Near the Syrian city of Afrin, an international research team, including researchers from the Senckenberg Centre for Human Evolution and Palaeoenvironment at the University of Tübingen, has discovered a previously unknown fossil sea turtle. The species Syriemys lelunensis, newly named under the aegis of the University of São Paulo, dates from the early Eocene, around 50 million years ago. The find includes a completely preserved interior impression of the shell as well as parts of the ventral carapace, pelvis, and hind legs. The turtle is the first newly described fossil vertebrate species from Syria.
The oval, well-preserved carapace of the fossil sea turtle is 53 centimeters long and 44 centimeters wide. "For 13 years, the bone fragments from the Eocene period were kept in the office of the General Directorate of Geology and Mineral Resources in Aleppo after they had been recovered in 2010 during a blast in the Al-Zarefeh quarry near the city of Afrin," explains Wafa Adel Alhalabi, a Syrian-Brazilian paleontologist and the study's first author from the University of São Paulo, Brazil, and she continues, "Together with colleagues from Brazil, Syria, Germany, Lebanon and Canada, we have now scientifically described this animal."
Age determination based on tiny shells from the rock
The turtle, which was named Syriemys lelunensis, is the first and only newly described fossil vertebrate species from Syria. In addition, the find was confirmed as the oldest evidence of the Stereogenyini - an extinct line of side-necked turtles whose origins could thus be dated back by more than ten million years. The collection includes a fully preserved internal cast of the carapace, several ventral carapace bones, pelvic bones, and hind limbs - some of which are included in the cast. In addition, tiny foraminifera were extracted from the rock surrounding the fossil. "These shell-bearing protozoa were crucial in determining the age of the fossil turtle," adds Alhalabi.
"Today, all members of the side-necked turtle family are semi-aquatic freshwater turtles. However, the now-extinct Stereogenyini also inhabited saltwater habitats. Therefore, their fossils can be found all over the world: in South America, North America, the Caribbean, Africa, and East Asia," explains Dr. Gabriel S. Ferreira from the Senckenberg Centre for Human Evolution and Palaeoenvironment at the University of Tübingen.
Present-day Syria was entirely covered by water throughout the Cretaceous period and until the late Miocene, i.e., from 145 million to around 5.3 million years ago. Given this extensive marine past, it is no big surprise to Ferreira that a sea turtle was found there. "However, the discovery of Syriemys lelunensis now adds a new geographical location to the distribution of the Stereogenyini - and there are clear indications of a possible origin of this group of sea turtles in the Mediterranean region."
Complex political situation
"The current situation in Syria is extremely complex, and in view of the tragedies unfolding there, it seems almost surreal to talk about fossils. But at the same time, the publication of the find illustrates the country's potential and the fact that science is still alive there," emphasizes Professor Max Langer, senior author and head of the PaleoLab at the Brazilian university.
The research team plans to continue its work with a series of articles entitled "Recovering lost time in Syria." The series is based on materials that Alhalabi personally observed on site and documented photographically. "The title is not only intended to refer to the country's geological past, but also to the time when science in Syria was at a standstill," adds Ferreira in conclusion.
Publication
Alhalabi, W.A., Martucci Neto, D.J., Ferreira, G.S., Bou Jaoude, I., Naser, H.M., Ayoub, J., Abboud, L., Shati, R., Koutsoukos, E.A.M. and Langer, M.C. (2025), Recovering lost time in Syria: a new Eocene stereogenyin turtle from the Aleppo Plateau. Pap Palaeontol, 11: e70026. https://doi.org/10.1002/spp2.70026
Press release of the Senckenberg Gesellschaft für Naturforschung and the University of Tübingen
