Fossils of the Carpathian Region

István Szente, István Főzy

Description

A complete reference guide to the fossils of Hungary

István Fozy and István Szente provide a comprehensive review of the fossil record of the Carpathian Basin. Fossils of the Carpathian Region describes and illustrates the region's fossils, recounts their history, and tells the stories of key people involved in paleontological research in the area. In addition to covering all the important fossils of this region, special attention is given to rare finds and complete skeletons. The region's fossils range from tiny foraminifera to the Transylvanian dinosaurs and mammals of the Carpathian Basin. The book also gives nonspecialists the opportunity to gain a basic understanding of paleontology. Sidebars present brief biographies of important figures and explain how to collect, prepare, and interpret fossils.

Detailed Outline of the Text
List of Maps
Preface
Acknowledgments
Introduction: Rocks, Fossils, Events, Ages
1. The Paleozoic
2. The Triassic
3. The Jurassic
4. The Cretaceous
5. The Cenozoic
6. The Oligocene
7. The Early and Middle Miocene
8. The Late Miocene
9. The Pliocene
10. The Quaternary
11. Museums and Collections
Epilogue
Glossary
Maps
References
Index

Sujets

• Sciences de la nature
• Biologie
• Natural History
• Fossils
• Sciences et techniques
• Rock (geology)
• Paleontology
• Rocks
• Science
• Europe

Informations

• Publié par: Indiana University Press
• Date de parution: 18 décembre 2013
• Nombre de lectures: 1
• EAN13: 9780253009876
• Langue: English
• Poids de l'ouvrage: 4 Mo

