Texas Memorial Museum

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Exhibits focus on dinosaurs and fossils, Texas wildlife, gems and minerals, and a working Paleontology Lab where visitors can interact with scientists as they prepare fossil finds. Spotlighted in the exhibits are spectacular specimens found in Texas, including the largest flying creature ever found—the Texas Pterosaur, with a wingspan of nearly 40 feet–and the 30-foot mosasaur that swam the shallow sea which once covered most of the state.

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The Armor of Fossil Giant Armadillos (Pampatheriidae, Xenarthra, Mammalia)
(Texas Memorial Museum, The University of Texas at Austin, 1985-06) Edmund, A. Gordon
Fossil giant armadillos are protected by armor consisting of about 800 osteoderms covering the body, head, tail, legs and feet. The body armor is composed of an anterior (pectoral) buckler and a posterior (pelvic) buckler, separated by three transverse bands of imbricating plates. In one phyletic line the pelvic osteoderms are rectangular, rather than polygonal. The surficial ornamentation of the keratin-bearing portion of the osteoderms appears to be conservative and taxonomically characteristic in at least two major phyletic lineages. These characters will be used in a future taxonomic revision.
The Arroyo Formaton (Leonardian: Lower Permian) and Its Vertebrate Fossils
(Texas Memorial Museum, The University of Texas at Austin, 1989-07) Olson, Everett C.
Studies of the Arroyo formation from northern Haskell County south to Runnels County, Texas trace the changes in organisms and environments from the classic terrestrial beds of Baylor and Wilbarger Counties to the fully marine sections to the south. Terrestrial deposits that contain vertebrate remains have been found only as far south as Haskell, Texas. Limestones, sampled and treated by acetic acid, have produced tetrapods to the level of Abilene, Texas. Among these are the commonest genera of the Arroyo, including several types of microsaurs. Notably absent is the highly terrestrial genus Captorhinus. Above the Lueders Limestone, the Arroyo section in the southern area consists of four marine limestones alternating with varied thicknesses of red mudstones, with small increments of sandstones and fine conglomerates. The distributions of the limestones and the elastics indicate four major transgressions of the sea, with a very irregular coastline during the peaks of transgression. The limestones have yielded a wide variety of fish, including xenacanthid sharks, various other Chondrichthyes, and dipnoan and palaeoniscoid Osteichthyes. Special attention is paid to the systematics, distributions, and habitats of the fish, with special emphasis upon the use of scale histology in taxonomic studies.
A Bibliography of the Recent Mammals of Texas
(Texas Memorial Museum, The University of Texas at Austin, 1962-03) Raun, Gerald G.
Blancan Mammalian Fauna and Pleistocene Formations, Hudspeth County, Texas
(Texas Memorial Museum, The University of Texas at Austin, 1966-02) Strain, William Samuel
Vertebrate fossils representing a new Blancan local fauna occur in the Fort Hancock Formation (new name) and the Camp Rice Formation (new name), Hueco Bolson (Fig. 1) Hudspeth County, Texas. Fossils indicate the Fort Hancock Formation and the lower part of the Camp Rice Formation are probably Aftonian in age. Pearlette volcanic ash dates the middle of the Camp Rice as late Kansan. It also provides a precise horizon for correlating the Pleistocene stratigraphic section of the Great Plains with that in the Hueco Bolson. The Fort Hancock Formation is composed of clay, silt, fine sand, and gypsum. Silt, sand, gravel, some clay, and volcanic ash characterize the Camp RiceFormation. An unconformity separates the formations. The Fort Hancock was deposited in a closed basin, but the Camp Rice represents fluvial and floodplain deposition by the Rio Grande after it developed as a through-flowing stream in the Hueco Bolson during late Kansan.
