WAVP 2025 Mesa, Arizona Program
Platform
0800 Registration, poster set-up and load power-point
0900 Welcome
0915 Something fishy in the Devonian: An Asterolepis bone-bed near Payson, Arizona
Grant S. Boardman, PhD.
0930 A new late Permian younginid bearing a tympanic fossa clarifies the evolution of the early neodiapsid skull
Xavier A. Jenkins, Valentin Buffa, Enele Twala, Cy Marchant, David P. Ford, Claire Browning, Vincent Fernandez, Kathleen Dollman, Jennifer Botha, Jonah N. Choiniere, Roger B. J. Benson, and Brandon R. Peecook
0945 A new comprehensive phylogeny for investigating the evolutionary relationships of Triassic marine reptiles
Gary A. McGaughey, Xavier A. Jenkins, and Brandon R. Peecook
1000 Hot-blooded phytosaurs? A parsimonious interpretation of the evolution of ectothermy within clade Pseudosuchia suggests endothermy within Phytosauria
Brandon A. Nguyen
1015 The paleontological resource potential, correlation challenges, and regional importance of undifferentiated “mid”- to Late Cretaceous strata in the Eastern Mogollon Highlands of Arizona.
Douglas G. Wolfe
1030 Break
1045 A new sandownid turtle jaw from the Lewisville Formation (Woodbine Group, Cenomanian) of Texas
Heather F. Smith, Madison Berg, Brent Adrian, Ronald S. Tykoski, and Christopher Noto
1100 Paleoecology and biogeography of Quick Pocket, a vertebrate microfossil assemblage from the “Mesaverde” Formation (Campanian) of the Bighorn Basin, Park County, Wyoming, U.S.A.
Andrew A. Farke, Andres Caballero, Lauren Duffy, Jared Heuck, Frances Hinch, Jarra Jallow, Bailey Jorgensen, Matthew Jung, Dorothy Ma, Kaitlyn Metz, Andrew Paik, Luke Smith, Wen Yang, and Christina Young
1115 The Curious Case of Appalachiosaurus “Long Arms”
Brian Curtice
1130 A revised turtle fauna demonstrates increased diversity in the Menefee Formation (Campanian), New Mexico, U.S.A.
Brent Adrian, Heather F. Smith, and Andrew T. McDonald
1145 Menefee micropaleontology: Preliminary microfossil assemblage reveals new paleoecology and likely marine influence in the Allison Member, Menefee Formation (Upper Cretaceous) of New Mexico
1200 Lunch,
1300 Poster Sessions
1400 Frontoparietal morphology of Xenodens calminechari revealed by a new specimen from the Maastrichtian phosphates of Morocco
Brennan Martens, Trevor Rempert, Bethany Burke, Alexander Vinkeles Melchers, and Kyle Marson
1415 A comparison of dental features between Otodontidae and Lamnidae
Ben Goode
1430 The earliest xantusiids, with musings on taxonomy, phylogeny, allometry, and paedomorphosis
Robert D. McCord
1445 Ecological interactions and habits of the Borophaginae and Camelidae at the Milk Creek Site, Yavapai County, Arizona
Jeb Bevers, Ian Bevers, Giovianni Hernandez and Carley Weideman
1500 Break
1515 Integration and modularity in the sloth scapula
Andy Grass
1530 Gomphotheres on the menu: The terminal Pleistocene archaeological and paleontological record at El Fin Del Mundo, a Clovis kill site in the Sonoran Desert of NW Mexico
Ismael Sánchez-Morales, Kayla B. Worthey, Guadalupe Sanchez, and Vance T. Holliday
1545 Break
1600 Awards announcement and Business Meeting
Poster
Diversity of Ophiomorpha and aquatic fauna near the Menefee Formation-Cliff House Sandstone contact (Campanian), New Mexico, U.S.A.
