Saïda Hossini (born 1950) is a Moroccan palaeontologist, specialising in frogs of the Pleistocene.

Career

Hossini teaches at the University of Moulay Ismail, Faculté des Sciences in Meknes. She studied for her doctoral research in Paris, researching anuran species of the late

oligocene The Oligocene ( ) is a geologic epoch of the Paleogene Period and extends from about 33.9 million to 23 million years before the present ( to ). As with other older geologic periods, the rock beds that define the epoch are well identified but the ...

and the miocene in France. Her work in Morocco includes the examination of cave deposits and examined amphibian remains from the Thomas Quarry Site, near Casablanca. Hossini identified for the first time the presence of the genus ''Baleaphryne'' for the first time in Africa at the Jebel Irhoud ("Ocre" quarry) site in Morocco. She also investigated the faunal remains at the cave of That El Ghar (Tetuan), exploring palaeoenvironment of North Africa between the pleistocene and the holocene.

New species

In 1993, Hossini was the person to describe a new species of frog, '' Latonia ragei''. Evidence for the species came from the fossil record in three localities: Coderet, Laugnac and 'St Gerand-Le-Puy'. The discovery and identification of a Latonia mandible, led to the classification of this species as new to science. In other examples of ''ragei'', Hossini worked on maxilla surface sculpturing to produce identification.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hossini, Saida Moroccan women academics Moroccan women scientists Moroccan geologists Living people 1950 births