indicate that this sector of the VVB, interpreted as a thrust-top basin under a crustal shortening acme during the Messinian, underwent tectonic subsidence controlled by normal faults during the Piacenzian.
The Riace Bronzes are a pair of 5th century BC Greek statues, discovered in 1972 in the offshore of Riace Marina, south-eastern Calabria (Italy). A study conducted in 1995 by the Italian Central Institute for Restoration (ICR) highlighted a significant difference in the geochemical composition between the clays used for casting individual sections of the statues and those used for the terracotta pins with which they were welded. Considering that the clays used for assembling the statues are highly indicative of their installation site, and that numerous historical, literary, archaeological, and archaeometric clues suggest an original placement in the ancient Greek town of Siracusa (Eastern Sicily) for the two statues, in this work a comparison was made between the geochemical composition of the welding material and clays from the ancient production area of the town. According to geo-archeological data, this area was probably located in the alluvial plain between the mouth of the Anapo and Ciane rivers and the hill on which the Temple of Zeus Olimpio stands. The results show a surprising and significant correspondence between these clays and those used for the welding of Statue A and, in part, also for the restoration of Statue B. Furthermore, a review of literature data reveals a good correspondence between the mineralogical composition of the internal casting material of both statues and sediments present in the Sibari area (northern Calabria), the same used for the manufacture of the Auriga of Delphi. Finally, the analysis of the taphonomic characteristics of the bronzes and the geochemical analysis of the layered surface patinas, in relation to the hydrodynamic and geomorphological data of the Riace seabed, reveals a millennial primary deposition in different and much deeper seabeds. Aim of this study is to integrate the new data with a critical review of the most robust scientific evidence currently available in literature through an interdisciplinary geological-archeological approach, to yield a unified, coherent, and comprehensive reading of the history of the two famous statues within a single interpretive proposal.
The Bajo de la Carpa Formation (Santonian, Late Cretaceous) of the Neuqu & eacute;n Basin, Argentina, represents a critical stratigraphic interval for understanding the evolution and diversity of South American titanosaurians. This study presents the description and comparative analysis of newly recovered titanosaurian remains from the Los Bastos locality, located near Senillosa (Neuqu & eacute;n Province). The material includes both cranial and postcranial elements belonging to distinct individuals, including an isolated cranial bone, appendicular and pelvic fragments, and some anterior to middle caudal vertebrae. Sedimentological and taphonomic data indicate a dynamic floodplain environment with episodic burial conditions conducive to the preservation of both associated and weathered remains. Detailed morphological comparisons suggest the presence of titanosaurs morphologically compatible with both Colossosauria and Saltasauridae within the same stratigraphic horizon. Notably, an associated series of caudal vertebrae (MMS-PV-75) exhibits characters diagnostic of Aeolosaurinae, while showing procoelousdistoplatyan centra and laterally expanded transverse processes. A separate pelvic specimen (MMS-PV-82), composed of an ilium, a pubis, and an ischium, displays some features of Saltasauroidea representing the earliest known occurrence of this clade in the Neuqu & eacute;n Basin. The coexistence of colossosaurian and saltasaurid titanosaurs within a single depositional context challenges models positing a rapid faunal replacement and instead suggests a more gradual, overlapping diversification. The presence of putative theropod feeding traces on some bones adds a rare ichnological dimension to the palaeoecological reconstruction. Collectively, these findings provide new information on titanosaurian evolution during the Santonian highlighting the importance of the Bajo de la Carpa Formation as a key window into Late Cretaceous Gondwanan dinosaur faunas.
Long dinosaur trackways, tens to hundreds of metres in length, provide valuable insights into the locomotor behaviour, and biomechanics of extinct taxa, but remain underrepresented in ichnological studies due to the logistical challenges of their documentation and analysis. Applying novel digital analyses of published trackway maps may offer an opportunity to overcome these challenges. This study demonstrates the use of semi-automatic digital methodologies in evaluating the longest dinosaur trackway in Italy, the eighty-metre-long CA6 (theropodan) trackway from the Coste dell’Anglone tracksite (Trentino-Alto Adige, Northern Italy). Employing a suite of custombuilt Python scripts within the open-source 3D software Blender, an exhaustive set of both traditional and nontraditional trackway parameters and trackmaker biometrics, can be calculated. The findings highlight how digital tools can provide a comprehensive framework for analysing challenging trackways, such as those of considerable length, contributing to a deeper understanding of extinct trackmaker taxa and offering the potential to refine ichnological standards and practices.
