David John Ward

The Natural History Museum, London

A review is presented of the techniques currently used in the collection and separation of isolated teeth and bones of fossil vertebrates. These involve the collection and disaggregation of the sediment, its sieving, concentration and sorting of the residue, and curation of the fossils obtained.

We present a review of archeological and geological studies on the West Bank as a basis for discussing the geological setting of the tombs and geologically related problems with a view to providing archeologists with a framework in which to conduct their investigations on the restoration, preservation and management of the antique monuments. Wherea...

![Figure][1] Deccan plateau basalts. Lava from Deccan volcanism formed distinct layering. CREDIT: GSFC/NASA In the Review “The Chicxulub Asteroid Impact and Mass Extinction at the Cretaceous-Paleogene boundary” (P. Schulte et al. , 5 March, p. [1214][2]), the terminal Cretaceous

Extensive sampling of Bathonian sediments from localities across southern and central England has produced over 8000 neoselachian teeth. These comprise diverse faunas, with over 25 species being represented in total, most of them previously undescribed. Seventeen new species and seven new genera are named: Palaeoscyllium tenuidens sp. nov., Praepro...

The Ouled Abdoun Basin lies to the west of the Atlas Mountains in Morocco. The largest (9000km2) of five major phosphate basins in the country, it is worked commercially and contains deposits ranging from Late Cretaceous (Maastrichtian) to Early Paleogene (basal Lutetian) in age. Believed to be related to offshore nutrient upwellings, the phosphate...

The megatooth shark, †Otodus megalodon, which likely reached at least 15 m in total length, is an iconic extinct shark represented primarily by its gigantic teeth in the Neogene fossil record. As one of the largest marine carnivores to ever exist, under�standing the biology, evolution, and extinction of †O. megalodon is important because it had a s...

Four spiral coprolites with distinctive morphology are described from the Upper Couche III Bone Bed (latest Maastrichtian) phosphate horizon, approximately 2 m below the KT boundary of Sidi Chennane Quarry, Khouribga Province, Morocco. The spiral coils are relatively coarse, have convex margins and are folded in a “taco-like” stack. These character...

For the first time, a comprehensive study of the fauna of fossil elasmobranchs from the Miocene Duho Formation of the Pohang Basin (South Korea) is provided. A new species of kitefin shark, Dalatias orientalis, is described. The association consists of 14 species, most of which are recorded in South Korea for the first time: Hexanchus griseus, Dala...

Upper Cretaceous ammonites are described from six horizons in the mammal-bearing terrigenous-clastic sequences of western Uzbekistan, as follows: Upper Cenomanian, with Placenticeras sp. juv. cf. cumminsi Cragin, 1893 and Metoicoceras geslinianum (d’Orbigny, 1850); Lower Turonian with Tragodesmoceras cf. mauryae Kennedy and Wright, 1981, Placentice...

Poster describes efforts to acquire an important Triassic site and building the team to study it.

Late Paleocene elasmobranch findings are reported, along with reinterpretations of some previous taxonomic identifications in two main outcrops around Talcahuano area (Biobío region, Chile), and also delimiting the exposed lithostratigraphic units. Reviewed fossils are among 15 genera, comprising the species Paraorthacodus clarkii, Squalus minor, S...

Poster describes the process of bring a scientific site from commercial hands to scientific hands.

"The clearest and sharpest recognition guide to over 500 plant and animal fossils"

Sharks have a long and rich fossil record that consists predominantly of isolated teeth due to the poorly mineralized cartilaginous skeleton. Tiger sharks (Galeocerdo), which represent apex predators in modern oceans, have a known fossil record extending back into the early Eocene (ca. 56 Ma) and comprise 22 recognized extinct and one extant specie...

We present the first known cranial remains of the fossil batoid †Onchopristis numidus. Based on two exceptionally well-preserved specimens collected from the ‘Kem Kem Beds’ (Albian–Cenomanian), south-east Morocco, an almost complete description of the rostral and cranial portions of the genus †Onchopristis is provided, together with new observation...

The lithographic limestone succession in SW Germany includes the lagerstätten of Nusplingen and the Solnhofen areas. The holocephalian faunas from these two centres include isolated tooth plates and dorsal fin spines, as well as minimally disarticulated holomorphic specimens showing high fidelity preservation; members of both the Myriacanthiformes...

