New material referable to Wakaleo (Marsupialia: Thylacoleonidae) from the Riversleigh World Heritage Area,northwestern Queensland: revising species boundaries and distributions in Oligo/Miocene marsupial lions

Gillespie, A.K., Archer, M., Hand, S.J. & Black, K.H., 2014. New material referable to Wakaleo (Marsupialia: Thylacoleonidae) from the Riversleigh World Heritage Area, northwestern Queensland: revising species boundaries and distributions in Oligo/Miocene marsupial lions. Alcheringa 38, 513–527. ISSN 0311–5518.

New material of Wakaleo oldfieldi and W. vanderleueri from the Miocene freshwater limestones of the Riversleigh World Heritage Area, northwestern Queensland, is described. This material includes the first known upper dentition of W. oldfieldi and dentaries of both species bearing the previously undescribed and morphologically distinct M₃. Previously, the two species were distinguished only by size differences in P3 and the size of P₃ relative to M1. Wakaleo oldfieldi exhibits a more plesiomorphic M₃ that retains a well-developed talonid basin in contrast to W. vanderleueri, which has lost this structure. The phyletic succession and geological occurrences of Wakaleo species make this genus an important taxon in biochronological analyses of Australian Cenozoic assemblages. At Riversleigh, W. oldfieldi is found in deposits allocated to Faunal Zone B and Faunal Zone C, which are regarded as early and middle Miocene in age, respectively. The presence of this species in the Kutjamarpu Local Fauna of central Australia suggests that fauna may be of a similar age. Broader faunal correlations have suggested Faunal Zone C correlates with the middle Miocene Bullock Creek Local Fauna, which contains the more derived W. vanderleueri. Based on stage-of-evolution arguments, W. oldfieldi should occur in older deposits than those yielding W. vanderleueri. The presence of both species of Wakaleo in Faunal Zone C assemblages at Riversleigh suggests that current presumptions about the contemporaneity of the many Faunal Zone C Sites should be examined more rigorously.

Anna K. Gillespie [a.gillespie@unsw.edu.au], Michael Archer [m.archer@unsw.edu.au], Suzanne J. Hand [s.hand@unsw.edu.au] and Karen H. Black [k.black@unsw.edu.au] School of Biological Earth and Environmental Science, UNSW 2052, Sydney, Australia. Received 3.1.2014, revised 21.2.2014, accepted 21.3.2014.     

FROM SUSA TO ANURADHAPURA: RECONSTRUCTING ASPECTS OF TRADE AND EXCHANGE IN BITUMEN‐COATED CERAMIC VESSELS BETWEEN IRAN AND SRI LANKA FROM THE THIRD TO THE NINTH CENTURIES AD*

In contrast with artefactual studies of long‐distance trade and exchange in South Asia during the Prehistoric and Early Historic periods ( Ardika et al. 1993 ; Gogte 1997 ; Krishnan and Coningham 1997 ; Tomber 2000 ; Gupta et al. 2001 ; Ford et al. 2005 ), few scientifically orientated analyses have focused on artefacts from the region's Historic period. During excavations at the ancient city of Anuradhapura, Sri Lanka, a number of buff ware ceramics with a putative organic coating on the interior were recovered ( Coningham 2006 ). Dated stylistically to between the third and ninth centuries ad , analysis of the coatings using gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (GC–MS) and stable isotope analysis (carbon and deuterium) confirmed that the coatings are bitumen—an organic product associated with petroleum deposits. There are no known bitumen sources in Sri Lanka, and biomarker distributions and isotopic signatures suggest that the majority of the samples appear to have come from a single bitumen source near Susa in Iran. The relationship between the bitumen coatings and the vessels is discussed, and it is suggested that the coatings were used to seal permeable ceramic containers to allow them to transport liquid commodities. This study enhances our knowledge of networks of trade and exchange between Sri Lanka and western Asia during Historic times.     

