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New western hemisphere occurrences of Schizorhiza Weiler, 1930 and Eotorpedo White, 1934 (Chondrichthyes, Batomorphii)

Publication Name
(2007) Paludicola, 6(3):87-93
Author(s)
Knight, J.L., D.J. Cicimurri, and R.W. Purdy

A single rostral spine of Schizorhiza stromeri Weiler, 1930 was collected from a temporally mixed vertebrate assemblage recovered from Williamsburg County, South Carolina. Although well known from Upper Cretaceous strata of Africa, the South Carolina Schizorhiza occurrence represents one of the few records of the taxon from North America. In addition, our specimen is the northern-most Western Hemisphere occurrence, originating from approximately the same latitude as previous accounts from the Tethyan region of northern Africa.

Eight teeth referable to Eotorpedo hilgendorfi (Jaekel, 1904) have thus far been recovered from Berkeley County, South Carolina. These specimens are important because they constitute the only evidence of& Eotorpedo White, 1934 in the Western Hemisphere. Eotorpedo hilgendorfi could have reached South Carolina by following ocean currents from the Tethyan region down the western coast of Africa, across the Atlantic Ocean to the Caribbean, and northward to North America.

 

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