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Cerroni MA, Otero A, Novas FE. Appendicular myology of Skorpiovenator bustingorryi: A first attempt to reconstruct pelvic and hindlimb musculature in an abelisaurid theropod. Anat Rec (Hoboken) 2024. [PMID: 38989612 DOI: 10.1002/ar.25532] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/26/2024] [Revised: 06/05/2024] [Accepted: 06/20/2024] [Indexed: 07/12/2024]
Abstract
We present the pelvic and hindlimb musculature of the abelisaurid Skorpiovenator bustingorryi, constituting the most comprehensive muscle reconstruction to date in ceratosaur theropods. Using extant phylogenetic bracket method, we reconstructed 39 muscles that can commonly found in extant archosaurs. Through the identification of bone correlates, we recognized thigh and hindlimb muscles including knee extensors, m. iliofibularis, m. flexor tibialis externus, mm. caudofemorales, mm. puboischiofemorales, and crus muscles important in foot extension and flexion (e.g., m. tibialis anterior, mm. gastrocnemii). Also, autopodial intrinsic muscles were reconstructed whose function involve extension (m. extensor digiti 2-4), flexion (mm. flexor digitorum brevis superficialis), interdigital adduction (m. interosseus dorsalis) and abduction (m. interosseous plantaris, m. abductor 4). Abelisaurids like Skorpiovenator show a deep pre- and postacetabular blade of the ilia and enlarged cnemial crests, which would have helped increasing the moment arm of muscles related to hip flexion and hindlimb extension. Also, pedal muscles related to pronation were probably present but reduced (e.g., m. pronator profundus). Despite some gross differences in the autopodial morphology in extant outgroups (e.g., crocodilian metatarsus and avian tarsometatarsus), the present study allows us to hypothesize several pedal muscles in Skorpiovenator. These muscles would not be arranged in tendinous bundles as in Neornithes, but rather the condition would be similar to that of crocodilians with several layers formed by fleshy bellies on the plantar and dorsal aspects of the metatarsus. The musculature of Skorpiovenator is key for future studies concerning abelisaurid biomechanics, including the integration of functional morphology and ichnological data.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mauricio A Cerroni
- Laboratorio de Anatomía Comparada y Evolución de los Vertebrados, Museo Argentino de Ciencias Naturales "Bernardino Rivadavia", Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - Alejandro Otero
- Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET)
- División Paleontología de Vertebrados (Anexo Laboratorios), Museo de La Plata, La Plata, Argentina
| | - Fernando E Novas
- Laboratorio de Anatomía Comparada y Evolución de los Vertebrados, Museo Argentino de Ciencias Naturales "Bernardino Rivadavia", Buenos Aires, Argentina
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Pol D, Baiano MA, Černý D, Novas FE, Cerda IA, Pittman M. A new abelisaurid dinosaur from the end Cretaceous of Patagonia and evolutionary rates among the Ceratosauria. Cladistics 2024; 40:307-356. [PMID: 38771085 DOI: 10.1111/cla.12583] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/05/2024] [Revised: 04/24/2024] [Accepted: 04/24/2024] [Indexed: 05/22/2024] Open
Abstract
Gondwanan dinosaur faunae during the 20 Myr preceding the Cretaceous-Palaeogene (K/Pg) extinction included several lineages that were absent or poorly represented in Laurasian landmasses. Among these, the South American fossil record contains diverse abelisaurids, arguably the most successful groups of carnivorous dinosaurs from Gondwana in the Cretaceous, reaching their highest diversity towards the end of this period. Here we describe Koleken inakayali gen. et sp. n., a new abelisaurid from the La Colonia Formation (Maastrichtian, Upper Cretaceous) of Patagonia. Koleken inakayali is known from several skull bones, an almost complete dorsal series, complete sacrum, several caudal vertebrae, pelvic girdle and almost complete hind limbs. The new abelisaurid shows a unique set of features in the skull and several anatomical differences from Carnotaurus sastrei (the only other abelisaurid known from the La Colonia Formation). Koleken inakayali is retrieved as a brachyrostran abelisaurid, clustered with other South American abelisaurids from the latest Cretaceous (Campanian-Maastrichtian), such as Aucasaurus, Niebla and Carnotaurus. Leveraging our phylogeny estimates, we explore rates of morphological evolution across ceratosaurian lineages, finding them to be particularly high for elaphrosaurine noasaurids and around the base of Abelisauridae, before the Early Cretaceous radiation of the latter clade. The Noasauridae and their sister clade show contrasting patterns of morphological evolution, with noasaurids undergoing an early phase of accelerated evolution of the axial and hind limb skeleton in the Jurassic, and the abelisaurids exhibiting sustained high rates of cranial evolution during the Early Cretaceous. These results provide much needed context for the evolutionary dynamics of ceratosaurian theropods, contributing to broader understanding of macroevolutionary patterns across dinosaurs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Diego Pol
