Michael W. Rasser

State Museum of Natural History Stuttgart | SMNS · Department of Paleontology

Shells of the freshwater gastropods Gyraulus trochiformis (Planorbidae or ramshorn snails) and Bania pseudoglobula (formerly Pseudamnicola, Hydrobiidae) from Miocene Steinheim Basin in SW Germany contain small holes with a mean diameter of 0.8 mm. Analyses of comparable holes are so far unknown from fossil or extant assemblages of freshwater shells...

The Miocene Steinheim Basin in SW Germany is an ancient (long-lived) palaeo-lake that has existed over some hundreds of thousands of years. It is an iconic fossil site, because the historically oldest phylogenetic tree of extinct organisms was based on specimens described from this locality. Today the basin contains 30–40 m thickness of lake sedime...

The Randeck Maar in S Germany is a well-known fossil lagerstätte with exceptionally preserved fossils, particularly insects and plants, which thrived in and around the maar lake during the Mid-Miocene Climatic Optimum (late Early/early Middle Miocene, mammal zone MN5). We provide the first critical and detailed overview of the fauna and flora with...

In an abandoned sand pit near Ballendorf (Alb-Donau District, Baden-Württemberg), sediments of the Upper Marine Molasse (Lower Miocene) are present. In these sediments, 39 shark and ray species belonging to 29 genera were identified ( Aetobatus, Alopias, Araloselachus, Carcharhinus, Carcharias , Centrophorus, Chaenogaleus, Dasyatis, Galeocerdo, Hem...

The silvana -beds are the main component of the Upper Freshwater Molasse (“Obere Süßwassermolasse” or OSM) in southern Germany, Austria and Switzerland, named after the land snail Palaeotachea silvana (Klein, 1853). After initial disputes in the literature, in the 1920’s, malacologist Wilhelm Wenz better defined the silvana -beds lithology and its...

In an abandoned sand pit near Ballendorf (Alb-Donau District, Baden-Württemberg, sediments of the Upper Marine Molasse (Lower Miocene) are present. In these sediments, 30 shark and ray genera were identified ( Aetobatus, Alopias, Araloselachus, Carcharhinus, Carcharias , Centrophorus, Chaenogaleus, Dasyatis, Galeocerdo, Hemipristis, Iago, Isistius,...

Haie und Rochen in der Nahrungskette der Oberen Meeresmolasse (OMM) (Unter-Miozän) von Baden-Württemberg

O turismo subaquático em Santa Maria é uma das vertentes do turismo de Natureza sustentável com maior sucesso nesta ilha do Arquipélago dos Açores. Lugares como a “Baixa do Ambrósio” e as suas jamantas (entre outros grandes pelágicos), a “Pedrinha” e os peixes e grandes “leques” bivalves da espécie Pinna rudis (Linnaeus, 1758) que aí se avistam, ou...

Editorial on the Research Topic Crustose coralline red algae frameworks and rhodoliths: Past and present

In contrast to other kinds of biological interactions, symbiosis is a scarcely investigated aspect of the fossil record. This is largely due to taphonomic biases that often frustrate any attempt to make a strong case that two organisms shared an intimate association in life. Among extant marine vertebrates, the sea turtles (Cheloniidae and Dermoche...

Rhodoliths occur extensively around the shores of Fuerteventura Island in the Canary Archipelago, with Lithothamnion cf. corallioides being the most prominent species. A large number of rhodoliths end up washed onshore, the debris from which contributes to the formation of sediments constituting modern beaches. In a previous study by one of the co-...

The deposit is located in the Baltringen Formation (Middle Ottnangian, lower Miocene). In total, 27 genera could be identified (sharks: Alopias, Araloselachus, Carcharhinus, Carcharias, Carcharoides, Carcharodon, Centrophorus, Chaenogaleus, Galeocerdo, Hemipristis, Isistius, Mitsukurina, Nanocetorhinus, Notorynchus, Pachyscyllium, Pristiophorus, Ps...

During the Middle Miocene, an extensive lake district existed along the southern margin of today’s Swabian Alb (Baden–Württemberg). Sediments include a wide range from marls to pure carbonates of lacustrine and palustrine origin that contain microbialites studied here. These sediments are part of the Obere Süßwassermolasse known as Silvana Beds. Ma...