Two new camerate crinoid species from the Permian of eastern Australia

The habitat and habit of Australia's first recorded Tertiary marsupial species, Wynyardia bassiana, found some 130 years ago at Wynyard on the northwestern coast of Tasmania, remain enigmatic (Aplin 1987, Aplin &; Rich 1990). Fossil pollen and spores preserved in a rafted clast of estuarine silts from the same sequence of earliest Miocene marine sandstones as the skeletal remains indicate the local vegetation was Nothofagus-gymnosperm evergreen rainforest, probably with a cryptogam-rich rather than woody subcanopy stratum. Comparisons with present-day Nothofagus rainforests suggest that, although the subcanopy would have been sufficiently open to allow the passage of a large ground-dwelling herbivorous marsupial, limited food resources are more consistent with Wynyardia being a generalist arboreal herbivore.     

Maradidae: a new family of vombatomorphian marsupial from the late Oligocene of Riversleigh,northwestern Queensland

Black, K., March 2007. Maradidae: a new family of vombatomorphian marsupial from the late Oligocene of Riversleigh, northwestern Queensland. Alcheringa 31, 17-32. ISSN 0311-5518.

Marada arcanum gen. et sp. nov. is described from the late Oligocene Hiatus Site, Riversleigh World Heritage Property, northwestern Queensland. Although known from only a single dentary, it is assigned to a new family Maradidae, based on a unique combination of both plesiomorphic and apomorphic features. Of the known vombatomorphians, Marada is most similar to primitive wynyardiids and diprotodontoids (palorchestids and diprotodontids). Further clarification of the phylogenetic position of Maradidae within Vombatomorphia requires discovery of upper dentitions and crania.

Karen Black [k.black@unsw.edu.au], Vertebrate Palaeontology Laboratory, School of Biological, Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of New South Wales, Sydney, 2052, Australia; received 17.1.2005, revised 1.6.2005.     

Technology and crisis; Marx,Schumpeter and beyond

Observing that the notion of economic crisis per se has, from its origins, been closely tied to the idea of technological progress, this article examines the roots and development of this liaison in Marx, Schumpeter and the recent contribution of Freeman, et al. (1982). A concept (the Third Sector) is proposed for the relation between the structural evolution of economic organization and technological progress; this concept is developed through a critique of Marx and Schumpeter in the light of contemporary economic circumstances, and as complementary to the more technology‐generic “new technology systems” approach of Freeman, et al. In conclusion it is found, on a cursory examination, that the organizational changes implied by the Third Sector are corroborated by the evolution of technology‐based multinational corporations, while echoing Marx and Schumpeter in their possible consequences for economic crisis in the 1980's.     

Areopagitica,freedom of the press,and heterodox religion in the Holy Roman Empire

Milton’s Areopagitica (1644) is widely recognised as a foundational work in the philosophical history of the freedom of the press, although it had little impact upon first publication. However, in 1989 Leo Miller discovered an early German-language critique of Areopagitica from 1647, preserved among the papers of the Anglo-Prussian intelligencer Samuel Hartlib. The present article identifies the critic as the Brandenburg scholar Joachim Hübner, a key member of Hartlib’s networks. Available evidence suggests strongly that Hübner considered translating Milton’s tract in order to promote the printing and distribution of heterodox doctrines of spiritualist Christianity in the Holy Roman Empire. Using the short critique of Areopagitica as a springboard, this article demonstrates through biographical and contextual research the interrelations of political and religious cultures of the period, and that questions of freedom of the press were central to promoters of heterodox religious doctrine not only in England but also on the continent.     

Mapping the Australian Duricrusts: Can distribution be derived from terrain maps?

Duricrust distribution patterns can be used to debate the significance. in engineering, geomorphological and palaeoenvironmental terms. of any displayed regional components of variability. An apparently obvious source for such an exercise lies in the duta base fields devoted to duricrust types accompanying the Australia-wide terrain tnups by Grant et al., (1984) and Chan et al., (1986) (published at scales of I:2 1/2 million and 1:5 million respectively). However, curtographic principles indicate that although there are inany attributes in common among the data base fields of these two separately conceived and generated maps (polygon sets), congruent distribution patterns for selected common attributes tire unlikelv. In this case a comparison of patterns shows that they are far from congruent. We conclude that these maps. while fulfilling their original purpose, have limited value in geomorphological debaies about the significance of duricrust distribution patterns.     

