New osteological characteristics identify the first stem sleeper goby (Gobioidei, Odontobutidae) from the Upper Eocene

Amongst Gobioidei, one of the most diverse orders of teleost fishes, the families Odontobutidae (sleeper gobies) and Rhyacichthyidae are considered ‘basal gobioids’ and are therefore particularly interesting for understanding gobioid evolutionary history. However, their fossil record currently consists of only three extinct odontobutid species (two skeleton-based, one otolith-based). The aim of the study associated with this dataset (Bauer et al. 2025 in Papers in Palaeontology) was to investigate the possible relationship of one of the oldest known gobioid fossils, †Paralates chapelcornerensis from the Upper Eocene of southern England, to these families. To achieve this, osteological differences between Odontobutidae and Rhyacichthyidae were newly investigated using 19 extant species from museum collections. This taxon set included both genera of the Rhyacichthyidae, five genera of the Odontobutidae (including Terateleotris; representing 78% of all odontobutid genera), one genus of the..., Study of fossil material

The fossil material included 51 articulated fossils, > 100 isolated bones and four isolated otoliths of †Paralates from the Upper Eocene of the Chapelcorner Fish Bed (Chale, Isle of Wight, UK). The fossil material was studied and photographed under a Leica M165 C microscope equipped with a Jenoptik Gryphax Naos microscope camera. Photos were edited in Photoshop CS6 and Krita. The corresponding figures were prepared with Photoshop CS6 and Inkscape.

Study of recent comparative material

A total of 19 extant species were newly investigated. They encompass:

Apogonidae
Sphaeramia nematoptera (Bleeker 1856)
Apogon imberbis (Linnaeus 1758)

Trichonotidae
Trichonotus arabicus Randall & Tarr 1994
Trichonotus cf. setiger Bloch & Schneider 1801
Trichonotus nikii Clark & von Schmidt 1966

Rhyacichthyidae
Protogobius attiti Watson & Pöllabauer 1998
Rhyacichthys guilberti Dingerkus & Séret 1992
Rhyacichthys aspro (Valenciennes, 1837)

Odontobutidae
M..., , # Data from: New osteological characteristics identify the first stem sleeper goby (Gobioidei, Odontobutidae) from the Upper Eocene

[https://doi.org/10.5061/dryad.7pvmcvf36](https://doi.org/10.5061/dryad.7pvmcvf36)

## Description of the data and file structure

The fossil material and the µCt scans of the extant comparative material were used for osteological study. The focus was study of six bony structures that were well-preserved in the fossil material of †*Paralates*: the first vertebra (atlas), the upper jaw bone (premaxilla), the palatine, the urohyal, the hyoid arch, and the pelvic girdle. These bones were segmented from the µCTs of the extant species and visualized in 3D.

The outcome served to identify structures and character states that differed between Odontobutidae and Rhyacichthyidae. To ensure that characters were consistent between species and capable of distinguishing between genera, three species of *Odontobutis* and three species of *Trichonotus* were included. The...,

作为真骨鱼类（teleost fishes）中物种多样性最高的类群之一——鰕虎鱼亚目（Gobioidei）内，沙塘鳢科（Odontobutidae，俗称塘鳢）与溪鳢科（Rhyacichthyidae）被视作基干鰕虎鱼亚目类群，因此对于解析鰕虎鱼亚目的演化历史具有关键研究价值。但目前这两个类群的化石记录仅包含3种已灭绝的沙塘鳢科物种（2种基于骨骼化石，1种基于耳石（otolith））。本数据集关联的研究（Bauer等，2025，发表于《Papers in Palaeontology》）旨在探究已知最古老的鰕虎鱼亚目化石之一——产自英国南部上始新统的†*Paralates chapelcornerensis*与这两个科的演化亲缘关系。为此，研究团队通过馆藏的19种现生鱼类标本，重新分析了沙塘鳢科与溪鳢科之间的骨骼形态差异。本次分类群采样涵盖溪鳢科的全部2个属，以及沙塘鳢科的5个属（包含细齿塘鳢属*Terateleotris*，覆盖了沙塘鳢科全部属级类群的78%），以及……

# 化石材料研究
本研究的化石材料包含产自英国怀特岛查尔（Chale）地区查普尔科纳鱼层的上始新统地层中51件关联保存的†*Paralates*化石、100余件孤立骨骼以及4件孤立耳石。研究团队使用搭载Jenoptik Gryphax Naos显微相机的Leica M165 C显微镜对化石进行观察与摄影，并通过Photoshop CS6与Krita软件完成照片后期处理，最终利用Photoshop CS6与Inkscape软件制作正式配图。

# 现生对比材料研究
本次研究共新增分析19种现生鱼类，涵盖类群如下：
1. 天竺鲷科（Apogonidae）：纹扁天竺鲷*Sphaeramia nematoptera*（Bleeker，1856）、赤天竺鲷*Apogon imberbis*（Linnaeus，1758）
2. 毛背鱼科（Trichonotidae）：阿拉伯毛背鱼*Trichonotus arabicus*（Randall & Tarr，1994）、毛背鱼相似种*Trichonotus cf. setiger*（Bloch & Schneider，1801）、尼氏毛背鱼*Trichonotus nikii*（Clark & von Schmidt，1966）
3. 溪鳢科（Rhyacichthyidae）：阿氏原溪鳢*Protogobius attiti*（Watson & Pöllabauer，1998）、吉氏溪鳢*Rhyacichthys guilberti*（Dingerkus & Sérét，1992）、溪鳢*Rhyacichthys aspro*（Valenciennes，1837）
4. 沙塘鳢科（Odontobutidae）：……

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## 数据集来源：《新骨骼性状鉴定首个上始新统基干塘鳢（鰕虎鱼亚目：沙塘鳢科）》
DOI：https://doi.org/10.5061/dryad.7pvmcvf36

### 数据与文件结构说明
本研究利用化石材料与现生对比类群的显微CT扫描（µCT scans）数据开展骨骼形态学研究，重点分析了在†*Paralates*化石中保存较好的6处骨骼结构：第一椎骨（寰椎，atlas）、上颌骨（前上颌骨，premaxilla）、腭骨（palatine）、尾舌骨（urohyal）、舌弓（hyoid arch）与骨盆带（pelvic girdle）。研究团队从现生种类的显微CT数据中分割出上述骨骼结构并进行三维可视化。
上述分析结果用于识别沙塘鳢科与溪鳢科之间的差异结构与性状状态（character states）。为确保性状在物种间具有一致性且能够区分属级类群，研究团队同时纳入了3种沙塘鳢属*Odontobutis*物种与3种毛背鱼属*Trichonotus*物种。……