This poster discusses spiral bromalites and the question of whether they are coprolites in the strictest sense (fully extruded faecal material) or enterospirae (fossilised intestines with spiral valves). It is concluded from the examples illustrated that both types probably exist.

Ultraviolet Induced Fluorescence Digital Photography is a useful diagnostic tool for discovery, digital documentation, analysis and curation of palaeontological specimens.

Formic acid treatment of bioclastic limestones, and the disaggregation of impersistent black marl samples using the kerosene and boiling water method has yielded a very rich microvertebrate fauna from the Early Carboniferous Eyam Limestone Formation (Peak Limestone Group, Carboniferous Limestone Supergroup) of Derbyshire (UK). Small numbers of vert...

Observations on two specimens of Elasmodectes from Morocco and Germany.

A comparison of Outreach Programs between the Lauer Foundation PSE and NHMUK.

Observations on two specimens of Elasmodectes from the late Cretaceous of Morocco and late Jurassic of Germany.

A Comparison of Outreach Programs of the Lauer Foundation PSE and the NHMUK

A Comparison of the Outreach Programs of the Lauer Foundation PSE and the NHMUK.

Sharks of the order Lamniformes comprise seven families with 15 extant species, including some of the most iconic shark species, like the great white shark (Carcharodon carcharias) and †Otodus megalodon. Lamniform sharks have a rich fossil record dating back to the Cretaceous with the oldest confirmed members of this group being known from the Barr...

The cartilaginous fishes (Chondrichthyes) have a rich fossil record which consists mostly of isolated teeth and, therefore, phylogenetic relationships of extinct taxa are mainly resolved based on dental characters. One character, the tooth histology, has been examined since the 19th century, but its implications on the phylogeny of Chondrichthyes i...

A new fossil batoid (ray) Ptychotrygon rostrispatula sp. nov. is described from five exceptionally well-preserved, three-dimensional skeletal remains from the Turonian (Late Cretaceous) of Morocco. These specimens represent the first known skeletal remains for the genus Ptychotrygon and allow an almost complete description of the genus providing a...

Palaeontological resources are used by many people for diverse purposes, and in generating a best practice model for utilisation and conservation of these sites, the requirements of all of these interested parties should be taken into account. Fossilbearing sites vary tremendously, especially in rates of depletion of the rock and fossils, frequency...

A new fossil batoid (ray), Asflapristis cristadentis gen. et sp. nov., is described from six exceptionally well-preserved, three-dimensional skeletal remains from the Turonian (Late Cretaceous) of Morocco. Mechanical and acid preparation and computed tomographic scanning of these specimens reveal details of much of the proximal skeleton, especially...

A new fossil batoid (ray), Asflapristis cristadentis gen. et sp. nov., is described from six exceptionally well-preserved, three-dimensional skeletal remains from the Turonian (Late Cretaceous) of Morocco. Mechanical and acid preparation and computed tomographic scanning of these specimens reveal details of much of the proximal skeleton, especially...

Woodeaton Quarry in Oxfordshire has previously yielded a number of large sauropod vertebrae and other (unpublished) dinosaur remains from a horizon in the Rutland Formation. No review of the wider terrestrial fauna from Woodeaton has been published to date. Here we present an overview of new material recovered from a microvertebrate site at the top...

We report here the first neoselachian fossil fauna from Eocene nearshore marine deposits of the Mahajanga Basin, northwestern Madagascar. The fauna includes seven species of shark: Nebrius blankenhorni, Brachycarcharias koerti, Galeocerdo eaglesomei, two species of Carcharhinus (one of which is described as a new species), Physogaleus, Rhizoprionod...

The geology and stratigraphy of Woodeaton Quarry in Oxfordshire, United Kingdom, is reviewedin 19context ofprevious studies andits regional setting. This is supplemented by additional field 20observations made between 2013 and 2016. The upper and lower boundaries of the White 21Limestone Formation are discussed and clarified and a new rich terrestr...

AN ASSOCIATED DENTITION OF AGASSIZODUS (CHONDRICHTHYES, EUGENEODONTIFORMES) FROM THE UPPER CARBONIFEROUS OF MISSOURI DUFFIN, Christopher, Surrey, England; WARD, David J., Orpington, United Kingdom; LAUER, Bruce H., Wheaton, IL, United States of America; LAUER, Rene L., Wheaton, IL, United States of America The Lauer Foundation for Paleontology, Sc...