- Museo Argentino de Ciencias Naturales Bernardino Rivadavia, Buenos Aires, Argentina
- Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET), Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - Mattia Antonio Baiano
- Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET), Buenos Aires, Argentina
- School of Life Sciences, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shatin, Hong Kong SAR, China
- Área Laboratorio e Investigación, Museo Municipal Ernesto Bachmann, Villa El Chocón, Neuquén, Argentina
- Universidad Nacional de Río Negro (UNRN), General Roca, Río Negro, Argentina
| | - David Černý
- Department of the Geophysical Sciences, University of Chicago, Chicago, IL, USA
| | - Fernando E Novas
- Museo Argentino de Ciencias Naturales Bernardino Rivadavia, Buenos Aires, Argentina
- Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET), Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - Ignacio A Cerda
- Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET), Buenos Aires, Argentina
- Universidad Nacional de Río Negro (UNRN), General Roca, Río Negro, Argentina
- Instituto de Investigación en Paleobiología y Geología (IIPG), General Roca, Río Negro, Argentina
- Museo Provincial Carlos Ameghino, Cipolletti, Río Negro, Argentina
| | - Michael Pittman
- School of Life Sciences, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shatin, Hong Kong SAR, China
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Meso JG, Gianechini F, Gomez KL, Muci L, Baiano MA, Pol D, Kaluza J, Garrido A, Pittman M. Shed teeth from Portezuelo formation at Sierra del Portezuelo reveal a higher diversity of predator theropods during Turonian-Coniacian times in northern Patagonia. BMC Ecol Evol 2024; 24:59. [PMID: 38730384 PMCID: PMC11083846 DOI: 10.1186/s12862-024-02249-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/27/2024] [Accepted: 04/30/2024] [Indexed: 05/12/2024] Open
Abstract
The study of thirty-two shed crowns from the Portezuelo Formation (middle Turonian-late Coniacian) at the Sierra del Portezuelo locality, reveals six distinct tooth morphotypes identified through cladistic, discriminant, and cluster analyses. Two morphotypes were identified as belonging to Megaraptoridae, three to Abelisauridae, one to Abelisauroidea, and one to Alvarezsauridae. Additionally, two of the morphotypes exhibit a combination of dental features typically found in megaraptorid and abelisauridtheropods. These results suggest a greater diversity of theropods in the original ecosystem than previously thought, including the presence of a second morphotype of megaraptorid and alvarezsaurid previously undocumented in this formation. Furthermore, the existence of Morphotype 6 indicates the potential coexistence of medium-sized abelisauroids alongside larger abelisaurids in the same ecosystem. These findings underscore the importance of future expeditions to the Sierra del Portezuelo locality to further our understanding of these previously unknown theropod species.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jorge Gustavo Meso
- Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET), Buenos Aires, Argentina.
- Instituto de Investigación en Paleobiología y Geología (IIPG), Universidad Nacional de Río Negro (UNRN) - Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET), General Roca, Río Negro, 8332, Argentina.
- Universidad Nacional de Río Negro, Sede Alto Valle/Valle Medio, R8332 General Roca, Estados Unidos 750, Río Negro, Argentina.
| | - Federico Gianechini
- Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET), Buenos Aires, Argentina
- Instituto Multidisciplinario de Investigaciones Biológicas de San Luis (IMIBIO-SL), Universidad Nacional de San Luis, San Luis, Argentina
| | - Kevin Leonel Gomez
- Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET), Buenos Aires, Argentina
- Instituto de Investigación en Paleobiología y Geología (IIPG), Universidad Nacional de Río Negro (UNRN) - Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET), General Roca, Río Negro, 8332, Argentina
| | - Luciana Muci
- Universidad Nacional de Río Negro, Sede Alto Valle/Valle Medio, R8332 General Roca, Estados Unidos 750, Río Negro, Argentina
| | - Mattia Antonio Baiano
- Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET), Buenos Aires, Argentina
- Universidad Nacional de Río Negro, Sede Alto Valle/Valle Medio, R8332 General Roca, Estados Unidos 750, Río Negro, Argentina
- School of Life Sciences, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shatin, Hong Kong SAR, China
- DrNatali S/N, Área Laboratorio E Investigación, Museo Municipal 'Ernesto Bachmann', 8311 Villa El Chocon, Neuquén, Argentina
| | - Diego Pol
- Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET), Buenos Aires, Argentina
- Museo Paleontológico Egidio Feruglio, Trelew, Chubut, Argentina
| | - Jonatan Kaluza
- Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET), Buenos Aires, Argentina
- Fundación de Historia Natural Félix de Azara, Universidad Maimónides. Hidalgo 775, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires, C1405, Argentina
| | - Alberto Garrido
- Museo Provincial de Ciencias Naturales 'Prof. Dr. Juan A. Olsacher'. Dirección Provincial de Minería, Zapala, Neuquén, Argentina
| | - Michael Pittman
- School of Life Sciences, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shatin, Hong Kong SAR, China.
