Tortonian teleost otoliths from northern Italy: taxonomic synthesis and stratigraphic significance Author Lin, Chien-Hsiang D39077E1-7025-4118-B258-C4A896E63E2A urn: lsid: zoobank. org: author: D 39077 E 1 - 7025 - 4118 - B 258 - C 4 A 896 E 63 E 2 A & Corresponding author: chlin. otolith @ gmail. com; r 97 b 41028 @ gmail. com chlin.otolith@gmail.com Author Brzobohatý, Rostislav A354D828-3D07-46F5-9D27-4F9D7B208F12 Email: rosta @ sci. muni. cz & urn: lsid: zoobank. org: author: A 354 D 828 - 3 D 07 - 46 F 5 - 9 D 27 - 4 F 9 D 7 B 208 F 12 rosta@sci.muni.cz Author Nolf, Dirk 6BCC71A0-1BEE-4BC0-BDFC-D070609DEFAB Email: dirk. nolf @ scarlet. be & urn: lsid: zoobank. org: author: 6 BCC 71 A 0 - 1 BEE- 4 BC 0 - BDFC-D 070609 DEFAB dirk.nolf@scarlet.be Author Girone, Angela B4212D22-1D1B-48E9-8ABB-C1D1E05573EF Email: angela. girone @ uniba. it & urn: lsid: zoobank. org: author: B 4212 D 22 - 1 D 1 B- 48 E 9 - 8 ABB-C 1 D 1 E 05573 EF angela.girone@uniba.it text European Journal of Taxonomy 2017 2017-05-23 322 1 44 journal article 22102 10.5852/ejt.2017.322 2922dbf4-12ec-49d4-ac36-565434419f51 2118-9773 3829305 Bregmaceros sp. Bregmaceros Thompson, 1840 has small and thin otoliths which are easily recognised, but their identification at species level is problematic, because specific features mainly concern the overall shape of the outline and the protruding denticles, which are often not well-preserved in the fossil material. Therefore, the identification of fossil specimens in this group is delicate and requires sufficient specimens ( Přikryl et al . 2016 ). Our Bregmaceros otoliths ( Fig. 7 M–O) are characterised by a very large, wide and triangular antero-ventral lobe, and this key feature is different from that of Bregmaceros albyi (Sauvage, 1880) , a more common species reported from the Tortonian of northern Italy (e.g., Anfossi & Mosna 1969a , as Bregmaceros catulus ). The shape of our Bregmaceros otoliths is actually more similar to that of Bregmaceros deklaszi Schwarzhans, 2013 (and Bregmaceros hybridus Schwarzhans, 2013 , which may just reflect aspects of the variability of B. deklaszi , based on the iconographies) (see Schwarzhans 2013b : pl. 5, figs 19–26, 11–18, respectively), reported from the middle–late Miocene boundary of West Africa. But, again, the characteristic antero-ventral lobe of our specimens is still markedly larger than that of the West African species. In fact, these Tortonian otoliths do not match any of the currently known fossil species from the Mediterranean or Central Paratethys ( Nolf 2013 : pls 86–87; Přikryl et al . 2016 ), but, lacking sufficient material, we prefer to keep these specimens in open nomenclature.