ÁVILA S.P., R.S. RAMALHO, C.M. DA SILVA, M.E. JOHNSON, A. UCHMAN, B. BERNING, R. QUARTAU, P. MADEIRA, C.S. MELO, A.C. REBELO, L. BAPTISTA, S. ARRUDA, E. GONZÁLEZ, M.W. RASSER, A. HIPÓLITO, R. CORDEIRO, R. MEIRELES, V. RAPOSO, J. POMBO, R. CÂMARA, M.X. KIRBY, J. TITSCHACK, J.M. HABERMANN, R. VULLO, A. KROH, J.H. LIPPS, M. CACHÃO & J. MADEIRA, 2022....

Herein, we revise an extensive set of mollusc fossils from the Upper Freshwater Molasse deposits of Öhningen palaeolake (SW Germany; Middle Miocene, MN7). Based on material housed in paleontological collections in Europe and North America, we present the first thorough systematic account of the phylum from this historic locality. A total of ten spe...

The Cabo Verde Archipelago holds a remarkable sedimentary record of tsunami inundations, as highlighted by recent finds on Santiago and Maio Islands. Santiago, in particular, constitutes an exceptional site to study in detail the proximal impacts of the megatsunami(s) triggered by the well-known catastrophic flank collapse of Fogo volcano (~60 km t...

The sandpit near Rengetsweiler (Baden-Württemberg, SW Germany) is a famous locality for fossil shark and ray teeth from the Upper Marine Molasse (Lower Miocene). A total of 21 shark and ray genera were recovered from these sediments (Aetobatus, Alopias, Araloselachus, Carcharhinus, Carcharias, Carcharodon, Centrophorus, ?Dasyatis, Galeocerdo, Hemip...

We report on two clustering chelonibiid shells from Rupelian deposits of southwestern Germany. One of these specimens displays a tripartite rostral complex and disparietal radii that indicate the Oligocene species Protochelonibia melleni, which was known so far from isolated compartments only. A literature review reveals two additional, overlooked...

Located on the northern coast of Santa Maria Island (Azores Archipelago, central North Atlantic), the Lagoinhas section preserves a carbonate buildup correlated with Marine Isotope Substage (MIS) 5e, the warmest interval of the Last Interglacial. The buildup is formed mainly by crustose coralline algae (CCA) identified as Spongites sp., and some su...

Unattached nodules of calcareous red algae (Rhodophyta), known as rhodoliths, are widely reported and studied in places that extend from the tropics to polar latitudes. Factors controlling the distribution of the rhodolith-forming species remain poorly understood. A review of the global distribution of present-day rhodolith beds was undertaken, col...

The Early Ottnangian (Early Miocene, Burdigalian) marine deposit of Ursendorf (Baden-Württemberg, South Germany) belongs to the Upper Marine Molasse (UMM) unit in the Northern Alpine Foreland Basin. The outcropping sediments mainly consist of coarse-grained, poorly sorted sands, partly showing large-scale cross-bedding. In these sediments, 24 gener...

The worldwide study of the geological record of the Last Interglacial is key to reconstruct the climatic and oceanographic conditions during that time interval. Here we present preliminary results of a comprehensive field analysis of one of the most extensive and least studied Quaternary fossiliferous sequences in Cabo Verde attributed to the Last...

Zusammenfassung Der Einschlag eines Meteoriten auf der heutigen Schwäbischen Alb formte vor etwa ~14,8 Ma einen komplexen Impaktkrater von 4 km Durchmesser mit ausgeprägtem Zentralhügel, dessen Kratermorphologie bis heute ausgezeichnet erhalten ist. Vom Einschlag betroffen waren triassische und jurassische Sedimentgesteine. Den Kraterrand bilden ze...

Several fossil species of Gyraulus (Gastropoda: Hygrophila: Planorbidae) are known from the Miocene of continental Europe. An unpublished doctoral thesis from Bolten (1977) brought to light some new records of species from the Middle Miocene of Nördlinger Ries in southern Germany: G. ludovici (Noulet, 1854), G. kleini Gottschick & Wenz, 1916 and G....

The mass occurrence of turritelline gastropod shells from the Lower Miocene of southern Germany allows for detailed studies of their palaeoecology, transport mechanisms, preservation potentials and the reconstruction of nutrient regimes. Changes in the fabric of the gastropod‐dominated beds are used to reconstruct a generally deepening environment...

