Helochelydridae

The Helochelydridae are an extinct family of stem-turtles known from fossils found in North America and Europe that have been dated from the Late Jurassic to the Late Cretaceous.[1][2] Although referred to as Solemydidae in recent literature on extinct turtles, Helochelydridae has priority over Solemydidae.[3] The skull, shell and osteoderms of helochelydrids are covered in small, cylindrical protuberances, which are a distinctive characteristic of the group.[4] They are thought to be terrestrial, based on the presence of limb osteoderms and bone histology.[5] Their skull morphology is dissimilar to that of extant tortoises, suggesting an omnivorous habit similar to that of box turtles.[6] Their phylogenetic placement has been unclear, a 2021 analysis placed them within the family Pleurosternidae.[7]

Helochelydridae
Temporal range:
Helochelydra nopcsai skull
Shell of Naomichelys
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Reptilia
Clade: Pantestudines
Clade: Testudinata
Clade: Perichelydia
Family: †Helochelydridae
Nopsca, 1928
Synonyms[1]

Solemydidae Lapparent and Murelaga 1997

Genera

Indeterminate remains most similar to “Helochelydra” anglica and “Helochelydra” bakewelli have been reported from the Berriasian aged Angeac-Charente bonebed of France.[9]

References
  1. "†Helochelydridae Nopsca 1928". Paleobiology Database. Fossilworks. Retrieved 17 December 2021.
  2. Joyce WG; Rabi M; Clark JM; Xu X. (2016). "A toothed turtle from the Late Jurassic of China and the global biogeographic history of turtles". BMC Evolutionary Biology. 16 (1): 236. doi:10.1186/s12862-016-0762-5. PMC 5084352. PMID 27793089.
  3. Joyce, Walter G. (2017). "A review of the fossil record of basal Mesozoic turtles" (PDF). Bulletin of the Peabody Museum of Natural History. 58 (1): 65–113. doi:10.3374/014.058.0105. S2CID 54982901. Retrieved July 9, 2017.
  4. Gentry, Andrew D.; Ebersole, Jun A. (2021-08-10). "The first occurrence of the stem turtle Naomichelys from the Late Cretaceous of eastern North America". Historical Biology: 1–8. doi:10.1080/08912963.2021.1962855. ISSN 0891-2963.
  5. Scheyer, T. M.; Pérez-García, A.; Murelaga, X. (March 2015). "Shell bone histology of solemydid turtles (stem Testudines): palaeoecological implications". Organisms Diversity & Evolution. 15 (1): 199–212. doi:10.1007/s13127-014-0188-0. ISSN 1439-6092. S2CID 18628827.
  6. WALTER, J.G., CHAPMAN S.D., MOODY R.T.J., and WALKER, C.A. 2011. The skull of the solemydid turtle Helochelydra nopcsai from the Early Cretaceous of the Isle of Wight (UK) and a review of Solemydidae IN BARRETT, P.M. and MILNER, A.R. (eds.) Studies on Fossil Tetrapods. Speicial Papers in Palaeontology, 86, 75-97.
  7. Rollot, Yann; Evers, Serjoscha W.; Joyce, Walter G. (December 2021). "A redescription of the Late Jurassic (Tithonian) turtle Uluops uluops and a new phylogenetic hypothesis of Paracryptodira". Swiss Journal of Palaeontology. 140 (1): 23. doi:10.1186/s13358-021-00234-y. ISSN 1664-2376.
  8. A. Pérez-García; E. Espílez; L. Mampel; L. Alcalá (2019). "A new basal turtle represented by the two most complete skeletons of Helochelydridae in Europe". Cretaceous Research. 107: Article 104291. doi:10.1016/j.cretres.2019.104291.
  9. Ronan Allain, Romain Vullo, Lee Rozada, Jérémy Anquetin, Renaud Bourgeais, et al.. Vertebrate paleobiodiversity of the Early Cretaceous (Berriasian) Angeac-Charente Lagerstätte (southwestern France): implications for continental faunal turnover at the J/K boundary. Geodiversitas, Museum National d’Histoire Naturelle Paris, In press. ffhal-03264773f
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