Harrison Brand, Emelia Dolson, Heather F. Smith, Benjamin F. Mohler, Merlyn Heck, F. Joe Reavis, Tyler Greaves, and Brent Adrian
A new specimen of Latoplatecarpus willistoni
Bethany Burke, Trevor Rempert, Brennan Martens, Alexander Vinkeles Melchers, and Kyle Marson
Sloth unguals and claw sheaths: Comparisons between taxa and implications for xenarthran locomotor habits
Andy Grass, Magda N. Muchlinski, Amanda D. Melin, Carrie C. Veilleux, and Heather F. Smith
New tyrannosaur teeth from the Campanian Menefee Formation of New Mexico
Jake Kudlinski, Benjamin F. Mohler, Brent Adrian, and Heather F. Smith
From the scanner to the classroom: skull reconstruction techniques via μCT scans and 3D digital models
Cy J. Marchant, Xavier A. Jenkins, and Brandon R. Peecook
Frontoparietal morphology of Xenodens calminechari revealed by a new specimen from the Maastrichtian phosphates of Morocco
Brennan Martens, Trevor Rempert, Bethany Burke, Alexander Vinkeles Melchers, and Kyle Marson
The Golden Shores Mammoth (Mammuthus columbi) from the Colorado River corridor, Mohave County, Arizona
Gavin McCullough, Phil Gensler, Augustine P. Potor, and Robert D. McCord
Caudal autotomy in tanystropheids (Reptilia, Tanysauria): The first known occurrence of tail-shedding in archosauromorphs
Dakota Pittinger, Adam Marsh, Ben Kligman, and Yara Haridy
A new study of the Florissant fauna and its diversity
Stephanie M. Tkacik, Jaelyn J. Eberle, and Herbert W. Meyer
A new vertebrate tracksite from the Upper Cretaceous (Cenomanian) Dakota Sandstone in Mesa County, Colorado, USA
Marcello Toscanini, Zach Fitzner, Janet Bertog, and Joshua A. Smith
Many thanks to The Anatomical Record and Fossil Crates for sponsoring WAVP 2025.
Thank you, Arizona Museum of Natural History, AZMNH Foundation, and the City of Mesa for hosting the 2025 Western Association of Vertebrate Paleontology Conference.
Dates: February 14th-16th, 2025.
Presentations will be held at The Post.
26 N Macdonald, Mesa, AZ 85201
Where Do I Park?
Guidelines for Abstract Submissions
Welcome to the 2025 meeting of Western Association of Vertebrate Paleontologists (WAVP), February 14-16, 2025!
Join us for an exciting gathering of paleontologists in downtown Mesa, Arizona, at Arizona Museum of Natural History and The Post for a weekend filled with fossil discoveries, research presentations, a field trip to a nearby fossil vertebrate locality, and networking opportunities.
Connect with fellow enthusiasts, share your latest findings, and learn from leading experts in the field. Whether you’re a seasoned paleontologist or just starting out, this event is perfect for anyone with a passion for vertebrate paleontology.
Don’t miss out on this incredible opportunity to immerse yourself in the world of current research of prehistoric vertebrates. Mark your calendars for the 2025 meeting of WAVP, Western Association of Vertebrate Paleontologists!
Tentative Schedule
February 14: No-host Social at Cider Corps, 31 S Robson #103, Mesa, AZ 85210. Drop by and see everyone else as you get into town. Suggested hours 6-8, but hey, this is no-host, so get there as early and stay as long as you like. Food served there too!
February 15: Talks will take place at The Post. Location of posters TBD. Registration opens at The Post at 8:15 AM. Breakfast refreshments and box lunches will be served, and coffee will be available all day. If you have special dietary requirements, please let us know at WAVPMeeting@mesaaz.gov .
February 16: Field Trip to Chalk Canyon Formation deposits. 10:00 AM-1:00 PM. Meeting point TBD. Participants will visit Agua Fria National Monument, wherein oreodont remains have been collected. The Early Miocene Chalk Canyon Formation represents one of the earliest mammal-bearing rock units in Arizona, and it is the locus of ongoing research by AZMNH. Participants will be responsible for their own transportation to the locality, which is about 63 miles north of AZMNH. Space is limited. Sign up with Gavin at gavin.mccullough@mesaaz.gov .
Abstract submissions for WAVP 2025 with a DEADLINE of January 24th
Please submit all abstracts to: WAVPMeeting@mesaaz.gov
Abstracts should be formatted in .docx so that we may easily view and suggest edits. Note all the authors, any institutional affiliation, support, and assistance. Also note whether you have a preference for a poster or talk for the WAVP.
Abstracts should list the title, all authors and any institutional affiliations.
The abstract body should be no longer than 500 words.
Presentations are limited to 15 minutes with an expectation of 12 minutes for the presentation and a few minutes for questions.
General Poster Guidelines:
You may have made several posters before, but if not, here are a few suggestions (modified from the Arizona Nevada Academy of Science meetings):
Make the poster clear in design and easy to follow. The text should be limited to your main points. Present the most relevant data, your conclusions, and future questions and work which may lay ahead. Use figures, photos, graphs and other illustrations for a good part of your presentation.
Most people use PowerPoint, Google Slides or Photoshop. VistaPrint also supports printing posters on fabric.
Please note that the print should be legible at three to four feet distance from the poster. All text should be 18 to 24 point and the title and author lettering at least double this. The top of the poster should consist of an easy-to-read title along with the author(s).
The poster dimensions should be close to 4 feet wide x 3 feet in height. Exceptions will be allowed, but our poster display space is not infinite.
Please figure out the time your print shop will require for your poster and the cost, which may range up to $50.
Registration information
Cost: $40 (suggested donation) covers expenses for Saturday.
Register at https://wavp2025.eventbrite.com not later than end of day, January 31.