‘Tell Me Your Story’: Applied Ethics in Narrative Research with Young Fathers

There has been a significant increase of interest in parents who are considered to be outside of normative discourses; specifically the ‘moral panic’ relating to an increase in the demography of teenage mothers in the UK (SEU, 1999, 2003; Swann et al., 2003). Recently research has turned to the experiences of parenting from the father's perspective (Daniel and Taylor, 1999, 2001) although there remains a significant gap focusing on the experiences of young fathers. It is argued by Swann et al. (2003) that young fathers are a difficult group to access and this has limited the amount and type of studies conducted with many studies on young parents looking at the role of the father through the eyes of the mother. This contribution focuses on the use of narrative interviews with a small group of young, vulnerable, socially excluded fathers who are users of the statutory social services in the UK. The article looks specifically at the ethics and practical challenges of working with this group and offers insights into the use of the narrative method and the ethical dilemmas resulting from it.     

The Islamic Jihad and al‐Qa'ida: a Review Essay

The Cannons of Jihad: Terrorists' Strategy for Defeating America: Jim Lacey, Ed. A Terrorist's Call to Global Jihad: Deciphering Abu Musab al‐Suri's Islamic Jihad Manifesto: Jim Lacey, Ed. The Terrorist Perspectives Project: Strategic and Operational Views of al‐Qaida and Associated Movement: Mark E. Stout, et al.     

Early Darriwilian graptolites from central and western China

Taxonomic restudy of Early Darriwilian graptolites from the Yangtze region, Chiadam and Alxa, has enabled a precise correlation of the Undulograptus austrodentatus Zone (including two subzones) across the three regions, and with the Darriwilian GSSP at Huangnitang in the Jiangshan-Changshan-Yushan (JYC) area. Based on specimens from 17 localities in the Yangtze region, the Exigraptus clavus and Undulograptus austrodentatus zones are recognised as replacements respectively of the Undulograptus sinodentatus (Lower) and U. austrodentatus (Upper) zones of Mu et al. (1979). The U. sinicus Subzone, the upper subzone of the U. austrodentatus Zone, is also recognised from the Sichuan-Guizhou area of the Yangtze region. Two subzones of the U. austrodentatus Zone have also been identified from the Chiadam region with more diverse graptolite fauna. The U. austrodentatus Zone fauna also occurs in the Alxa region. A general pattern of changing graptolite diversity from platform through basinal slope to deep basin is proposed, based on early Darriwilian bio- and lithofacies changes from the Yangtze Platform through the Jiangnan belt to the Zhujiang basin. The graptolite diversity increased with water depth and more off-shore setting. Key graptolite species are illustrated.     

Devonian trilobites from the Shogrām Formation,Kurāgh,Chitral (NW Pakistan)

Late Devonian trilobites from horizons close to the Frasnian-Famennian boundary in the Shogrām Formation at Kurāgh, Chitral (NW Pakistan) are described. A new species of Asteropyginae, Neocalmonia chitralensis sp. nov., and a new subpecies, Neocalmonia batillifera orientalis subsp. nov., are described; these extend the range of Asteropyginae eastwards from Iran and southern Afghanistan. The Upper Kellwasser Event is located within KUR 19 of Talent et al. (1999).     

Introduction: national identity in transition? Moving out of conflict in (Northern) Ireland1

This thematic section of Nations and Nationalism starts from a question of substantive political importance: How does institutional change – in particular reforms towards ethno‐national equality and the opening of borders – affect national identification in divided regions? It takes the case of Northern Ireland where a radical process of institutional change is under way. It uses new approaches to national identity to map different aspects of change and continuity – in categories of identity and in their interrelations and contents, in elite and in everyday popular identifications (for useful overviews, see Abdelal et al. 2003; Ashmore et al. 2004 ). It examines the trajectory of the Protestant minority in the Irish state to show possible repertoires of change. The authors look respectively at self‐reported categories of identity, official discourses of identity, and popular understandings of nationality. The introduction outlines the relevance of this research to current comparative and theoretical debates.     