The Randeck Maar lake sediments from SW Germany were deposited during a climatic phase known as the Mid‐Miocene Climatic Optimum, providing a unique window into this last favourable period for a more thermophilous fauna in Central Europe. Previous palaeoecological reconstructions of Randeck Maar's environment focused on the flora and vertebrate fau...

Hazards and disasters have occurred throughout Earth's History and thus the geological record is an important resource for understanding future hazards and disasters and its Impact. The Earth Science Group (ESG) of the Consortium of European Taxonomic Facilities (CETAF) carried out a “Hazard and Disaster Event Survey” to identify Earth Science coll...

Palaeontology and biology are closely related sciences, as are the collections associated with them. Nevertheless there are differences between the two types of collections and the scientific data that they yield with regards to taxonomy, climate and ecology. In order to bridge the gap between the two subjects, it is important to clarify what these...

Introduction: The approximately 3.8 km in diameter Steinheim Basin impact crater [e.g., 1,2,3] is situated on the karstified Upper Jurassic limestone plateau of the Swabian Alb (SW Germany) and is hosted by a sequence of Triassic to Jurassic sedimentary rocks. The impact structure is thought to have formed during the Miocene (~14,8 Ma, [4]) simulta...

Hazards and disasters have occurred throughout Earth's History and thus the geological record is an important resource for understanding future hazards and disasters. The Earth Science Group (ESG) of the Consortium of European Taxonomic Facilities (CETAF) carried ‡ § | ¶ # ¤ «,» ˄ ˅ ‡ ¦ ‡ © Tilley L et al. This is an open access article distributed...

Introduction: The Miocene ~3.8 km in diameter Steinheim impact structure (SW Germany), featuring a prominent central uplift, exposes Middle to Upper Jurassic sedimentary rocks and is known for its well-developed shatter cones [1]. Shatter cones mainly formed in Upper Jurassic limestone [e.g., 1,2]. Recently, the find of a metal fragment trapped in...

A seabed sediment-sampling survey conducted on the Pico insular shelf found abundant rhodoliths between −64 and −73 m off the south coast of the island. These were small and mainly ellipsoidal in shape with a maximum diameter of 3.75 cm. Granules and small pebbles of eroded basalt were also a typical component of these samples. Thin algal crusts we...

The fossil molluscan fauna of Sandelzhausen (Early/Middle Miocene, SE Germany) comprises a total of 44 species, mostly terrestrial pulmonate snails. Herein we present a paleoecological analysis of this fauna based on an actualistic approach and on data on stable isotopes of carbon and oxygen (assessed from specimens of the freshwater lymnaeid snail...

The Middle Miocene silvana-beds outcropping at the southern margin of the Swabian Alb bear a wide array of terrestrial and freshwater gastropods. Especially in the surroundings of the Emerberg and Tautschbuch hills, there are records of several collection sites. In the present work, we investigated material from the historical localities from these...

Introduction: The Miocene ~3.8 km in diameter Steinheim impact structure (SW Germany), featuring a prominent central uplift, exposes Middle to Upper Jurassic sedimentary rocks and is known for its well-developed shatter cones [1]. Shatter cones mainly formed in Upper Jurassic limestone [e.g., 1,2]. Recently, the find of a metal fragment trapped in...

The present study is a report of fossil terrestrial and freshwater gastropods from a new out-crop exposed in the 1990s in Heuchlingen (Baden-Württemberg, SW Germany). The fossils occur in the Silvana Beds of the Upper Freshwater Molasse (OSM), dating from the Early/Middle Miocene (Euro-pean Land Mammal Zone MN 5). Thirty gastropod species (6 aquati...

A METEORITE FRAGMENT TRAPPED BETWEEN POSITIVE AND NEGATIVE SHATTER CONES IN A LIMESTONE BLOCK STORED AT THE METEORKRATER-MUSEUM STEINHEIM, GERMANY. E. Buchner 1,2, M. Hölzel3,4, M. Schmieder 5,6, M. Rasser7, J. Fietzke8 M. Frische8 S. Kutterolf8. 1HNU – Neu-Ulm University of Applied Sciences, Wileystraße 1, 89231 Neu-Ulm, Germany. E-mail: elmar.buc...

