Project 758: Y. Gurovich, K. J. Travouillon, R. M. D. Beck, J. Muirhead, M. Archer. 2013. Biogeographical implications of a new mouse-sized fossil bandicoot (Marsupialia: Peramelemorphia) occupying a dasyurid-like ecological niche across Australia. Journal of Systematic Palaeontology.
Abstract
We describe Bulungu palara gen. et sp. nov., a new fossil peramelemorphian (bandicoot), based on a single well-preserved skull and additional dental specimens from Late Oligocene to Middle Miocene (Faunal Zones A–C) limestone deposits at the Riversleigh World Heritage Property, Queensland, and two dental specimens from the Early–Middle Miocene Kutjamarpu Local Fauna, South Australia. This is the first fossil peramelemorphian species to be reported from more than a single fossil fauna, with its inferred distribution extending from north-western Queensland (modern latitude 19°S) to north-eastern South Australia (modern latitude 28°S). The presence of Bulungu palara in Riversleigh Faunal Zones A, B and C and in the Kutjamarpu Local Fauna supports the current interpretation that these faunas span similar ages, namely Late Oligocene–Middle Miocene. Phylogenetic analyses of an expanded 74 morphological character dataset using maximum parsimony and Bayesian approaches, both with and without a molecular scaffold, consistently place Bulungu and the Oligo-Miocene forms Galadi and Yarala outside crown-group Peramelemorphia. These analyses also fail to support a close relationship between the Pliocene Ischnodon australis (previously considered the oldest known representative of the extant peramelemorphian family Thylacomyidae) and the modern thylacomyid genus Macrotis. With an estimated body mass of 130 g, Bulungu palara is smaller than any known Recent bandicoot from Australia, although some modern New Guinean species are similar in size. The small size and craniodental morphology of B. palara suggest that it was predominantly or exclusively insectivorous, perhaps ecologically similar to small New Guinean dasyurids such as Murexechinus melanurus. Together with the small-bodied (< 100 g), insectivorous Yarala burchfieldi and large-bodied (900 g), faunivorous Galadi speciosus, Bulungu palara demonstrates that Oligo-Miocene Australian peramelemorphians filled ecological niches that today are mostly occupied by dasyurids, and that a major faunal turnover event occurred at some point after the Middle Miocene.Read the article »
Project DOI: 10.7934/P758, http://dx.doi.org/10.7934/P758
This project contains | Matrices |
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Download Project SDD File ![]() | Total scored cells: 1845 Total media associated with cells: 0 Total labels associated with cell media: 0 |
Characters | |
Total characters: 74 Total characters with associated media: 0 Total characters with media with labels: 0 Total character states: 194 Total character states with associated media: 0 Total character states with media with labels:0 Total unordered/ordered characters:74/0 |
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MorphoBank Project 758
MorphoBank Project 758
- Creation Date:
14 June 2012 - Publication Date:
14 November 2013 - Project views: 34555
- Media downloads: 2
- Matrix downloads: 7
Authors' Institutions
- Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET)
- University of New South Wales
Members
member name | taxa ![]() |
specimens ![]() |
media ![]() | chars ![]() | character
| cell scorings (scored, NPA, "-") | cell
| rules ![]() | ||||||
Robin Beck Project Administrator | 28 | 0 | 1 | 74 | 0 | 0 | 1845 (1828, 0, 17) | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||||
Maureen Admin Full membership ![]() | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 (0, 0, 0) | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||||
MorphoBank Curator Full membership ![]() | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 (0, 0, 0) | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Taxonomic Overview for Matrix 'M1712' (28 Taxa)
taxon | unscored cells |
scored cells ![]() |
no cell support ![]() |
NPA cells |
"-" cells | cell images | labels on cell images |
member access |
[1] Peroryctes raffrayana Last Modified in 12/05/13 | 0 | 74 | 74 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 ![]() |
[2] Peroryctes broadbenti Last Modified in 12/05/13 | 1 | 73 | 73 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 ![]() |