Late Quaternary ostracods from Lake George,New South Wales

Fossil ostracods from the uppermost 3m of core LG4 from Lake George all have modern living representatives. This part of the core is thought to represent deposition during the last 60,000 years (see Singh et al., 1981b) and the lake hisotry is traced from a knowledge of the ostracod ecology.

The following distinct phases, and their respective timing, are postulated for Lake George (the timing of events should be considered with caution as few ¹⁴C dates are available): water fresh and lake full for the periods of 10,200 – 12,000 yBP and 19,100 – 20,700 yBP, water fresh, ephemeral at times, for the periods of 3,200–4,000 yBP, 7,000 yBP, 7,500 yBP, 8,500–10,200 yBP, 12,000–13,500 yBP, 20,700–23,500 yBP, 23,800–27,600 yBP and at some stage between 27,000 and 60,000 yBP; ephemeral saline water for a few short episodes between 3,200 and 4,000 yBP and for the periods of 15,600–17,400 yBP and 23,800–27,600 yBP; lake definitely dry between 17,400 and 19,100 yBP.

Data obtained from the ostracods correlate reasonably well with those of lake level fluctuations based on the study of ancient shorelines by Coventry (1976) and others based on facies analyses and the record of plant microfossils by Singh et al. (1981b).     

Postcranial functional adaptations in the South American Miocene borhyaenoids (Mammalia,Metatheria): Cladosictis,Pseudonotictis and Sipalocyon

Three Santacrucian borhyaenoids, Cladosictis patagonica, Pseudonotictis pusillus and Sipalocyon gracilis, are analyzed from a functional-adaptive perspective. Five extant placentals and one marsupial model are also examined in order to interpret the locomotor adaptations of these fossils. Pseudonotictis pusillus is the smallest of the Santacrucian borhyaenoids and is known from fragmentary remains; from its small size, dental specializations and elbow anatomy, this species was certainly not far ecologically from an extant weasel. The postcranium of Sipalocyon gracilis, although poorly known, suggests climbing capabilities, and the pseudo-opposable pollex indicates skilful manipulative behaviour. Cladosictis patagonica was an active predatory form, short-legged and able to climb, although it was a less specialized arboreal form than the contemporaneous Prothylacinus patagonicus; the proportions of its limbs recall that of a living South American marten, the tayra. The pseudo-opposable pollex of Cladosictis, as in Sipalocyon, indicates skilful manipulative behaviour.     

A second species of the possum Durudawiri (Marsupialia: Miralinidae) from the early Miocene of Riversleigh,northwestern Queensland

Durudawiri anfractus sp. nov. (Marsupialia: Miralinidae) is described from Riversleigh. This, the second described species of the genus, is very similar in morphology to, but much larger than, D. inusitatus. Durudawiri anfractus and D. inusitatus are found at similar sites, all early Miocene. The Miralinidae remains one of the most time-restricted families of marsupial, being found so far in only the late Oligocene and early Miocene.     

Humeral morphology of the early Eocene mekosuchine crocodylian Kambara from the Tingamarra Local Fauna southeastern Queensland,Australia

Stein, M., Salisbury, S.W., Hand, S.J., Archer, M. & Godthelp, H., December 2012. Humeral morphology of the early Eocene mekosuchine crocodylian Kambara from the Tingamarra Local Fauna southeastern Queensland, Australia. Alcheringa 36, 473–486. ISSN 0311-5518.