Butterflies from the Middle Eocene: The Earliest Occurrence of Fossil Papilionoidea (Lepidoptera)
(Texas Memorial Museum, The University of Texas at Austin, 1978) Durden, Christopher J.; Rose, Hugh
Three fossil butterflies recently collected from the Green River Shale of Colorado extend the known range of Rhopalocera eight to ten million years back, to 48 Ma. Praepapilio Colorado n. g., n. sp., and P. gracilis n. sp. are primitive Papilionidae related to the modern Baronia brevicornis Salvin, but they require a new subfamily, Praepapilioninae. Riodinella nympha n. g., n. sp. is a primitive member of the Lycaenidae, related to modern Ancyluris, Riodina, and Rhetus, in the tribe Riodinidi.
Carnivorous Mammals of the Late Eocene and Early Ogliocene of Trans-Pecos Texas
(Texas Memorial Museum, The University of Texas at Austin, 1986-12) Gustafson, Eric Paul
The fossil carnivore fauna of the late Eocene (Bridgerian-Uintan) and early Oligocene (Chadronian) of Trans-Pecos Texas includes specimens from stratigraphically superimposed faunas of three areas: the Sierra Vieja (Vieja Group), the badlands near Agua Fria Mountain (Buck Hill Group), and near Castolon in southern Big Bend National Park (Chisos Formation). Members of the mammalian orders Condylarthra, Creodonta, and Carnivora are included in this study. The fossils occur in volcaniclastic continental sediments, interbedded with lava flows and ignimbrites. The Cenozoic rocks unconformably overlie Cretaceous sedimentary rocks in all three areas. Radiometric dates from several stratigraphic levels allow the calibration of biostratigraphic data.
Carrolla craddocki: A New Genus and Species of Microsaur from the Lower Permian of Texas
(Texas Memorial Museum, The University of Texas at Austin, 1986-04) Langston Jr., Wann; Olson, E.C.
The specimen, comprising a skull and jaws, is assigned to the suborder Microbrachomorpha and tentatively to the family Brachystelechidae on the basis of the structure of the temporal and occipital regions. It is unique among known microsaurs in the possession of marginal teeth with long slender hollow bases and bifurcated crowns and the apparent absence of palatal dentition. Carrolla craddocki, new genus and species, from Lower Permian (Wolfcampian) Belle Plains Formation in Archer County, Texas, is described and figured. If correctly assigned to the Brachystelechidae, Carrolla is the first record of the family in North America, but it was probably not equivalent ecologically to the roughly contemporaneous Brachystelechus of Europe. Carrolla is believed to have been a burrower in hard soils. Its diet may have comprised soft-bodied subterranean invertebrates, but the functional significance which developed cryptic behavior under competitive pressures from surface dwelling reptiles in an increasingly harsh Early Permian environment in North America.
A Checklist and Bibliography of the Iapygoidea (Insecta: Diplura) of South America
(Texas Memorial Museum, The University of Texas at Austin, 1985-09) Reddell, James R.
Complete records, synonymies, and bibliographic citations are given for the 61 species and seven varieties of iapygoid diplurans described from South America. Also included are all published records for species determined only to the generic level. The South American fauna includes representatives of the families lapygidae, Dinjapygidae, and Parajapygidae. The original spellings of the genus Iapyx and the family-group name Iapygidae are used in preference to Japyx and Japygidae to comply with the Rule of Priority. Typhlolabia Scudder is resurrected to include the following species previously included in Teljapyx Silvestri: T. bidentatus (Schaffer), T. costala (Gonzalez and Smith), T. hirsuta (Gonzalez and Smith), T. larva (Philippi) (type-species), T. megalocera (Silvestri), T. profunda (Smith), T. riestrae (Silvestri), and T. talcae (Smith).
A Checklist and Bibliography of the Japygoidea (Insecta: Diplura) of North America, Central America, and the West Indies
(Texas Memorial Museum, The University of Texas at Austin, 1983-04) Reddell, James
The japygoid fauna of North America, Central America, and the West Indies includes one fossil and 103 extant species and four "varieties." Complete synonymies, bibliographic citations, and records are included for all species. The presumed type-locality and a summary of ecological data are given for each taxon. In addition, records and references are provided for all undescribed or undetermined specimens reported in the literature.