A METEORITE FRAGMENT TRAPPED BETWEEN POSITIVE AND NEGATIVE SHATTER CONES IN A LIMESTONE BLOCK STORED AT THE METEORKRATER-MUSEUM STEINHEIM, GERMANY. E. Buchner 1,2, M. Hölzel3,4, M. Schmieder 5,6, M. Rasser7, J. Fietzke8 M. Frische8 S. Kutterolf8. 1HNU – Neu-Ulm University of Applied Sciences, Wileystraße 1, 89231 Neu-Ulm, Germany. E-mail: elmar.buc...

Herein we present an account of the fossil terrestrial and freshwater gastropods from the locality of Hohenmemmingen (Baden-Württemberg state, SW Germany) based on museum collections. The fossil outcrops belong to the Silvana Beds of the Upper Freshwater Molasse, being of Early/Middle Miocene age. In total, 23 gastropod species, all pulmonates, are...

The Oligocene was a period of profound climatic and biotic changes, coinciding with a shift from a mostly ice-free warmhouse world at the Eocene-Oligocene boundary to a globally cooler, more seasonal climate. The Rauenberg locality (Baden-Württemberg, Germany) is one of the most significant early Oligocene fossil assemblages in Europe, containing b...

Formerly unknown holes in shells of freshwater gastropods are described and assigned to the ichnogenus Nihilichnus. The smaller size range, the different substrate, and the sometimes present scratchings around the holes distinguish our praedichnion from the type ichnospecies N. nihilicus, and we propose N. covichi n. isp. for the herein presented m...

Gastropods in the Obere Süßwassermolasse ("Upper Freshwater Molasse") of Germany formerly referred to the genus Cepaea include five species: Palaeotachea dentula (MN 5), P. silvana (MN 5), P. renevieri (MN 5) as well as P. turonensis (MN 5/6), P. sylvestrina (MN 7- MN 9-?) and P. elevata (MN7). Their taxonomic status is discussed in this study. Pal...

Rhodoliths are a common producer of carbonates on modern and ancient shelves worldwide, and there is growing evidence that they thrive on volcanic insular shelves. However, little is still known on how rhodoliths cope with the demands of this particularly dynamic environment. In this study, the focus is placed on fossil rhodoliths from a Pliocene s...

This study presents a taxonomic treatment of the fossil land and freshwater gastropods from Bechingen and Daugendorf (Riedlingen, Baden-Württemberg state, SW Germany). The fossils stem from the Tautschbuch carbonate unit, which belongs to the so-called Silvana Beds of the Upper Freshwater Molasse. Nineteen gastropod species (mainly pulmonates) are...

The type specimens of fossil land and freshwater gastropods deposited in the Staatliches Museum für Naturkunde Stuttgart (SMNS), Germany, are listed and illustrated herein, comprising circa 180 nominal species group taxa from Cenozoic fossil sites, mainly in the Baden-Württemberg and Bayern states in southern Germany. The list is arranged in alphab...

The Middle Miocene fossil site of Oggenhausen in southern Germany was first described in the 1920’s, with reports of nine gastropod species. Much later, in the 2000’s, a second and coeval site was described, named Oggenhausen 2 and counting with eight gastropod species, all of them distinct from the fi rst site (hence named Oggenhausen 1). Here we...

Here, we present the continental aquatic and terrestrial gastropods found in samples of 11 new boreholes in the Molasse Basin, southern Germany. The samples come from the Lower Freshwater Molasse (USM), the Upper Brackish Molasse (OBM; Grimmelfingen and Kirchberg Formations) and the Upper Freshwater Molasse (OSM). The studied segments of these lith...

This study presents a taxonomic study and paleoecological reconstructions of the continental gastropod assemblages from two new Miocene localities in the German part of the North Alpine Foreland Basin, Bavaria. Riedensheim (next to the city of Rennertshofen) and Fasanerie (next to the city of Adelschlag). The fossil rich deposits belong to the Uppe...

The Randeck Maar lake sediments from southwestern Germany were deposited during the late Early to early Middle Miocene (mammal zone MN 5). Although historically well known as an important fossil Lagerstätte, there are few works that have dealt specifically with the fossil gastropods (no bivalves have ever been found). A revision is presented herein...

The Miocene land gastropod Pseudochloritis insignis (von Zieten, 1832) shows a very high variability in size and its systematic designation has been debated for a long time. Statistical analyses reveal no indications for the presence of more than one species. Since the original material is definitely lost, we have defined a neotype. The relationshi...

