Morphological Variation and Phylogeny of "Xinjiangchelyid" turtles

• Applicant: Professor Dr. Walter Joyce
• Subject Area: Palaeontology
• Term: from 2011 to 2015
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 192208807

The phylogenetic relationships of fossil and living turtles have been explored extensively, but the topology of certain parts of the tree remains contentious. Although it is apparent that a number of eucryptodiran taxa from the Middle Jurassic to Early Cretaceous of Asia represent the basal stem lineage of extant cryptodiran turtles (i.e., hide-neck turtles), only few have been integrated into a global phylogenetic framework and the origin of various cryptodiran characters and groups remains uncertain. The discovery of a spectacular mass death assemblage of “xinjiangchelyid” turtles in the Late Jurassic Qigu Formation of the Turpan Basin in Xinjiang Autonomous Uyghur Province, NW China, provides a unique opportunity to study the morphology and variation of basal eucryptodiran turtles. We herein propose 1) to return to this important site to collection a large sample of specimens, 2) to prepare the specimens in China with the aid of locally trained preparators, 3) to use the sample to assess morphological variation within basal eucryptodires, 4) to review the alpha taxonomy of basal eucryptodires, in particular “Xinjiangchelyidae” and 5) to integrate all available eucryptodiran taxa into an explicit global phylogenetic framework.

• DFG Programme: Research Grants
• Participating Person: Professor Dr. Hans-Ulrich Pfretzschner