Competition and Isolation Mechanishms in the Gambusia Affinis X. G. Heterochir Hybrid Swarm
(Texas Memorial Museum, The University of Texas at Austin, 1971-06) Hubbs, Clark
Coryphodon (Mammalia, Pantodonta) From the Hannold Hill Formation, Eocene of Trans-Pecos Texas
(Texas Memorial Museum, The University of Texas at Austin, 1989-01) Spencer G., Lucas
Speciments of the large extinct pantodont Coryphodon from the Hannold Hill Formation, Brewster County, Texas belong to single species, Coryphodon molestus. A sample of Coryphodon molestus from one locality in the Hannold Hill Formations consists of three adults and at least one juvenille. The sample aids in documenting sexual dimorphism in Coryphodon molestus and provides circumstantial evidence of gregarious behavior in that species. The presence of Coyphodon molestus in the Hannold Hill Formation indicates a late Gray Bull through Lost Cabin (Wasatchian) age. This is consistent with assignment of a late Gray Bull or Lysite age to the entire Hannold Hill vertebrate fauna.
A Dasyleptid from the Permian of Kansas, Lepidodasypus Sharovi N. Gen., N. SP. (Insecta: Thysanura: Monura)
(Texas Memorial Museum, The University of Texas at Austin, 1975-05) Durden, Christopher J.
Lepidodasypus sharovi n. gen., n. sp. is distinguished from previously described species of Dasyleptus by the fine vestiture of scales and hairs, by the heavier pigmentation of the tergites, and by the shorter first maxillary palpi. Preservation of the unique type specimen shows well the presence of segmented abdominal legs, and their posterior specialization to form an ovipositor of ovigerous legs. This is the first record of a dasyleptid monuran from North America and is the oldest representative of the order Thysanura on this continent.
Daveko Kiowa-Apache Medicine Man
(Texas Memorial Museum, The University of Texas at Austin, 1970-11) Mcallister, J. Gilbert; Newcomb Jr., W.W.
Development of Terminal Buds in Pinyon Pine and Douglas-Fir Trees
(Texas Memorial Museum, The University of Texas at Austin, 1967-07) Douglas, Charles L.; Erdman, James A.
Devil's Graveyard Formation (New) Eocene and Oligocene Age Trans-Pecos Texas
(Texas Memorial Museum, The University of Texas at Austin, 1984) Stevens, James B.; Stevens, Margaret S.; Wilson, John Andrew
The Devil's Graveyard Formation (new, Eocene and Oligocene) is described as that part of the Buck Hill Group above the Cretaceous and beneath the Mitchell Mesa Rhyolite or the Yellow conglomerate of Moon (1953). It replaces the terminology used by Moon (1953) for the lower part of the Buck Hill Group, Buck Hill Group undifferentiated, as well as Pruett-Duff (Erickson, 1953, and Stevens, 1978) and Pruett and Duff undivided (Barnes, 1979, and Henry and Deux, 1981). The names Pruett and Duff apply to the mountain area in the southern part of the Davis Mountains where their type sections are located. The lithology of the Devil's Graveyard Formation is predominantly clastic and sufficiently different from that of both the Pruett and Duff formations to warrant its new name. The Buck Hill Group in the Agua Fria-Green Valley area consists of the Devil's Graveyard Formation, the Mitchell Mesa Rhyolite, the Tascotal Mesa Formation, and the Rawls Basalt. The Devil's Graveyard Formation is divided into lower and middle unnamed members an upper Bandera Mesa Member, each separated by concentrations of channel conglomerates. Locally useful marker beds that are associated with vertebrate fossil localities are described. The areas of exposure are in west-central Brewster and east-central Presidio counties, Texas.
Early Tertiary Vertebrate Faunas Big Bend Area Trans-Pecos Texas: Brontotheriidae
(Texas Memorial Museum, The University of Texas at Austin, 1977-01) Wilson, John Andrew
A new larger species of Sthenodectes is based on two well preserved skulls and other material from the late Bridgerian or early Uintan (middle or late Eocene) of the Agua Fria area in Trans-Pecos Texas. Menodus bakeri Stovall is confirmed from the Porvenir and Little Egypt local faunas (Chadronian) (early Oligocene) of the Vieja area in Trans-Pecos Texas.
