Heritage and Fossils of the Karoo
A brief lithostratigraphic review of the Abrahamskraal…
The basal strata of the Beaufort Group of the South African Karoo Basin, comprising the western Abrahamskraal and eastern Koonap formations, contain the most time extensive record of Middle Permian fossil tetrapods and hold the key to understanding Middle Permian biodiversity change in the continental realm. To determine faunal stratigraphic ranges a reliable lithostratigraphic framework…
Read MoreRefined stratigraphy of the Middle Permian Abrahamskraal Formation
Fluvially deposited rocks of the Abrahamskraal Formation of the lower Beaufort Group in the South African Karoo record sediment deposition during the Middle Permian, the earliest terrestrial environment of Gondwana. A rich diversity of fossil tetrapods from this Formation provides a unique opportunity for understanding Middle Permian biodiversity changes in Gondwanan terrestrial ecosystems, but this…
Read MoreA dinocephalian therapsid fauna on the Ecca-Beaufort
Systematic exploration of outcrops of the lowermost Beaufort Group for fossils of the oldest terrestrial vertebrates of South Africa, known only from the Permian age Eodicynodon Assemblage Zone in Western Cape Province, has resulted in the discovery of a therapsid fauna in Eastern Cape province that is dominated by advance dinocephalians. The new discoveries include…
Read MoreWaterford Formation in the south-eastern Karoo
Extensive research on the rocks of the Karoo Supergroup has shown that this sequence, which contains an unsurpassed record of Permian-Jurassic tetrapods, records a largely unbroken stratigraphie succession from 300 Ma to 180 Ma. This Gondwanan succession was deposited in a changing environmental setting reflecting glacial marine through deltaic to fluvial and aeolian desert conditions. The contact between the…
Read MoreBiostratigraphic correlation in the Karoo
The richness of fossil tetrapods from the Beaufort Group of South Africa has enabled biostratigraphic subdivision of this Permo-Triassic succession, with global applicability. Despite being the thickest of the seven biozones recognised, attempts at further subdivision of the Middie Permian TafJinocephalus Assemblage Zone (Abrahamskraal Formation) have not been successful, largely because the exact stratigraphie ranges of fossil taxa are…
Read MoreThe first complete vertebral column of a basal tapinocephalid dinocephalian
Non-mammalian therapsids (‘mammal-like reptiles’) were the most common continental vertebrates during Permo-Triassic times. A rich fossil record from several continents documents the acquisition of mammalian characteristics among advanced therapsids. In contrast, the record of the early and most basal therapsids is poorly known and restricted to only a few countries. Dinocephalians are a major subgroup of basal therapsids and are impressive…
Read MoreNew evidence for diachroneity of the Ecca–Beaufort contact
The rocks of the Karoo Supergroup were deposited in a retro-arc foreland basin over an extended period from the late Carboniferous to the Middle Jurassic.1,2 They are internationally renowned for their wealth of fossils, particularly therapsids, which have enabled biostratigraphic subdivision of the rocks of the Beaufort Group3–5 and Elliot and Clarens Formations.6 Although a great deal of lithological amd palaeontological…
Read MoreDie Rol van Neëntiende-eeuse Fotografie in Eietydse Bewaring
Hierdie studie het ten doel om die rol wat 19de-eeuse fotografie kan vervul in die rekonstruksie van ’n era en in die bewaring van kultuurgoedere vir die 21ste eeu, aan te spreek. Die fotoversameling van William Roe van Graaff-Reinet word as voorbeeld gebruik.
Read MoreShale Gas Development in the Central Karoo – Impacts on Heritage in the Karoo
The study area contains a rich layering of heritage resources stretching over some 4.6 billion years. Geological heritage sites and meteorites are the oldest aspects of heritage considered here, while palaeontological resources cover more than 300 million years of prehistory. The archaeological record spans some 2 million years and covers the Early, Middle and Late…
Read MoreWhat our ancestors’ third eye reveals about the evolution of mammals to warm blood
Summery: French philosopher René Descartes believed that the pineal gland, a tiny button of neurons located in the depth of our brain, was the seat of the soul. Today, thanks to palaeontology, genetic and developmental studies, we know that it is actually the evolutionary relic of a long-vanished organ, the third eye. This is also known as…
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