The Miocene land gastropod Pseudochloritis insignis (von Zieten, 1832) shows a very high variability in size and its systematic designation has been debated for a long time. Statistical analyses reveal no indications for the presence of more than one species. Since the original material is definitely lost, we have defined a neotype. The relationshi...

The Late Miocene Malbusca outcrop is located in the southeastern coast of Santa Maria Island (Azores, NE Atlantic), interspersed in volcanic formations. At ~20 meters above present sea level, a prominent discontinuous layer of rhodoliths seizes with an extension of ~250 meters. This paper presents the first taxonomic record of fossil rhodolith form...

Sandelzhausen is an Early/Middle Miocene (Mammal Neogene zone MN5) fossil site near Mainburg, southern Germany, home to a very rich fossil record. Hundreds of fossil continental mollusks, almost exclusively pulmonates snails, were recovered during the excavations, but received scarce attention by researchers. Here is presented the third and last pa...

The Randeck Maar belongs to the Urach-Kirchheim Volcanic Field in south-western Germany. It represents an ancient volcanic crater of phreatomagmatic origin that contains lake deposits of Early/Middle Miocene age (MN5). It is a Fossillagerstätte with remarkably well-preserved fossils, particularly plants, insects, and amphibians. In contrast to form...

Chondrinid snails are common in Middle to Late Miocene freshwater sediments of the North Alpine Foreland Basin (Molasse Zone) and the deposits of adjacent, time-equivalent fossil lakes, but their taxonomic status is unclear in most cases. This paper provides a taxonomie reassessment of this group. Granaria is the only genus of chondrinid snails ide...

Among others, “Darwin's dilemma” is referred to as Charles Darwin's perception that his theory on the origin of species suffers from a scarcity of fossil evidence such as transitional forms between taxa. In 1867, only a few years after the publication of Darwin's “Origin of Species”, Franz Hilgendorf published a phylogenetic tree of Miocene planorb...

A new species of salamandrid is named and described from the Miocene of Randeck Maar, a long-term volcanic lake deposit in southern Germany. Based on a fully articulated specimen, Ichthyosaura randeckensis is named and described as a 3–4 cm long newt with a robust posterolateral process of the frontal, a heavily ornamented skull roof, and a premaxi...

The evolution of the isolated Galala carbonate platform has been studied intensively with respect to the Paleocene–Eocene Thermal Maximum (PETM) and the strong climatic variability from the Late Paleocene to the Early Eocene. In this study, we compare the results of different approaches which deal with the Early Palaeogene evolution of the Egyptian...

The microtaphofacies of Paleogene carbonates from three time units (Middle Eocene, Late Eocene and Early Oligocene) from the circumalpine area are described and compared. These carbonates are dominated by various larger foraminiferal and coralline red algal facies with subordinate coral and bryozoan facies. The taphonomy of different components and...

Thecideid brachiopods are poorly known brachiopods of debated phylogenetic relationships which occur from the Late Triassic to the Recent. Although well known in encrusting communities of Jurassic and Cretaceous cryptic habitats, they have received less attention in Cenozoic environments. Extensive thin section analysis of circumalpine Paleogene ca...

The succession of the Galala Mountains at the southern Tethyan margin (Eastern Desert, Egypt) provides new data for the evolution of an isolated carbonate platform in the Early Eocene. Since the Late Cretaceous emergence of the Galala platform, its evolution has been controlled strongly by eustatic sea-level fluctuations and the tectonic activity a...

The Oggenhausen fauna from the northern margin of the North Alpine Foreland Basin includes eight gastropod species, various crustacean claws, four fish species, twelve amphibian species, eight reptile species, a few indeterminate bird remains and 23 mammal species. The rodent fauna, especially the coexistence of the hamsters Megacricetodon aff. bav...

The North Alpine Foreland Basin is a classic area for integrative sedimentological and palaeontological studies of a dynamic Cenozoic basinal setting characterized by rapidly changing marine and terrestrial conditions. This special publication includes ten contributions presented at the 2008 Molasse Group meeting at the State Museum of Natural Hist...

Geologically, the Cenozoic represents the period when Africa and Europe were converging, with seafloor spreading taking place in the Atlantic only as far north as the Labrador Sea (between Greenland and North America). Additionally, numerous microplates in the Mediterranean area were compressed as a direct result of Africa-Europe convergence, gradu...