The First Side-Necked Turtle (Pleurodira, Bothremydidae) from the Campanian (Late Cretaceous) of Egypt

Abstract

The Quseir Formation is an Upper Cretaceous (Campanian) deposit in the Kharga oasis of the Southwestern Desert (Egypt). This formation comprises a clastic sequence of bioturbated mudstone and sandstone intercalations, including rare scattered and fragmented vertebrate remains such as shark teeth, dinosaur remains, and turtle plates. These deposits indicate a supratidal marsh environment. A complete shell of a turtle discovered from the Quseir Formation, at the Kharga oasis, is attributed here to Bothremydini (Pleurodira, Bothremydidae), and determined as a new taxon: Khargachelys caironensis gen. et sp. nov. This form represents the only Bothremydini member currently identified in the Campanian record not only of Egypt but also of North Africa. Therefore, it helps fill the missing evolutionary gap from the Late Cretaceous pleurodires in Egypt and in North Africa.