Extrait

FOSSILS OF THE CARPATHIAN REGION
LIFE OF THE PAST James O. Farlow, editor
FOSSILS OF THE
CARPATHIAN REGION

ISTV N F ZY AND ISTV N SZENTE
GARETH DYKE, English Text Editor
This book is a publication of
Indiana University Press
Office of Scholarly Publishing
Herman B Wells Library 350
1320 E. 10 th Street
Bloomington, IN 47405-3907 USA
iupress.indiana.edu
Telephone orders 800-842-6796
Fax orders 812-855-7931
2014 by Istv n F zy and Istv n Szente
All rights reserved
No part of this book may be reproduced or utilized in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying and recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher. The Association of American University Presses Resolution on Permissions constitutes the only exception to this prohibition.
The paper used in this publication meets the minimum requirements of the American National Standard for Information Sciences-Permanence of Paper for Printed Library Materials, ANSI Z39.48-1992.
Manufactured in South Korea
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
F zy, Istv n.
[A K rp t-medence smaradv nyai. English]
Fossils of the Carpathian region / Istv n F zy and Istv n Szente ; English text editor, Gareth Dyke.
pages cm. - (Life of the past)
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 978-0-253-00982-1 (cloth : alkaline paper) - ISBN 978-0-253-00987-6 (ebook) 1. Fossils-Hungary. 2. Fossils-Carpathian Mountains Region. 3. Paleontology-Hungary. 4. Paleontology-Carpathian Mountains Region. 5. Geology, Stratigraphic. 6. Geology-Carpathian Mountains Region. 7. Geology-Hungary. I. Szente, Istv n, 1960- II. Dyke, Gareth. III. Title.
QE755.H9F6913 2013
560.9439 9-dc23
2013008540
1 2 3 4 5 19 18 17 16 15 14
TO
Miksa Hantken (1821-1893) ,
pioneer of micropaleontology
AND
Baron Ferenc Nopcsa (1877-1933) ,
dinosaur hunter of Transylvania
CONTENTS
Detailed Outline of the Text
List of Maps
Preface
Acknowledgments
Introduction: Rocks, Fossils, Events, Ages
PART ONE. THE PALEOZOIC
1. The Paleozoic
PART TWO. THE MESOZOIC
2. The Triassic
3. The Jurassic
4. The Cretaceous
PART THREE. THE CENOZOIC
5. The Paleocene and Eocene
6. The Oligocene
7. The Early and Middle Miocene
8. The Late Miocene
9. The Pliocene
10. The Pleistocene
PART FOUR. MUSEUMS AND COLLECTIONS
11. Museums and Collections
Epilogue
Glossary
Maps
References
Index
DETAILED OUTLINE OF THE TEXT (CHAPTER NUMBERS AS INDICATED)
1. P ALEOZOIC
Characteristic Rocks
Fossils from Transdanubia
Fossils from Northern Hungary
Fossils from Slovakia, Romania, and Croatia
M ESOZOIC
2. Triassic
Fossil-Rich Formations
Remarkable Fossil Sites
Triassic Fossils from the Carpathian Region
Microfossils
Fossil Plants
Invertebrates
Sponges
Cnidarians
Gastropods
Bivalves
Cephalopods
Bryozoans
Brachiopods
Echinoderms
Vertebrates
The Pebble-Toothed Pseudo-Turtle
Vertebrates from the Bihor Mountains
3. Jurassic
Fossil-Rich Formations
Remarkable Fossil Sites
Jurassic Fossils from the Carpathian Region
Microfossils
Fossil Plants
Invertebrates
Sponges
Gastropods and Bivalves
Cephalopods
Brachiopods
Echinoderms
Vertebrates
Fish
Marine Reptiles
Terrestrial Reptiles
4. Cretaceous
Fossil-Rich Formations
Remarkable Fossil Sites
Cretaceous Fossils from the Carpathian Region
Microfossils
Fossil Plants
Invertebrates
Cnidarians
Gastropods and Bivalves
Cephalopods
Brachiopods
Echinoderms
Insects
Vertebrates
Reptiles and Birds from the Bihor Mountains
Terrestrial Fauna of the Bakony Mountains
Vertebrates from the Ha eg Basin
The Duckbilled Telmatosaurus transsylvanicus
Zalmoxes robustus : The Transylvanian
Ornithopod Dinosaur
The Lamb-Headed Dinosaur
Struthiosaurus transsylvanicus
A Dwarf Sauropod Dinosaur: The Magyarosaurus dacus
Predators from Ha eg
Flying Reptiles from Ha eg
Kallokibotium bajazidi : The Tortoise
Named after a Secretary
The Crocodile of Ha eg
Recent Discoveries from Transylvania
C ENOZOIC
5. Paleocene and Eocene
Fossil-Rich Formations
Remarkable Fossil Sites
Eocene Fossils from the Carpathian Region
Microfossils
Fossil Plants
Invertebrates
Worms
Corals
Gastropods and Bivalves
Cephalopods
Bryozoans
Brachiopods
Crustaceans
Echinoids
Vertebrates
Marine Vertebrates
Land Vertebrates
6. Oligocene
Fossil-Rich Formations
Remarkable Fossil Sites
Oligocene Fossils from the Carpathian Region
Microfossils
Fossil Plants
Invertebrates
Corals
Mollusks
Gastropods
Bivalves
Cephalopods
Crustaceans
Vertebrates
Marine Vertebrates
Land Vertebrates
7. Early and Middle Miocene
Fossil-Rich Formations
Remarkable Fossil Sites
Early and Middle Miocene Fossils from the Carpathian Region
Microfossils
Fossil Plants
Invertebrates
Corals
Gastropods and Bivalves
Arthropods
Bryozoans
Brachiopods
Echinoderms
Vertebrates
Fish
Marine Mammals
Continental Vertebrates
8. Late Miocene
Fossil-Rich Formations
Remarkable Fossil Sites