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Averianov AO, Skutschas PP, Atuchin AA, Slobodin DA, Feofanova OA, Vladimirova ON. The last ceratosaur of Asia: a new noasaurid from the Early Cretaceous Great Siberian Refugium. Proc Biol Sci 2024; 291:20240537. [PMID: 38747705 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2024.0537] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/05/2024] [Accepted: 04/18/2024] [Indexed: 07/31/2024] Open
Abstract
The noasaurid ceratosaur Kiyacursor longipes gen. et sp. nov. is described based on a fragmentary skeleton including cervical vertebra, pectoral girdle, humerus and hind limbs from the Lower Cretaceous (Aptian) Ilek Formation at Shestakovo 1 locality in Western Siberia, Russia. This is the first ceratosaur from the Early Cretaceous of Asia, extending the stratigraphic range of Ceratosauria by 40 Myr on that continent. Kiyacursor shares unique hind limb proportions with Elaphrosaurus and Limusaurus, suggesting improved cursorial ability. These taxa show an ostrich-like specialization of the pes, with a large third metatarsal and greatly reduced second metatarsal. By contrast, all other fast running non-avian theropod dinosaurs have an arctometatarsalian pes, with the third metatarsal strongly reduced proximally. The new taxon lived in the Early Cretaceous ecosystem containing a number of other Jurassic relics, such as stem salamanders, protosuchian and shartegosuchid crocodyliforms, tritylodontid synapsids and docodontan mammaliaforms.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alexander O Averianov
- Zoological Institute, Russian Academy of Sciences, Universitetskaya nab., 1, Saint Petersburg 199034, Russian Federation
| | - Pavel P Skutschas
- Department of Vertebrate Zoology, Faculty of Biology, Saint Petersburg State University, Universitetskaya nab., 7-9, Saint Petersburg 199034, Russian Federation
| | | | - Dmitry A Slobodin
- Kuzbass State Museum of Local Lore, Prospekt Sovetskiy 51, Kemerovo 650000, Russian Federation
| | - Olga A Feofanova
- Kuzbass State Museum of Local Lore, Prospekt Sovetskiy 51, Kemerovo 650000, Russian Federation
| | - Olga N Vladimirova
- Kuzbass State Museum of Local Lore, Prospekt Sovetskiy 51, Kemerovo 650000, Russian Federation
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5
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Baiano MA, Coria R, Chiappe LM, Zurriaguz V, Coria L. Osteology of the axial skeleton of Aucasaurus garridoi: phylogenetic and paleobiological inferences. PeerJ 2023; 11:e16236. [PMID: 38025666 PMCID: PMC10655716 DOI: 10.7717/peerj.16236] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/25/2023] [Accepted: 09/14/2023] [Indexed: 12/01/2023] Open
Abstract
Aucasaurus garridoi is an abelisaurid theropod from the Anacleto Formation (lower Campanian, Upper Cretaceous) of Patagonia, Argentina. The holotype of Aucasaurus garridoi includes cranial material, axial elements, and almost complete fore- and hind limbs. Here we present a detailed description of the axial skeleton of this taxon, along with some paleobiological and phylogenetic inferences. The presacral elements are somewhat fragmentary, although these show features shared with other abelisaurids. The caudal series, to date the most complete among brachyrostran abelisaurids, shows several autapomorphic features including the presence of pneumatic recesses on the dorsal surface of the anterior caudal neural arches, a tubercle lateral to the prezygapophysis of mid caudal vertebrae, a marked protuberance on the lateral rim of the transverse process of the caudal vertebrae, and the presence of a small ligamentous scar near the anterior edge of the dorsal surface in the anteriormost caudal transverse process. The detailed study of the axial skeleton of Aucasaurus garridoi has also allowed us to identify characters that could be useful for future studies attempting to resolve the internal phylogenetic relationships of Abelisauridae. Computed tomography scans of some caudal vertebrae show pneumatic traits in neural arches and centra, and thus the first reported case for an abelisaurid taxon. Moreover, some osteological correlates of soft tissues present in Aucasaurus and other abelisaurids, especially derived brachyrostrans, underscore a previously proposed increase in axial rigidity within Abelisauridae.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mattia Antonio Baiano
- Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, Hong Kong
- Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET), Buenos Aires, Argentina
- Museo Municipal Ernesto Bachmann, Villa el Chocón, Argentina
- Universidad Nacional de Río Negro, General Roca, Argentina
| | - Rodolfo Coria
- Universidad Nacional de Río Negro, General Roca, Argentina
- Museo Municipal Carmen Funes, Plaza Huincul, Argentina
| | - Luis M. Chiappe
- Dinosaur Institute, Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County, Los Angeles, United States of America
| | - Virginia Zurriaguz
- Instituto de Investigación en Paleobiología y Geología (IIPG), General Roca, Argentina
| | - Ludmila Coria
- Museo Municipal Carmen Funes, Plaza Huincul, Argentina
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6
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D'Emic MD, O'Connor PM, Sombathy RS, Cerda I, Pascucci TR, Varricchio D, Pol D, Dave A, Coria RA, Curry Rogers KA. Developmental strategies underlying gigantism and miniaturization in non-avialan theropod dinosaurs. Science 2023; 379:811-814. [PMID: 36821658 DOI: 10.1126/science.adc8714] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/25/2023]
Abstract
In amniotes, the predominant developmental strategy underlying body size evolution is thought to be adjustments to the rate of growth rather than its duration. However, most theoretical and experimental studies supporting this axiom focus on pairwise comparisons and/or lack an explicit phylogenetic framework. We present the first large-scale phylogenetic comparative analysis examining developmental strategies underlying the evolution of body size, focusing on non-avialan theropod dinosaurs. We reconstruct ancestral states of growth rate and body mass in a taxonomically rich dataset, finding that contrary to expectations, changes in the rate and duration of growth played nearly equal roles in the evolution of the vast body size disparity present in non-avialan theropods-and perhaps that of amniotes in general.
