Browsing by Author "Norris, Christopher A., 1966-"
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Item Periotic morphology in the tricosurin possums Strigocuscus celebensis and Wyulda squamicaudata (Diprotodontia, Phalangeridae) and a revised diagnosis of the tribe Trichosurini. American Museum novitates ; no. 3414(New York, NY : American Museum of Natural History, 2003) Crosby, Kirsten.; Norris, Christopher A., 1966-The morphology of the periotic in the extant trichosurin possums Strigocuscus celebensis and Wyulda squamicaudata is described and compared with that of various species of extant and extinct phalangerid marsupials. The periotic morphologies of S. celebensis and W. squamicaudata show a number of similarities with those of brushtailed possums of the genus Trichosurus, strengthening the case for a monophyletic tribe Trichosurini consisting of these three genera. Comparisons with periotics of possums from the Tertiary Riversleigh deposits of Queensland that were previously assigned on the basis of craniodental anatomy to Trichosurus and Strigocuscus suggest that, despite some similarities, the three extant trichosurins may be more closely related to each other than to the Riversleigh taxa. A revised morphological diagnosis of the Trichosurini is provided, incorporating these data.Item Systematic revision within the Phalanger orientalis complex (Diprotodontia, Phalangeridae) : a third species of lowland gray cuscus from New Guinea and Australia. American Museum novitates ; no. 3356(New York, NY : American Museum of Natural History, 2001) Norris, Christopher A., 1966-; Musser, Guy G.A study of specimens from the mammal collections of the American Museum of Natural History that were originally assigned to Phalanger orientalis sensu lato revealed the presence of three taxa: P. orientalis from northern New Guinea, the Bismarck Archipelago, and the Solomon Islands; P. intercastellanus from southeast New Guinea, the D'Entrecasteaux Islands, the Trobriand Islands, and the Louisade Archipelago; and a group from southern New Guinea and the Cape York Peninsula of Australia that could not be assigned to either of the two foregoing species. Possession of a distinctive suite of morphological characters warrants recognition of this group at the species level. The characteristics and habitat of the species are described, and the zoogeographic implications of its distribution are discussed.