Late Miocene Fossils from the Carpathian Region
Microfossils
Fossil Plants
Invertebrates
Gastropods and Bivalves
Vertebrates
Fish
Amphibians and Reptiles
Birds
Mammals
Primates
9. Pliocene
Fossil-Rich Formations
Remarkable Fossil Sites
Pliocene Fossils from the Carpathian Region
Fossil Plants
Vertebrates
Amphibians and Reptiles
Mammals
10. Pleistocene
Fossil-Rich Formations
Remarkable Fossil Sites
Pleistocene Fossils from the Carpathian Region
Fossil Plants
Invertebrates
Vertebrates
Amphibians and Reptiles
Birds
Mammals
Early Man
11. M USEUMS AND C OLLECTIONS
MAPS
Map 1. Fossil Localities in the Carpathian Region
Map 2. Fossil Localities in the Transdanubian Range and Surroundings
Map 3. Fossil Localities in the Northern Hungarian Range and Surroundings
Map 4. Fossil Localities in the Mecsek and Vill ny Mountains and Surroundings
Map 5. Fossil Localities in the Apuseni Mountains and Surroundings
Map 6. Fossil Localities in the Eastern Carpathians and Surroundings
Map 7. Fossil Localities in the Southern Carpathians and Surroundings
All maps were prepared by L szl Zentai, cartographer, E tv s Lor nd University, Budapest.
Miocene fossil plants illustrated in an article by Gyula Kov ts (1815-1873), Erd b nyei satag vir ny (The fossil flora of Erd b nye), which appeared in 1856 in the first issue of the first Hungarian geological journal. This article, which also included seven lithographic plates of similar beauty, is one of the earliest paleontological publications in Hungarian.
PREFACE
Every single flower awaits a mention Every handful of dust is remarkable
-S NDOR W E RES , T HERE I S S TILL S O M UCH TO . . .
Every day we stare in wonder at the gentle vibrations of nature, with perhaps a sentiment similar to the one above in mind. Then we just hurry on. Not so biologists! They seek out, name, and list even the tiniest living creatures and so far have discovered about 1.5 million species in the name of science. But this is merely the tip of the iceberg: According to some estimates, the number of still-unknown species may be between 5 and 100 million, and these estimates do not take into account the numbers of individuals within these species. After all, the population of mammals named Homo sapiens (one species!) numbers in the billions. Who would now undertake the task of counting every single flower ?
And so if we know so little about the living world, what can be said about the plants and animals of the past-about the creatures that lived millions, or billions, of years ago? Some researchers think that just 1 percent of the species that have ever lived are alive today, and something on the order of 99 percent are extinct. Nonetheless, the number of extinct (fossil) species so far described can be estimated to be a few hundred thousand at most. We cannot even begin to estimate how many species could have lived in the geological past, or how diverse life once was. Indeed, as the Apostle Paul s simple words teach us, our knowledge is fragmentary. Numberless tiny, microscopic fossils may lie hidden in a single barrowful of sedimentary rock, while in other places spectacular, large fossils wait to be found. Who would now take on the task of mentioning every remarkable handful of dust ?
This book, therefore, is not a complete inventory of the known fossils from the Carpathian Region. Nor does it provide a complete geological history-although the history of fossils is, of course, tightly interwoven with geological events. The book is not systematic in its treatment of fossils, either, but most of the noteworthy groups are touched upon. Fossils old and young are discussed as part of the long list of ancient plants and animals from the Carpathian Basin: minute species and giants, vertebrates and invertebrates. Some are mentioned for their huge abundance, and others because their discovery was an event. The most famous of all the fossils from this region, the spectacular Mesozoic dinosaurs- Magyarosarus dacus and its contemporaries-are treated in detail.
Fossil sites are also included in this book, and although it is not a field guide, we hope that nature lovers and fossil hunters will find concrete and useful information herein. Collecting fossils is a noble passion: let us go out and search for them! As a result of studying fossils we will learn more about nature, the hundreds of millions years that has passed for the living world, and-indeed-about ourselves.
Finally, we give an old greeting common to miners and geologists, and wish every reader good luck!
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
The authors express their sincere thanks to Professors Andr s Gal cz and L szl Kordos, who reviewed the Hungarian version of this manuscript and made useful suggestions that allowe