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Affiliation(s)
- Michael D D'Emic
- Department of Biology, Adelphi University, Garden City, NY, USA
- Department of Anatomical Sciences, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY, USA
| | - Patrick M O'Connor
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, Ohio University Heritage College of Osteopathic Medicine, Athens, OH, USA
- Ohio Center for Ecological and Evolutionary Studies, Ohio University, Athens, OH, USA
| | - Riley S Sombathy
- Department of Biology, Adelphi University, Garden City, NY, USA
- Ohio Center for Ecological and Evolutionary Studies, Ohio University, Athens, OH, USA
- Department of Biological Sciences, Ohio University, Athens, OH, USA
| | - Ignacio Cerda
- Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET), Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires, República Argentina
- Instituto de Investigación en Paleobiología y Geología, Universidad Nacional de Río Negro, Museo Carlos Ameghino, Cipolletti, Río Negro, Argentina
| | | | - David Varricchio
- Department of Earth Sciences, Montana State University, Bozeman, MT, USA
| | - Diego Pol
- CONICET-Museo Paleontológico Egidio Feruglio, Trelew, Chubut, Argentina
| | - Anjali Dave
- Department of Biology, Adelphi University, Garden City, NY, USA
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Canejo L, Holgado B, Weinschütz LC, Ricetti JHZ, Wilner E, Kellner AWA. Novel information on the cranial anatomy of the tapejarine pterosaur Caiuajara dobruskii. PLoS One 2022; 17:e0277780. [PMID: 36520711 PMCID: PMC9754175 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0277780] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/11/2022] [Accepted: 11/03/2022] [Indexed: 12/23/2022] Open
Abstract
Caiuajara dobruskii is a tapejarid pterosaur from the Cretaceous of the 'Cemitério dos Pterossauros' (pterosaur graveyard) site, a unique pterosaur bonebed which is located at the municipality of Cruzeiro do Oeste (Paraná, Brazil). Preliminary inferences on Caiuajara morphology were founded on a few partial skeletons, with no detail on the skull anatomy. Here we describe a new specimen from the pterosaur graveyard site, which corresponds to the most complete skull of Caiuajara dobruskii known so far. Furthermore, we describe and compare other specimens including the holotype, a paratype, and several other undescribed specimens. The new specimen preserves the posterior portion of the skull, allowing a better comprehension of its morphology and provides an appreciation of the anatomic structures of the basicranium, enabling better interpretation of this region. We also described the lower jaw of Caiuajara, reporting a unique feature of its symphyseal which adds to the diagnosis for the species. A variability in the premaxillary crest is also noted in different specimens of Caiuajara, which might be interpreted as sexual dimorphism or ontogenetic variability. Therefore, those new findings allow a better comprehension of its skull and enables a more precise comparison between the skulls of those extinct flying reptiles.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lucas Canejo
- Laboratory of Systematics and Taphonomy of Fossil Vertebrates, Departamento de Geologia e Paleontologia, Museu Nacional/Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brazil
- * E-mail: (LC); (BH)
| | - Borja Holgado
- Laboratory of Systematics and Taphonomy of Fossil Vertebrates, Departamento de Geologia e Paleontologia, Museu Nacional/Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brazil
- Institut Català de Paleontologia Miquel Crusafont, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain
- * E-mail: (LC); (BH)
| | - Luiz C. Weinschütz
- Centro de Pesquisa Paleontológica, Universidade do Contestado, Mafra, SC, Brazil
| | - João H. Z. Ricetti
- Centro de Pesquisa Paleontológica, Universidade do Contestado, Mafra, SC, Brazil
| | - Everton Wilner
- Centro de Pesquisa Paleontológica, Universidade do Contestado, Mafra, SC, Brazil
| | - Alexander W. A. Kellner
- Laboratory of Systematics and Taphonomy of Fossil Vertebrates, Departamento de Geologia e Paleontologia, Museu Nacional/Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brazil
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Tsogtbaatar C, Cullen T, Phillips G, Rolke R, Zanno LE. Large-bodied ornithomimosaurs inhabited Appalachia during the Late Cretaceous of North America. PLoS One 2022; 17:e0266648. [PMID: 36260601 PMCID: PMC9581415 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0266648] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/23/2022] [Accepted: 08/12/2022] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Reconstructing the evolution, diversity, and paleobiogeography of North America’s Late Cretaceous dinosaur assemblages require spatiotemporally contiguous data; however, there remains a spatial and temporal disparity in dinosaur data on the continent. The rarity of vertebrate-bearing sedimentary deposits representing Turonian–Santonian ecosystems, and the relatively sparse record of dinosaurs from the eastern portion of the continent, present persistent challenges for studies of North American dinosaur evolution. Here we describe an assemblage of