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The oldest described eurypterid: a giant Middle Ordovician (Darriwilian) megalograptid from the Winneshiek Lagerstätte of Iowa

Overview of attention for article published in BMC Ecology and Evolution, September 2015
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About this Attention Score

  • In the top 5% of all research outputs scored by Altmetric
  • Among the highest-scoring outputs from this source (#11 of 3,717)
  • High Attention Score compared to outputs of the same age (99th percentile)
  • High Attention Score compared to outputs of the same age and source (99th percentile)

Mentioned by

news
33 news outlets
blogs
1 blog
twitter
62 X users
facebook
2 Facebook pages
wikipedia
46 Wikipedia pages
video
1 YouTube creator

Citations

dimensions_citation
56 Dimensions

Readers on

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66 Mendeley
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Title
The oldest described eurypterid: a giant Middle Ordovician (Darriwilian) megalograptid from the Winneshiek Lagerstätte of Iowa
Published in
BMC Ecology and Evolution, September 2015
DOI 10.1186/s12862-015-0443-9
Pubmed ID
Authors

James C. Lamsdell, Derek E. G. Briggs, Huaibao P. Liu, Brian J. Witzke, Robert M. McKay

Abstract

Eurypterids are a diverse group of chelicerates known from ~250 species with a sparse Ordovician record currently comprising 11 species; the oldest fully documented example is from the Sandbian of Avalonia. The Middle Ordovician (Darriwilian) fauna of the Winneshiek Lagerstätte includes a new eurypterid species represented by more than 150 specimens, including some juveniles, preserved as carbonaceous cuticular remains. This taxon represents the oldest described eurypterid, extending the documented range of the group back some 9 million years. The new eurypterid species is described as Pentecopterus decorahensis gen. et sp. nov.. Phylogenetic analysis places Pentecopterus at the base of the Megalograptidae, united with the two genera previously assigned to this family by the shared possession of two or more pairs of spines per podomere on prosomal appendage IV, a reduction of all spines except the pair on the penultimate podomere of appendage V, and an ornamentation of guttalate scales, including angular scales along the posterior margin of the dorsal tergites and in longitudinal rows along the tergites. The morphology of Pentecopterus reveals that the Megalograptidae are representatives of the derived carcinosomatoid clade and not basal eurypterids as previously interpreted. The relatively derived position of megalograptids within the eurypterids indicates that most eurypterid clades were present by the Middle Ordovician. Eurypterids either underwent an explosive radiation soon after their origination, or earlier representatives, perhaps Cambrian in age, remain to be discovered. The available instars of Pentecopterus decorahensis suggest that eurypterids underwent extreme appendage differentiation during development, a potentially unique condition among chelicerates. The high degree of appendage specialization in eurypterids is only matched by arachnids within chelicerates, supporting a sister taxon relationship between them.

X Demographics

X Demographics

The data shown below were collected from the profiles of 62 X users who shared this research output. Click here to find out more about how the information was compiled.
Mendeley readers

Mendeley readers

The data shown below were compiled from readership statistics for 66 Mendeley readers of this research output. Click here to see the associated Mendeley record.

Geographical breakdown

Country Count As %
United Kingdom 1 2%
Brazil 1 2%
Unknown 64 97%

Demographic breakdown

Readers by professional status Count As %
Researcher 14 21%
Student > Ph. D. Student 7 11%
Student > Bachelor 7 11%
Student > Master 5 8%
Student > Postgraduate 4 6%
Other 12 18%
Unknown 17 26%
Readers by discipline Count As %
Earth and Planetary Sciences 18 27%
Agricultural and Biological Sciences 18 27%
Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology 4 6%
Unspecified 2 3%
Medicine and Dentistry 2 3%
Other 6 9%
Unknown 16 24%
Attention Score in Context

Attention Score in Context

This research output has an Altmetric Attention Score of 306. This is our high-level measure of the quality and quantity of online attention that it has received. This Attention Score, as well as the ranking and number of research outputs shown below, was calculated when the research output was last mentioned on 29 February 2024.
All research outputs
#113,423
of 25,576,801 outputs
Outputs from BMC Ecology and Evolution
#11
of 3,717 outputs
Outputs of similar age
#1,238
of 277,177 outputs
Outputs of similar age from BMC Ecology and Evolution
#1
of 79 outputs
Altmetric has tracked 25,576,801 research outputs across all sources so far. Compared to these this one has done particularly well and is in the 99th percentile: it's in the top 5% of all research outputs ever tracked by Altmetric.
So far Altmetric has tracked 3,717 research outputs from this source. They typically receive a lot more attention than average, with a mean Attention Score of 12.5. This one has done particularly well, scoring higher than 99% of its peers.
Older research outputs will score higher simply because they've had more time to accumulate mentions. To account for age we can compare this Altmetric Attention Score to the 277,177 tracked outputs that were published within six weeks on either side of this one in any source. This one has done particularly well, scoring higher than 99% of its contemporaries.
We're also able to compare this research output to 79 others from the same source and published within six weeks on either side of this one. This one has done particularly well, scoring higher than 99% of its contemporaries.