Chimaeropsis paradoxa is a myriacanthoid chimaeriform fish (family Chimaeropsidae) from the Late Jurassic Plattenkalk of Eichstätt in Bavaria, described from a single specimen by Karl Alfred von Zittel in 1887. The material was never adequately figured, and the unique holotype was destroyed in World War II. A holomorphic specimen of the fish, sligh...

Elasmobranchii is a clade of chondrichthyans (cartilaginous fishes) that comprises sharks, skates and rays represented today by approximately 1,200 species. Chondrichthyans have a long evolutionary history dating back to the Late Ordovician (ca. 450 million years ago [Mya]) based on isolated dermal denticles (Janvier 1996). Other remains such as ar...

Shark jaws exhibit teeth that are arranged into distinct series and files and display great diversities in shapes and structures, which not only is related to their function (grasping, cutting, crushing) during feeding, but also bear a strong phylogenetic signal. So far, most research on the relationship between shark teeth and feeding ecology and...

Tooth files, replacement teeth, functional teeth and tooth mineralization in carcharhiniform sharks. (PDF)

Tooth histology of †Hemipristis curvatus. (A), (B), (C) upper lateral tooth EMRG-Chond-T-17, (D), (E), (F) lower anterior tooth EMRG-Chond-T-18, (G), (H), (I) upper lateral tooth EMRG-Chond-T-19. Scalebar = 1cm. (TIF)

Tooth histology of †Hemipristis curvatus. (A), (B), (C) upper lateral tooth EMRG-Chond-T-32, (D), (E), (F) lower lateral tooth EMRG-Chond-T-33, (G), (H), (I) upper lateral tooth EMRG-Chond-T-34, (J), (K), (L) lower lateral tooth EMRG-Chond-T-35. (TIF)

Tooth mineralization sequence in Hemipristis elongata (EMRG-Chond-J-1). (PDF)

Tooth histology of †Hemipristis serra. (A), (B), (C) upper lateral tooth, EMRG-Chond-T-9; (D), (E), (F) upper anterior tooth, EMRG-Chond-T-12; (G), (H), (I) lower anterior tooth, EMRG-Chond-T-10; (J), (K), (L) upper lateral tooth, EMRG-Chond-T-11. Scalebar = 1cm. (TIF)

Tooth histology of †Hemipristis serra. (A), (B), (C) upper lateral tooth, EMRG-Chond-T-29; (D), (E), (F) upper lateral tooth, EMRG-Chond-T-30; (G), (H), (I) upper lateral tooth, EMRG-Chond-T-31. (TIF)

Tooth histology of †Hemipristis curvatus. (A), (B), (C) lower lateral tooth EMRG-Chond-T-20, (D), (E), (F) upper lateral tooth EMRG-Chond-T-21, (G), (H), (I) lower anterior tooth EMRG-Chond-T-22. Scalebar = 1cm. (TIF)

Micro-CT scan settings for the examined shark jaws and teeth. Two values in voxel size indicate different voxel sizes for the lower (first value) and upper (second value) jaw. (XLSX)

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The very small teeth of a new petalodont chondrichthyan are described from the Lower Carboniferous Eyam Limestone Formation (Peak Limestone Group, Carboniferous Limestone Supergroup; Brigantian, Early Carboniferous) of Derbyshire. Cypripediodens cristatus gen. et sp. nov. belongs to the Family Janassidae on the basis of the angle formed between the...

The planktivorous mobulid rays are a sister group to, and descended from, rhinopterid and myliobatid rays that possess a dentition showing adaptations consistent with a specialized durophagous diet. Within the Paleocene and Eocene, there are several taxa that display dentitions apparently transitional between these extreme trophic modalities, in pa...

Woodeaton Quarry exposes one of the most complete sections of Middle and Late Bathonian (Middle Jurassic) in southern England. The exposure displays a continuous and accessible section from beneath the Taynton Stone to the Forest Marble. The quarry is being restored to become a nature reserve. Although some sections have been preserved, some exposu...

The megamouth shark (Lamniformes: Megachasmidae) has sporadic occurrences both in the present-day oceans and in the fossil record. In this paper, we describe a new megachasmid, Megachasma alisonae sp. nov., on the basis of a morphologically distinct tooth collected from the Pyt Member of the late Eocene Søvind Marl Formation at Moesgård Strand in D...