The Meknassy-Mezzouna tectonic corridor represents the southern part of the regional scale tectonic structure of the N-S axis in central Tunisia that separates the Central Atlas, to the west, from the eastern foreland basins of Tunisia. It is established within a Mesozoic-Cenozoic cover in a region where both shallow and deep-rooted faults occur. Most of these faults are inherited from the Tethyan rifting and have controlled the deposition of the sedimentary sequences that were deformed during the Atlassic tectonic inversion. The present-day structure of central Tunisia is underlined by a multidirectional fault system locally associated to Triassic salt extrusions. Accordingly, its structural style was significantly controlled by halokinesis and tectonic inheritance. In this region, Triassic evaporites are acknowledged as a decollement level between the faulted ante-Triassic basement and the post-Triassic sedimentary cover dominated by folds and shallow fault-related structures, locally disturbed by Triassic extrusions. In this study, gravity and 2-D seismic surveys, wells and surface geological data are integrated to better understand the subsurface structural architecture of the study area and to detect and map the associated fault network. The interpretation of the gravity data highlights four major fault systems, oriented N-S, NE-SW, NW-SE and E-W. Some faults are deeply rooted into the basement to a more than 5000 m depth, while others of 500 to 2000 m depth are associated with the folds and shallow fault-related structures generated during the Atlassic orogeny. Multistage Mesozoic-Cenozoic extrusions of evaporitic Triassic rocks occurred in privileged weak zones mainly controlled by faults intersection. The tectonic style of the geological structures along the southern part of the N-S axis, in central Tunisia, was visibly controlled by the reactivation of inherited structural features together with salt tectonics.
This study presents a comprehensive petrographic, mineralogical, and geochemical investigation of Lower Jurassic uranium-bearing phosphorite deposits from the Bogaz and Fushëbardha localities within the Ionian Zone, Southern Albania. The phosphorites occur within carbonate successions and were analysed using thin section petrography, X-ray Diffraction (XRD), Scanning Electron Microscopy with Energy Dispersive Spectroscopy (SEM-EDS), Electron Micro-Probe Analyses (EMPA) and Geiger-Müller radiation measurements. At Bogaz, phosphorites occur as interparticle cement within breccias composed of angular carbonate clasts. Brecciated carbonate facies consist of packstone with peloids, Pliensbachian (Lower Jurassic) benthic foraminifera (Siphovalvulina) and green dasycladacean algae (Palaeodasycladus mediterraneus), and wackestone with fenestrae indicative of shallow-marine, peritidal depositional environments. XRD and EMPA analyses confirm fluorapatite, francolite (carbonate fluorapatite), and calcite as dominant phases, with uranium incorporated within the apatite lattice. Carbonate fluorapatite crystals form rosette structures, tens of microns in diameter. These features suggest a tectonically influenced formation of hydraulic breccias and diagenetic fluid circulation driving a secondary diagenetic infiltration-type phosphogenesis. At Fushëbardha, the phosphorites form mainly nodular or lenticular structures within a carbonate matrix, with interbedded packstone and grainstone containing Bositra-type thin-shelled, pelagic bivalves. The stratiform phosphorites at Fushëbardha are interpreted as primary deposits linked to the Early Jurassic Toarcian Oceanic Anoxic Event (OAE), reflecting phosphogenesis in low-energy, oxygen-depleted marine environments associated with microbial organic remains as observed at SEM. Fluorapatite occurs as microcrystalline prisms with hexagonal base and radial rosettes; uranium is spatially restricted to phosphate nodules. The dual occurrence of diagenetic (Bogaz) and sedimentary stratiform (Fushëbardha) phosphorites reflects two distinct phosphogenic pathways in the Ionian Zone. These findings emphasize the role of global climate and ocean anoxia, tectonic regime, diagenesis, microbial mediation and redox-sensitive geochemical environments in the genesis of Mediterranean phosphorites. Albanian phosphate mining sites should be further evaluated for radioactivity hazard as part of any mining feasibility study in the future.