Mekosuchines (Crocodylia; Crocodyloidea) were a clade of crocodylians endemic to Australia and the South Pacific that underwent radiation during the Cenozoic. Numerous questions about mekosuchine palaeoecology remain unanswered. Tantalizing among these is the possibility that some mekosuchines were primarily terrestrial. To date, studies of mekosuchines have focused mainly on the cranium. However, the morphological signal for terrestriality is more likely to be found in the postcranial skeleton. Here, we present a comparative morphological study of fossil humeri referable to Kambara from the early Eocene Tingamara Local Fauna, Murgon, southeastern Queensland. The humeri of Kambara do not show the torsion between the proximal and distal extremity seen in extant crocodylians, illustrated here with Crocodylus porosus and Crocodylus johnstoni. They also differ in the structure of the medial and lateral condyles of the distal extremity. When the effects of these features on musculature and articulation are considered, it appears that the forelimb of Kambara could have facilitated a greater force at the glenohumeral joint and possibly swung the lower forelimb faster with a greater arc of motion than Australia's extant crocodylians. This is conducive to an improved capacity for both terrestrial locomotion and paraxial swimming. Although the former case suggests that Kambara may not have been as closely tied to water as extant crocodylians, it is unusual given the typically broad rostra of the cranium. Among crocodylians this is a common characteristic of semi-aquatic ambush predators. This study shows the utility of the postcranial skeleton in interpreting crocodylian palaeoecology.

Michael Stein [michael.stein@student.unsw.edu.au] (corresponding author), Suzanne J. Hand [s.hand@unsw.edu.au], Michael Archer [m.archer@unsw.edu.au] and Henk Godthelp [h.godthelp@unsw.edu.au], School of Earth and Environmental Science, University of New South Wales, Sydney, NSW, 2052, Australia; and Steven W. Salisbury [s.salisbury@uq.edu.au], School of Biological Sciences, University of Queensland, Brisbane, Qld, 4072, Australia. Received 13.1.2012, revised 24.2.2012, accepted 28.2.2012.     

Book reviews

Stuart Robson (ed.). The Wédhatama: an English translation. [v], 60 pp. Leiden: KITLV Press, 1990. (Koninklijk Instituut voor Taal‐, Land‐ en Volkenkunde. Working Papers, 4.) Guilders 25.

Bernard Sellato. Nomades et sédentarisation à Bornéo: histoire économique et sociale. 293 pp. Paris: Éditions de I'École des Hautes Études en Sciences Sociales, [1989]. (Études Insulindiennes/Archipel, 9.) Fr. 180.     

Re(ge)ndering Gender(ed) Studies

McAuslan, Ian and Walcot, Peter (eds) Women in Antiquity Archer, Leonie J., Fischler, Susan and Wyke, Maria (eds) Women in Ancient Societies: ‘An Illusion of the Night’ Hawley, Richard and Levick, Barbara (eds) Women in Antiquity: New Assessments Richlin, Amy (ed.) Pornography and Representation in Greece and Rome Sorkin Rabinowitz, Nancy and Richlin, Amy (eds) Feminist Theory and the Classics Reeder, Ellen D. Pandora: Women in Classical Greece     

A CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK FOR UNDERSTANDING AND ANALYZING ATTITUDES TOWARDS ENVIRONMENTAL BEHAVIOUR

Encouraging environmental action by citizens in developed nations has become a major priority for governments who are seeking to reach environmental targets by exhorting individuals to participate in a range of behaviours to ameliorate the negative impact of their lifestyles. Such activities conventionally include energy saving, water conservation, waste management and forms of ‘green’ consumption. Current policy discourses are focused around a linear model of behaviour, which assumes that an awareness of environmental problems and knowledge of how to tackle them will lead to individual ameliorative actions. This paper explores these assumptions by applying a previously developed conceptual framework (Barr et al. 2001) to a range of environmental actions, to show how a variety of different factors influence environmental action. Using data from a major (UK) Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) funded research project in Devon, United Kingdom, data on environmental actions collected during the project are interrogated to uncover the relationships between environmental actions and how these are influenced by values, personal situations and attitudes. The research demonstrates that environmental action is structured around people's everyday lifestyles (rather than a compartmentalized notion of behaviour) and that these have radically different antecedents.