Pangshura tatrotia Joyce & Lyson, 2010

Garbin, Rafaella C., Bandyopadhyay, Saswati & Joyce, Walter G., 2020, A taxonomic revision of geoemydid turtles from Siwalik-age of India and Pakistan, European Journal of Taxonomy 652, pp. 1-67 : 27-28

Pangshura tatrotia Joyce & Lyson, 2010

Type

YPM 4127, a near complete fossil shell.

Material examined

Holotype

PAKISTAN • Punjab, Potwar Plateau , 2 miles north-east of Padhri; Tatrot Formation; Late Pliocene; YPM 4127 .

Type locality

Yale North India Expedition locality 99, about two miles north-east of Padhri, Potwar Plateau, Punjab, Pakistan.

Occurrence

Tatrot Formation, Late Pliocene (3.6 to 2.6 Ma, possibly Plio–Pleistocene boundary).

Differential osteological diagnosis using shell characters

Pangshura tatrotia can be differentiated from other species of Pangshura by the presence of a strong median keel projection on both the second and third vertebral, and a first vertebral scute that is constricted anteriorly.

Description of the type

YPM 4127, holotype of Pangshura tatrotia – This is an almost complete, well-preserved specimen, with a tectiform carapace from the Early Pliocene Tatrot Formation of the Potwar Plateau of Punjab, Pakistan. The posterior peripheral bones and left peripheral bones IV–VI are missing. A median, wellpronounced carapacial keel is present from neurals II to VIII. Neural bones II, III, VI–VIII are hexagonal with anterior short sides. Neural IV is octagonal, with both anterior and posterior sides short. Neural V is quadrangular, without short sides. The fourth vertebral scute runs from neural IV to VIII and has a strong anterior bottle-neck-shaped constriction. The posterior margins of the first and second pleural scutes run over costals II and IV, respectively, and have a strong anterior projection that crosses to the anterior costal bone. The pygal bone is completely divided by the twelfth intermarginal sulcus. Parts of the anterior and posterior plastral margins are missing. The entoplastron is intersected anteriorly by the gularohumeral sulcus, but not by the humeropectoral sulcus. The hyo-hypoplastral suture contacts peripheral V and does not overlap with the pectoroabdominal sulcus. The fifth and sixth marginal scutes form the bridge and overlap onto the hyoplastra. Only the sixth marginal scute overlaps with the hypoplastron. A large inguinal scute is present, likely contacting the femoral scute. For a more comprehensive description of this specimen, refer to Joyce & Lyson (2010).

Comments

Pangshura tatrotia was only recently named based on a well-preserved shell that documents with confidence a morphotype different from all extant representatives of Pangshura . The specimen is furthermore associated with quality locality data. We therefore here find the validity of this species to be unproblematic.