Mesozoic dinosaurs and Cenozoic mammals are often regarded as broadly ecologically equivalent, as they included the majority of medium-to-large-bodied terrestrial vertebrates of their respective eras. One of the most significant differences between them is their mode of reproduction: oviparity and large clutch size regardless of adult body size in the former; viviparity and litter size decreasing with adult body size in the latter. Furthermore, the disparity between hatchling and adult body size is much greater in dinosaurs than neonate and adult body size in mammals on average. The effects of these differences are examined with regards to the size distribution and species richness in fossil communities. Species lists and estimated adult body sizes were assembled for Jurassic and Cretaceous dinosaur and Cenozoic mammal communities based on the instantaneous diversity within wellsampled formations. The distribution of adult sizes within communities were compared to cases in which earlier growth stages were included: dinosaur hatchling size was estimated from known egg sizes of related taxa, while mammalian neonate size was estimated from those of extant relatives. The size distribution including the entire ontogenetic series results in a greater shift of average body size in dinosaurian communities than in mammals due to the much smaller dinosaur baby size. However, these two sets of plots may not reflect the ecological realities of their respective communities. In many mammals the young are provisioned via lactation and later by provisioning by mothers until they are a substantial fraction of adult body size: thus, the adult-only plots for mammals may be accurate reflections in terms of the realised feeding community structure. In contrast, evidence for long-term parental care in non-avian dinosaurs is scanty for most clades, with many juvenile dinosaurs living (individually or in small groups) independently for most of their lives. Thus, due to these ontogenetic niche shifts, plots in which different growth stages are counted as their own "taxa" might more accurately represent the trophic ecology within dinosaurian communities. In this scenario, effective "species" counts are higher in dinosaurian communities compared to mammalian ones: a reversal of the situation when only adult size is examined.
The Gran Sasso range in central Italy is the icon of the Apennines, forming the mountain front of the central Apennines. The range consists of Meso-Cenozoic carbonates overthrust onto Messinian foredeep deposits along the Gran Sasso thrust. Despite its geological relevance, the age of thrusting, especially its end, is uncertain. Such age relies on speculative dating of the Rigopiano conglomerate, the youngest growth strata recording the activity of the Gran Sasso thrust, widely believed to be Early Pliocene in age. However, the reliability of this age attribution is low, being based on the supposed occurrence of marine foraminifera, of which there is no publicly available documentation. We reassess the age, depositional environment, and structural significance of the syn-kinematic Rigopiano conglomerate. Our data indicate a Late Pliocene to Early Pleistocene age and a continental depositional environment, younging the end of the Gran Sasso thrust activity. This revised age significantly increases the inferred duration of thrusting and points to a coeval activity with the more external thrusts in its footwall.
The Northern African margin, running from the Rif Mountains in Morocco to northern Tunisia, offers a unique geological record of the transition from a Mesozoic Tethyan passive margin to the Cenozoic Alpine orogen. This editorial synthesizes current research on geodynamic processes, tectono-sedimentary evolution, and the distribution of georesources along this margin. Structural inheritance from Mesozoic rifting, salt tectonics, and pre-existing basement structures exerted a strong control on the development of the fold-thrust belts, foreland basins, and fault-propagation folds. Research throughout Morocco, Algeria, and Tunisia illustrates the reactivation of these structures under NW-SE to NNW-SSE compressional shortening, which in turn impacts seismic hazard, groundwater distribution, and hydrocarbon prospectivity. Consequently, this tectonic inheritance was instrumental in controlling both the structural architecture and the localisation of resources, offering a comprehensive framework for deciphering the relationships between rifting, orogeny, and georesource potential along the North African margin.