Woodeaton Quarry (Oxfordshire) exposes one of the most complete sequences of the middle to late Bathonian in the UK. The continuous section ranges from the top of the Taynton Limestone Formation to the lower part of the Forest Marble Formation (Great Oolite Group). Screen washing and subsequent picking of material from a carbonate rich clay horizon...

The megamouth shark (Lamniformes, Megachasmidae) has enigmatic occurrences both in the present-day oceans and in the fossil record, where the geologically oldest record of megachasmids in literature is represented by the teeth of Megachasma applegatei from the late Oligocene (late Chattian; ca. 23 Ma) of the western USA. NHMUK PV P73711 is a previo...

We describe a new large otodontid lamniform shark, Megalolamna paradoxodon gen. nov. et sp. nov., chronostratigraphically restricted to the early Miocene (Aquitanian–Burdigalian). This new species is based on isolated teeth found from five globally distributed localities: the Jewett Sand in southern California, USA; the Pungo River Formation of Nor...

A World Heritage Site since 1979, the Theban Necropolis was built by the Pharaohs of the 18th to 20th Dynasties (c. 1539 – 1075 BCE). A variety of pharaonic (and lesser nobles') tombs, funerary temples and sanctuaries were located/excavated in the lower part of the c. 400 m high pyramidal El Qurn in a variety of lithofacies (predominantly marine li...

Geological fieldwork to investigate the stratigraphic context of Dzheroy-2, fossil shark and ray location in the Kyzylkum desert (Case et al. 1996), resulted at the discovery of the new location, Dzheroy-3, consisting of three fossiliferous horizons, at different stratigraphic levels: in the base of Suzak Formation, in the middle of the Alay and at...

ABSTRACT Geological fieldwork to investigate the stratigraphic context of Dzheroy-2, fossil shark and ray location in the Kyzylkum desert (Case et al. 1996), resulted at the discovery of the new location, Dzheroy-3, consisting of three fossiliferous horizons, at different stratigraphic levels: in the base of Suzak Formation, in the middle of the Al...

This is an updated version of Kemp, Kemp and Ward 1990.

Abstract Although ocean circulation plays a vital role in the climate system, its response to major carbon-cycle perturbations during the mid-Cretaceous, including mid-Cenomanian event I (MCE I) and the Cenomanian-Turonian oceanic anoxic event (OAE 2), is poorly constrained. Here we present Nd isotope evidence for episodic increases in the influen...

Fossils of post-Palaeozoic sharks and rays are common and well known, and have been extensively studied. Early studies, especially the monographic works of Agassiz and Smith Wood-ward, described species based on macroscopic remains of isolated teeth, fin spines and rostral 'teeth' as well as rare specimens of articulated skeletons and skulls. This...

The Middle Eocene to Early Oligocene rocks of the Fayum region of Egypt contain a series of faunas of marine and non-marine vertebrates that have made the area globally significant. Despite the importance of the biotas present, the lithostratigraphy and dating of the successions has received scant attention and as such the geological context of the...

RECENT THRESHER SHARKS Thresher sharks (Alopias spp.) are readily identified by their elongated caudal fins, that allow them to both swim rapidly and stun prey. There are three Recent species of thresher with World Wide [WW]or Indo-Pacific [IP] distribution. Alopias vulpinus WW– surface waters. Alopias pelagicus IP– surface waters. Alopias supercil...

Fossils of Qau el-Kebir; an ancient Egyptian funerary fossil collection In 1923 archaeological excavations at Qau el-Kebir, middle Egypt, revealed an ancient burial shaft containing artefacts and "tonnes" of fossil bones. Many were noted as hippopotamus but there were a range of mammals, reptiles, fish and what was considered at excavation to be t...

Between 2012 and 2014 the Department of Earth Sciences at the Natural History Museum (NHMUK), London undertook four digs to Woodeaton Quarry, Oxfordshire, a designated SSSI, to collect sediment to sample for microvertebrates. Woodeaton Quarry is important as it exposes one of the most complete sections of the Middle and Late Bathonian in southern E...

Madagascar is well known for producing exceptional fossils. However, the record for selachi-ans remains relatively poorly known. Paleontological reconnaissance on the island of Nosy Makamby, off northwest Madagascar, has produced a previously undescribed assemblage of Miocene fossils. Based on isolated teeth, ten taxonomic groups are identified: Ot...