ornithomimosaurian materials from the Santonian Eutaw Formation of Mississippi. Morphological data coupled with osteohistological growth markers suggest the presence of two taxa of different body sizes, including one of the largest ornithomimosaurians known worldwide. The regression predicts a femoral circumference and a body mass of the Eutaw individuals similar to or greater than that of large-bodied ornithomimosaurs, Beishanlong grandis, and Gallimimus bullatus. The paleoosteohistology of MMNS VP-6332 demonstrates that the individual was at least ten years of age (similar to B. grandis [~375 kg, 13–14 years old at death]). Additional pedal elements share some intriguing features with ornithomimosaurs, yet suggest a larger-body size closer to Deinocheirus mirificus. The presence of a large-bodied ornithomimosaur in this region during this time is consistent with the relatively recent discoveries of early-diverging, large-bodied ornithomimosaurs from mid-Cretaceous strata of Laurasia (Arkansaurus fridayi and B. grandis). The smaller Eutaw taxon is represented by a tibia preserving seven growth cycles, with osteohistological indicators of decreasing growth, yet belongs to an individual approaching somatic maturity, suggesting the co-existence of medium- and large-bodied ornithomimosaur taxa during the Late Cretaceous Santonian of North America. The Eutaw ornithomimosaur materials provide key information on the diversity and distribution of North American ornithomimosaurs and Appalachian dinosaurs and fit with broader evidence of multiple cohabiting species of ornithomimosaurian dinosaurs in Late Cretaceous ecosystems of Laurasia.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chinzorig Tsogtbaatar
- Paleontology Research Lab, North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences, Raleigh, North Carolina, United States of America
- Department of Biological Sciences, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, North Carolina, United States of America
- Institute of Paleontology, Mongolian Academy of Sciences, Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia
- * E-mail:
| | | | - George Phillips
- Conservation & Biodiversity Section, Mississippi Museum of Natural Science, Jackson, Mississippi, United States of America
| | - Richard Rolke
- Dow Chemical Company, Baton Rouge, Louisiana, United States of America
| | - Lindsay E. Zanno
- Paleontology Research Lab, North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences, Raleigh, North Carolina, United States of America
- Department of Biological Sciences, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, North Carolina, United States of America
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9
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Salem BS, Lamanna MC, O'Connor PM, El-Qot GM, Shaker F, Thabet WA, El-Sayed S, Sallam HM. First definitive record of Abelisauridae (Theropoda: Ceratosauria) from the Cretaceous Bahariya Formation, Bahariya Oasis, Western Desert of Egypt. ROYAL SOCIETY OPEN SCIENCE 2022; 9:220106. [PMID: 35706658 PMCID: PMC9174736 DOI: 10.1098/rsos.220106] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/27/2022] [Accepted: 05/11/2022] [Indexed: 05/03/2023]
Abstract
Numerous non-avian theropod dinosaur fossils have been reported from the Upper Cretaceous (Cenomanian) Bahariya Formation, Bahariya Oasis, Western Desert of Egypt, but unambiguous materials of Abelisauridae have yet to be documented. Here we report Mansoura University Vertebrate Paleontology Center (MUVP) specimen 477, an isolated, well-preserved tenth cervical vertebra of a medium-sized abelisaurid from the Bahariya Formation. The new vertebra shows affinities with those of other Upper Cretaceous abelisaurids from Madagascar and South America, such as Majungasaurus crenatissimus, Carnotaurus sastrei, Viavenator exxoni and a generically indeterminate Patagonian specimen (Museo Padre Molina specimen 99). Phylogenetic analysis recovers the Bahariya form within Abelisauridae, either in a polytomy of all included abelisaurids (strict consensus tree) or as an early branching member of the otherwise South American clade Brachyrostra (50% majority rule consensus tree). MUVP 477, therefore, represents the first confirmed abelisaurid fossil from the Bahariya Formation and the oldest definitive record of the clade from Egypt and northeastern Africa more generally. The new vertebra demonstrates the wide geographical distribution of Abelisauridae across North Africa during the middle Cretaceous and augments the already extraordinarily diverse large-bodied theropod assemblage of the Bahariya Formation, a record that also includes representatives of Spinosauridae, Carcharodontosauridae and Bahariasauridae.
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Affiliation(s)
- Belal S. Salem
- Department of Geology, Faculty of Science, Benha University, Benha, Egypt
- Mansoura University Vertebrate Paleontology Center (MUVP), Department of Geology, Faculty of Science, Mansoura University, Mansoura, Egypt
- Department of Biological Sciences, Ohio University, 228 Irvine Hall, Athens, OH, USA
- Ohio Center for Ecological and Evolutionary Studies, Ohio University, Athens, OH, USA
| | - Matthew C. Lamanna