Early Tertiary Vertebrate Faunas Big Bend Area Trans-Pecos Texas: Simidectes (Mammalia insectivora)
(Texas Memorial Museum, The University of Texas at Austin, 1979) Gustafon, Eric Paul
Several specimens from the Buck Hill Group, Agua Fria area, Texas, represent Simidectes magnus, a species previously reported only from the Uinta Formation of Utah. Statistics of known specimens of Simidectes are inadequate to demonstrate the existence of more than one species in the Utah and Texas sections; S. medius may be a junior synonym of S. magnus. In the lower part of the'Section at Agua Fria, Simidectes occurs in the Whistler Squat local fauna of late Bridgerian or early Uintan age; in the upper part of the section it is found in association with an early Hyaenodon and the adapid primate Mahgarita stevensi.
Early Tertiary Vertebrate Faunas Trans-Pecos Texas: Amynodontidae
(Texas Memorial Museum, The University of Texas at Austin, 1981-06) Wilson, John Andrew; Schiebout, Judith A.
Skulls, lower jaws and limb bones, identified as Amynodon advenus, were recovered from a quarry and from other localities at the same stratigraphic level in deposits of early Uintan age that contain the Whistler Squat local fauna in West Texas. Forms with large canines and long post-canine diastemas are identified as males, whereas forms with smaller canines and shorter diastemas are identified as females. A new species of Metamynodon from the Myton Uintan is based on a massive lower jaw. Amynodontopsis bodei is found in the Skyline and Cotter channels of latest Eocene and earliest Oligocene. Metamynodon chadronensis from the Porvenir local fauna of the Vieja area is described.
Early Tertiary Vertebrate Faunas Vieja Group Trans-Pecos Texas: Rodentia
(Texas Memorial Museum, The University of Texas at Austin, 1974-04) Wood, Albert E.
The fossil rodents of the late Eocene to early Oligocene Vieja Group are described. They include the paramyids Leptotomus leptodus, L. gigans n. sp., Mytonomys gaitania, Microparamys perjossus n. sp., Ischyrotomus cf, petersoni and Manitsha johanniculi n. sp.; the ischyromyids Ischyromys blacki n. sp, and Titanotheriomys veterior; the cylindrodonts Cylindrodon fontis, Pseudocylindrodon neglectus, P. texanus n. sp., Ardynomys occidentalis, Jaywilsonomyinae n. subf., Jaywilsonomys ojinagaensis and /. pintoensis; the eomyids Adjidaumo cf. minutus, Viejadjidaumo magniscopuli n. gen., n. sp., Aulolithomys bounites, Meliakrouniomys wilsoni and Yoderimys lustrorum n. sp.; the eutypomyid Eutypomys inexpectatus n. sp.; the possible zapodid cf. Simimys sp. indet., and the possible cricetid Subsumus candelariae n. gen., n. sp. Skulls are described for Pseudocylindrodon texanus, Viejadjidaumo magniscopuli and Yoderimys lustrorum, and partial ones for Ischyromys blacki, Titanotheriomys veterior, Jaywilsonomys ojinagaensis, Aulolithomys bounites and Eutypomys inexpectatus. The Vieja fossils help to close the gap between late Eocene and Early Oligocene North American rodent faunules.
Early Tertiary Vertebrate Faunas, Trans-Pecos Texas: Ceratomorpha Less Amynodontidae
(Texas Memorial Museum, The University of Texas at Austin, 1984-12-07) Wilson, John Andrew; Schiebout, Judith A.
Ceratomorph remains found in Eocene and Oligocene deposits of Trans-Pecos Texas are herein described, except for the amynodonts which were described in a previous paper. Hyracodon primus, Hyracodon petersoni, and Colodon stovalli n. sp. are described from well-preserved material; Hyrachyus and Dilophodon are not so well represented. Triplopus, Caenopus, and Trigonias are questionably identified and a skull fragment is provisionally referred to Toxotherium. Changes in faunal lists of Trans-Pecos local faunas are reported. Generalized stratigraphic sections of the Vieja and Agua Fria-Green Valley areas are provided.

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