[3] Microperoryctes longicauda Last Modified in 12/05/13 | 0 | 74 | 74 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 ![]() |
[4] Microperoryctes papuensis Last Modified in 12/05/13 | 9 | 65 | 65 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 ![]() |
[5] Microperoryctes ornata Last Modified in 12/05/13 | 0 | 74 | 74 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 ![]() |
[6] Echymipera rufescens Last Modified in 12/05/13 | 1 | 71 | 71 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 3 ![]() |
[7] Echymipera kalubu Last Modified in 12/05/13 | 0 | 73 | 72 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 3 ![]() |
[8] Echymipera clara Last Modified in 12/05/13 | 0 | 73 | 72 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 3 ![]() |
[9] Echymipera davidi Last Modified in 12/05/13 | 10 | 62 | 62 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 3 ![]() |
[10] Rhynchomeles prattorum Last Modified in 12/05/13 | 5 | 68 | 67 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 3 ![]() |
[11] Isoodon auratus Last Modified in 12/05/13 | 1 | 73 | 73 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 ![]() |
[12] Isoodon obesulus Last Modified in 12/05/13 | 1 | 74 | 73 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 ![]() |
[13] Isoodon macrourus Last Modified in 12/05/13 | 1 | 73 | 73 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 ![]() |
[14] Perameles nasuta Last Modified in 12/05/13 | 0 | 75 | 74 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 ![]() |
[15] † Perameles eremiana Last Modified in 12/05/13 | 2 | 72 | 72 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 ![]() |
[16] Perameles gunnii Last Modified in 12/05/13 | 1 | 73 | 73 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 ![]() |
[17] Perameles bougainville Last Modified in 12/05/13 | 1 | 74 | 73 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 ![]() |
[18] † Chaeropus ecaudatus Last Modified in 12/05/13 | 2 | 73 | 72 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 ![]() |
[19] Macrotis lagotis Last Modified in 12/05/13 | 1 | 73 | 72 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 3 ![]() |
[20] † Macrotis leucura Last Modified in 12/05/13 | 2 | 71 | 71 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 3 ![]() |
[21] † Djarthia murgonensis Last Modified in 12/05/13 | 42 | 32 | 32 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 ![]() |
[22] † Barinya wangala Last Modified in 12/05/13 | 2 | 70 | 70 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 3 ![]() |
[23] † Mutpuracinus archibaldi Last Modified in 12/05/13 | 14 | 58 | 58 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 3 ![]() |
[24] † Yarala burchfieldi Last Modified in 12/05/13 | 14 | 60 | 59 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 3 ![]() |
[25] † Yarala kida Last Modified in 12/05/13 | 49 | 25 | 25 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 ![]() |
[26] † Galadi speciosus Last Modified in 12/05/13 | 7 | 67 | 67 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 ![]() |
[27] † Bulungu palara Last Modified in 12/05/13 | 12 | 65 | 62 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 ![]() |
[28] † Ischnodon australis Last Modified in 12/05/13 | 61 | 13 | 13 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 ![]() |
Project views 
type | number of views | Individual items viewed (where applicable) |
Total project views | 34555 | |
Project overview | 4104 | |
Matrix views | 2870 | Matrix landing page (2534 views); Biogeographical implications of a new mouse-sized fossil bandicoot (Marsupialia: Peramelemorphia) occupying a dasyurid-like ecological niche across Australia (336 views); |
Taxon list | 12563 | |
Media views | 6630 | Media search (5756 views); M310151 (874 views); |
Documents list | 2092 | |
Views for media list | 1948 | |
Bibliography | 1347 | |
Specimen list | 3001 |
Project downloads 
type | number of downloads | Individual items downloaded (where applicable) |
Total downloads from project | 378 | |
Project downloads | 369 | |
Matrix downloads | 7 | Biogeographical implications of a new mouse-sized fossil bandicoot (Marsupialia: Peramelemorphia) occupying a dasyurid-like ecological niche across Australia (7 downloads); |
Media downloads | 2 | M310151 (2 downloads); |