- Section of Vertebrate Paleontology, Carnegie Museum of Natural History, Pittsburgh, PA, USA
| | - Patrick M. O'Connor
- Ohio Center for Ecological and Evolutionary Studies, Ohio University, Athens, OH, USA
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, Ohio University Heritage College of Osteopathic Medicine, Ohio University, Athens, OH, USA
| | - Gamal M. El-Qot
- Department of Geology, Faculty of Science, Benha University, Benha, Egypt
| | - Fatma Shaker
- Department of Geology, Faculty of Science, Benha University, Benha, Egypt
| | | | - Sanaa El-Sayed
- Mansoura University Vertebrate Paleontology Center (MUVP), Department of Geology, Faculty of Science, Mansoura University, Mansoura, Egypt
- Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA
| | - Hesham M. Sallam
- Mansoura University Vertebrate Paleontology Center (MUVP), Department of Geology, Faculty of Science, Mansoura University, Mansoura, Egypt
- Institute of Global Health and Human Ecology (I-GHHE), School of Sciences and Engineering, American University in Cairo, New Cairo, Egypt
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de Souza GA, Soares MB, Weinschütz LC, Wilner E, Lopes RT, de Araújo OMO, Kellner AWA. The first edentulous ceratosaur from South America. Sci Rep 2021; 11:22281. [PMID: 34795306 PMCID: PMC8602317 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-021-01312-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/20/2021] [Accepted: 10/18/2021] [Indexed: 11/09/2022] Open
Abstract
The recognition of ontogenetic edentulism in the Jurassic noasaurid Limusaurus inextricabilis shed new light on the dietary diversity within Ceratosauria, a stem lineage of non-avian theropod dinosaurs known for peculiar craniomandibular adaptations. Until now, edentulism in Ceratosauria was exclusive to adult individuals of Limusaurus. Here, an exceptionally complete skeleton of a new toothless ceratosaur, Berthasaura leopoldinae gen. et sp. nov., is described from the Cretaceous aeolian sandstones of the Bauru Basin, Southern Brazil. The specimen resembles adult individuals of Limusaurus by the absence of teeth but based on the unfused condition of several elements (e.g., skull, vertebral column) it clearly represents an ontogenetically immature individual, indicating that it might never have had teeth. The phylogenetic analysis performed here has nested Berthasaura leopoldinae as an early-divergent Noasauridae, not closely related to Limusaurus. It represents the most complete non-avian theropod from the Brazilian Cretaceous and preserves the most complete noasaurid axial series known so far. Moreover, the new taxon exhibits many novel osteological features, uncommon in non-avian theropods, and unprecedented even among South American ceratosaurs. These include not only toothless jaws but also a premaxilla with cutting occlusal edge, and a slightly downturned rostral tip. This indicate that B. leopoldinae unlikely had the same diet as other ceratosaurs, most being regarded as carnivorous. As the ontogenetically more mature specimens of Limusaurus, Berthasaura might have been herbivorous or at least omnivorous, corroborating with an early evolutionary divergence of noasaurids from the ceratosaurian bauplan by disparate feeding modes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Geovane Alves de Souza
- Programa de Pós-graduação em Zoologia (PPGZoo), Museu Nacional/Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, Quinta da Boa Vista s/n, São Cristóvão, Rio de Janeiro, RJ, 20940-040, Brazil
- Laboratório de Sistemática e Tafonomia de Vertebrados Fósseis (LAPUG), Departamento de Geologia e Paleontologia, Museu Nacional/Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, Quinta da Boa Vista s/n, São Cristóvão, Rio de Janeiro, RJ, 20940-040, Brazil
| | - Marina Bento Soares
- Laboratório de Sistemática e Tafonomia de Vertebrados Fósseis (LAPUG), Departamento de Geologia e Paleontologia, Museu Nacional/Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, Quinta da Boa Vista s/n, São Cristóvão, Rio de Janeiro, RJ, 20940-040, Brazil
| | - Luiz Carlos Weinschütz
- Centro Paleontológico da Universidade do Contestado (CENPALEO), Universidade do Contestado, Av. Presidente Nereu Ramos, 1071, Jardim Moinho, Mafra, SC, 89.306-076, Brazil
| | - Everton Wilner
- Centro Paleontológico da Universidade do Contestado (CENPALEO), Universidade do Contestado, Av. Presidente Nereu Ramos, 1071, Jardim Moinho, Mafra, SC, 89.306-076, Brazil
| | - Ricardo Tadeu Lopes
- Laboratório de Instrumentação Nuclear (LIN), Programa de Engenharia Nuclear/COPPE, Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, Av. Horácio Macedo, Cidade Universitária, Rio de Janeiro, RJ, 21941-450, Brazil
| | - Olga Maria Oliveira de Araújo
- Laboratório de Instrumentação Nuclear (LIN), Programa de Engenharia Nuclear/COPPE, Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, Av. Horácio Macedo, Cidade Universitária, Rio de Janeiro, RJ, 21941-450, Brazil
| | - Alexander Wilhelm Armin Kellner
- Laboratório de Sistemática e Tafonomia de Vertebrados Fósseis (LAPUG), Departamento de Geologia e Paleontologia, Museu Nacional/Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, Quinta da Boa Vista s/n, São Cristóvão, Rio de Janeiro, RJ, 20940-040, Brazil.
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11
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Doran Brownstein C. Dinosaurs from the Santonian-Campanian Atlantic coastline substantiate phylogenetic signatures of vicariance in Cretaceous North America. ROYAL SOCIETY OPEN SCIENCE 2021; 8:210127. [PMID: 34457333 PMCID: PMC8385347 DOI: 10.1098/rsos.210127] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/26/2021] [Accepted: 08/02/2021] [Indexed: 06/13/2023]
Abstract
During the Cretaceous, diversifications and turnovers affected terrestrial vertebrates experiencing the effects of global geographical change. However, the poor fossil record from the early Late Cretaceous has concealed how dinosaurs and other terrestrial vertebrates responded to these events. I describe two dinosaurs from the Santonian to Early Campanian of the obscure North American paleolandmass Appalachia. A revised look at a large, potentially novel theropod shows that it likely belongs to a new clade of tyrannosauroids solely from Appalachia. Another partial skeleton belongs to an early member of the Hadrosauridae, a highly successful clade of herbivorous dinosaurs. This skeleton is associated with the first small juvenile dinosaur specimens from the Atlantic Coastal Plain. The tyrannosauroid and hadrosaurid substantiate one of the only Late Santonian dinosaur faunas and help pinpoint the timing of important anatomical innovations in two widespread dinosaur lineages. The phylogenetic positions of the tyrannosauroid and hadrosaurid show Santonian Appalachian dinosaur faunas are comparable to coeval Eurasian ones, and the presence of clades formed only by Appalachian dinosaur taxa establishes a degree of endemism in Appalachian dinosaur assemblages attributable to episodes of vicariance.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chase Doran Brownstein
- Stamford Museum and Nature Center, Stamford, CT, USA
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Yale University, New Haven, CT, USA
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12
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Marjanović D. The Making of Calibration Sausage Exemplified by Recalibrating the Transcriptomic Timetree of Jawed Vertebrates. Front Genet 2021; 12:521693. [PMID: 34054911 PMCID: PMC8149952 DOI: 10.3389/fgene.2021.521693] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/16/2020] [Accepted: 03/22/2021] [Indexed: 01/20/2023] Open
Abstract
Molecular divergence dating has the potential to overcome the incompleteness of the fossil record in inferring when cladogenetic events (splits, divergences) happened, but needs to be calibrated by the fossil record. Ideally but unrealistically, this would require practitioners to be specialists in molecular evolution, in the phylogeny and the fossil record of all sampled taxa, and in the chronostratigraphy of the sites the fossils were found in. Paleontologists have therefore tried to help by publishing compendia of recommended calibrations, and molecular biologists unfamiliar with the fossil record have made heavy use of such works (in addition to using scattered primary sources and copying from each other). Using a recent example of a large node-dated timetree inferred from molecular data, I reevaluate all 30 calibrations in detail, present the current state of knowledge on them with its various uncertainties, rerun the dating analysis, and conclude that calibration dates cannot be taken from published compendia or other secondary or tertiary sources without risking strong distortions to the results, because all such sources become outdated faster than they are published: 50 of the (primary) sources I cite to constrain calibrations were published in 2019, half of the total of 280 after mid-2016, and 90% after mid-2005. It follows that the present work cannot serve as such a compendium either; in the slightly longer term, it can only highlight known and overlooked problems. Future authors will need to solve each of these problems anew through a thorough search of the primary paleobiological and chronostratigraphic literature on each calibration date every time they infer a new timetree, and that literature is not optimized for that task, but largely has other objectives.
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Affiliation(s)
- David Marjanović
- Department of Evolutionary Morphology, Science Programme “Evolution and Geoprocesses”, Museum für Naturkunde – Leibniz Institute for Evolutionary and Biodiversity Research, Berlin, Germany
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13
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de Souza GA, Soares MB, Brum AS, Zucolotto M, Sayão JM, Weinschütz LC, Kellner AWA. Osteohistology and growth dynamics of the Brazilian noasaurid Vespersaurus paranaensis Langer et al., 2019 (Theropoda: Abelisauroidea). PeerJ 2020; 8:e9771. [PMID: 32983636 PMCID: PMC7500327 DOI: 10.7717/peerj.9771] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/17/2020] [Accepted: 07/30/2020] [Indexed: 12/24/2022] Open
Abstract
Although the knowledge of bone histology of non-avian theropods has advanced considerably in recent decades, data about the bone tissue patterns, growth dynamics and ontogeny of some taxa such as abelisauroids are still limited. Here we describe the bone microstructure and growth dynamics of the Brazilian noasaurine Vespersaurus paranaensis using five femora and six tibiae and quantify the annual growth marks through retrocalculation of missing ones to estimate ontogenetic ages. The femoral series comprises four femoral histological classes (FHC I-IV), varying from two annuli or LAGs to seven LAGs. Femora show that sexual maturity was achieved around the seventh to tenth year of life, whereas the tibiae suggest it was earlier (around three to five years old). Tibiae represent three histological classes (THC I-III) displaying from three to nine LAGs. Two tibiae (THC III) exhibit an external fundamental system indicating that these specimens reached full skeletal size. The heterogeneous maturity observed in Vespersaurus hind limb bones could result from differential allometry scaling between femora and tibiae length with the body length. The predominant parallel-fibered bone matrix suggests that Vespersaurus grew more slowly than most theropods, including other abelisauroids, in a pattern shared with the noasaurines Masiakasaurus knopfleri from Madagascar and CPPLIP 1490 from Brazil. This deviation from the typical theropod growth pattern may be mainly correlated with small body size, but also may related to resource limitation imposed by the arid climate prevailing in southwestern Gondwana during Cretaceous. Moreover, given the ecological and phylogenetic similarities among these taxa, such features would probably be apomorphic within Noasauridae.
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Affiliation(s)
- Geovane Alves de Souza
- Programa de Pós-Graduação em Zoologia (PPGZoo), Museu Nacional, Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
| | - Marina Bento Soares
- Laboratory of Systematics and Taphonomy of Fossil Vertebrates, Departamento de Geologia e Paleontologia, Museu Nacional, Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
| | - Arthur Souza Brum
- Programa de Pós-Graduação em Zoologia (PPGZoo), Museu Nacional, Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
| | - Maria Zucolotto
- Departamento de Geologia e Paleontologia, Museu Nacional, Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
| | - Juliana M Sayão
- Núcleo de Biologia, Centro Acadêmico de Vitória, Universidade Federal de Pernambuco, Vitória de Santo Antão, Pernambuco, Brazil
| | | | - Alexander W A Kellner
- Laboratory of Systematics and Taphonomy of Fossil Vertebrates, Departamento de Geologia e Paleontologia, Museu Nacional, Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
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Birch SA, Smith ET, Bell PR. Noasaurids are a component of the Australian 'mid'-Cretaceous theropod fauna. Sci Rep 2020; 10:1428. [PMID: 31996712 PMCID: PMC6989633 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-020-57667-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/21/2019] [Accepted: 12/26/2019] [Indexed: 12/12/2022] Open
Abstract
The diversity of Australia's theropod fauna from the 'mid'-Cretaceous (Albian-Cenomanian) is distinctly biased towards the medium-sized megaraptorids, despite the preponderance of abelisauroids in the younger but latitudinally equivalent Patagonian theropod fauna. Here, we present new evidence for the presence of ceratosaurian, and specifically abelisauroid, theropods from the Cenomanian Griman Creek Formation of Lightning Ridge, New South Wales. A partial cervical vertebra is described that bears a mediolaterally concave ventral surface of the centrum delimited by sharp ventrolateral ridges that contact the parapophyses. Among theropods, this feature has been reported only in a cervical vertebra attributed to the noasaurid Noasaurus. We also reappraise evidence recently cited against the ceratosaurian interpretation of a recently described astragalocalcaneum from the upper Barremian-lower Aptian San Remo Member of the upper Strzelecki Group in Victoria. Inclusion of the Lightning Ridge cervical vertebra and Victorian astragalocalcaneum into a revised phylogenetic analysis focused on elucidating ceratosaurian affinities reveals support for placement of both specimens within Noasauridae, which among other characters is diagnosed by the presence of a medial eminence on the ascending process of the astragalus. The Lightning Ridge and Victorian specimens simultaneously represent the first noasaurids reported from Australia and the astragalocalcaneum is considered the earliest known example of a noasaurid in the world to date. The recognition of Australian noasaurids further indicates a more widespread Gondwanan distribution of the clade outside of South America, Madagascar and India consistent with the timing of the fragmentation of the supercontinent.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sienna A Birch
- School of environmental and Rural Science, University of New England, Armidale, NSW, Australia.
| | | | - Phil R Bell
- School of environmental and Rural Science, University of New England, Armidale, NSW, Australia
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15
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Kellner AWA, Weinschütz LC, Holgado B, Bantim RAM, Sayão JM. A new toothless pterosaur (Pterodactyloidea) from Southern Brazil with insights into the paleoecology of a Cretaceous desert. AN ACAD BRAS CIENC 2019; 91:e20190768. [PMID: 31432888 DOI: 10.1590/0001-3765201920190768] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/05/2019] [Accepted: 08/06/2019] [Indexed: 11/22/2022] Open
Abstract
The first pterosaur bone bed from Brazil was reported in 2014 at the outskirts of the town Cruzeiro do Oeste, Paraná State, in the Southern region of the country. Here named 'cemitério dos pterossauros' site, these outcrops were referred to the Goio-Erê Formation (Turonian-Campanian) of the Caiuá Group (Bauru Basin) and revealed the presence of hundreds of isolated or partially articulated elements of the tapejarine pterosaur Caiuajara and fewer amounts of a theropod dinosaur. Here we present a new tapejaromorph flying reptile from this site, Keresdrakon vilsoni gen. et sp. nov., which shows a unique blunt ridge on the dorsal surface of the posterior end of the dentary. Morphological and osteohistological features indicate that all recovered individuals represent late juveniles or sub-adults. This site shows the first direct evidence of sympatry in Pterosauria. The two distinct flying reptiles coexisted with a theropod dinosaur, providing a rare glimpse of a paleobiological community from a Cretaceous desert.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alexander W A Kellner
- Laboratory of Systematics and Taphonomy of Fossil Vertebrates, Departamento de Geologia e Paleontologia, Museu Nacional/Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, Quinta da Boa Vista, s/n, São Cristóvão, 20940-040 Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brazil
| | - Luiz C Weinschütz
- CENPALEO - Centro Paleontológico da Universidade do Contestado, Universidade do Contestado, Jardim do Moinho, 89306-076 Mafra, SC, Brazil
| | - Borja Holgado
- Laboratory of Systematics and Taphonomy of Fossil Vertebrates, Departamento de Geologia e Paleontologia, Museu Nacional/Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, Quinta da Boa Vista, s/n, São Cristóvão, 20940-040 Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brazil.,Institut Català de Paleontologia 'Miquel Crusafont' (ICP), C/ de les Columnes, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, E-08193 Cerdanyola del Vallès, Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain
| | - Renan A M Bantim
- Laboratório de Paleontologia, Universidade Regional do Cariri (URCA), Rua Coronel Antônio Luiz, 1161, 63195-000 Crato, CE, Brazil
| | - Juliana M Sayão
- Laboratory of Systematics and Taphonomy of Fossil Vertebrates, Departamento de Geologia e Paleontologia, Museu Nacional/Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, Quinta da Boa Vista, s/n, São Cristóvão, 20940-040 Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brazil.,Laboratório de Paleobiologia e Microestruturas, Centro Acadêmico de Vitória, Universidade Federal de Pernambuco, Rua do Alto Reservatório, s/n, Bela Vista, 55608-680 Vitória do Santo Antão, PE, Brazil
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