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Home , Chiniquodon, Cynodont, Cynognathus, Eucynodontia, Luangwa (cynodont), Mammal

Asociación Paleontológica . Publicación Especial 7 ISSN 0328-347X VII International Symposium on Terrestrial Ecosystems: 29-38. Buenos Aires, 30-6-2001

A short review of studies on

Bemard BATIAIU

Abstract. The cynodonts, a diversified group of advanced which appeared in the record at the end of the , constitute an important component of many and Early terres- trial ecosystems. It seems now generally accepted that the cynodonts are the sister-group of the thero- cephalians, and that they indude the as a derived subgroup, but many aspects of their phy- logeny still remain a matter of debate. The problem of the relationships of the various families of advanced cynodonts to mammals, in particular, is far from being solved. Progress in the knowledge of the group, though very significant, has also been very unequal: many small forms, in particular, are known up to now only by rare and often incomplete specimens. A better understanding of the group will require more field work and new discoveries. This paper is a short account of studies on the phylogeny of cynodonts; it is an attempt to point out what has already been dearly established, and what remains obscure or controversial.

Key words. Cynodontia. Therapsida. Triassic. Phylogeny.

Introduction: what is a ? with the older Cynodontia, both groups being based upon a type of , which approximates to that The Cynodontia were erected in 1860 by Richard of Carnivorous Mammalia. The name Theriodontia, Owen as a subdivision of the Anomodontia, hence, has some appearance of being a synonym of which included, at that time, all kinds of therapsids. Cynodontia. The group Theriodontia is obviously a Originally, the cynodonts accomodated only larger group than the original Cynodontia, since its and Cynochampsa laniaria Owen, the latter type, Lycosaurus, has simple pointed teeth, and form being represented by a badly preserved speci- it also includes Nythosaurus and Scaloposaurus, in men, now considered as a probable Diademodon. which the molar teeth are late rally cuspidate. The Later, in his "Description of the fossil Reptilia of Theriodontia include the Cynodontia, because the South in the collection of the British cynodont genera were grouped in this way by sir R. Museum", published in 1876, Owen clearly separat- Owen, and because there is no evidence of ordinal ed the forms with reduced , still called the difference in the . The Cynodontia is con ve- Anomodontia, from the forms with dentitions of the niently distinguished from the Lycosauria by dental, camivorous type, called the Theriodontia; the and other minor characters of the skull; and 1 pro- Cynodontia were no longer kept as a distinct group pose to use the name Cynodontia for which within the Theriodontia, to which Owen attributed resemble Galesaurus in skull structure, and resemble various forms known today as gorgonopsians, thero- Nythosaurus in the type of molar teeth. The crowns of cephalians and cynodonts, and also, obviously by the not being preserved in, 1 take mistake, the parareptile Procolophon. , the now to be described, as the As early as 1890, Seeley pointed out the heteroge- type of the group, which will be thus defined and neous of the theriodonts as defined by Owen, limited. (...)" (Seeley, 1895b, p. 59). and, in 1895b, he gave the first modem definition of However, as Seeley had put special emphasis in the cynodonts, then understood as a subgroup of the the definition of the cynodonts, on their carnivorous theriodonts: "This name was originally used, by Sir dentition, he erected another group, called the R. Owen, for the division of the Anomodontia of Gomphodontia, to accomodate such forms like which Galesaurus is the type. Subsequently, Diademodon, Trirachodon and , in which the Theriodontia was defined, so as to be co-extensive postcanine teeth are expanded transversely. He ad- mitted, nevertheless, that the Cynodontia and the

'Laboratoire de Paléontologie, Muséum national d'Histoire na- Gomphodontia were closely related. "So far as is turelle. 8 rue Buffon, 75005 Paris, France. known, there is no fundamental difference in the ©Asociación Paleontológica Argentina 0328-347X/01$00.00+50 30 B. Battail skeleton to separate the Gomphodontia from the mammalían ancestor, A few new forma were also Cynodontia, which may be regarded as related in the found in and in China. In the Lower Triassic same way as are groups of with similarly beds of several cynodont specimens differing dentitions." (Seeley,1895a,p. 2). which could be attributed to already known The next major contributor to the knowledge of from were discovered. During the same cynodonts is Robert Broom, who wrote a number of period new studies dealing for example with func- papers on -like during the end of the tional of the were also developed nineteenth century and the first half of the twentieth (Crompton, 1963a, Barghusen, 1968), replace- century. In his wel1known book, "The marnmal-like ment (Crompton, 1963b),anatomy of the postcranial reptiles of South Africa and the origin of mammals", skeleton (Ienkins, 1971),growth series and intraspe- published in 1932,Broom gave a detailed account of cificvariability (Grine et al., 1978). the anatomical features of the cynodonts, understood At the beginning of the eighties carne a major as ineluding the gomphodonts. From the cynodonts, change in phylogenetic concepts with the develop- however, Broom exeluded what he had ca11edthe ment of eladism. Kemp is, I think, the first person Ictidosauria, represented by poorly known, very ad- who published eladograms of therapsids, in his book vanced theriodonts, and Tritylodon, which he consid- " Marnmal-like reptiles and the origin of mammals", ered to be an early marnmal. dated 1982. Kemp's eladograms were however not By 1950,a considerable number of specimens had accompanied with detailed lists of characters, and already been co11ectedand described from the were therefore difficult to analyse and to criticize. beds, and progress had been made in the knowledge Soon afterwards, in 1986,Hopson and Barghusen, in of similar fauna s in Russia and in their "Analysis of relationships", gave a (Argentina and Brazil); a few tritylodonts had been diagnosis of the cynodonts based on 28 synapomor- discovered in and in China; therefore, the phies. In my opinion, some of the apomorpies listed time had come for general syntheses. In 1954, by Hopson and Barghusen are debatable (" Haughton and Brink published "A bibliographic list spatulate", for example), and some others are diffi- of Reptilia from the Karoo beds of Africa", in which cult to take into consideration, as they deal with bone the ictidosaurians of Broom as we11as Tritylodon proportions rather than with anatomical structures were considered to be advanced cynodonts. ("reflected lamina of angular greatly reduced in However, two years later, in 1956,Watson and Romer size", for example); most of them, however, seem presented "A elassification of therapsids" where the very reliable, particularly the fo11owingones (non-ex- ictidosaurians had reappeared, but with a broader haustive selection): on dorsolateral surface of definition, as they ineluded also Tritylodon. coronoid region of dentary for insertion of portion of The two specimens of "ictidosaurians" which had musculus adductor mandibulae externus; posterior half been only briefly mentionned, and not named, by of nasal bone expanded at expense of facial portion Broom, became better known after their detailed de- of prefrontal so that nasal contacts lacrimal and ex- scription by Crompton in 1958 and 1963.Crompton eludes prefrontal from contact with ; lateral ca11edthem Diarthrognathus, as he believed that they flange of prootic expanded anteroposteriorly and had a double cranio-mandibular articulation, reptil- contacts quadrate ramus of epipterygoid; postorbital ian and marnmalian; he made a comparison between and prefrontal bones meet on orbital margin and ex- Diarthrognathus and the tritylodonts, and pointed out elude from orbital rim; occipital many differences between the two groups. At that condyles double; supraoccipital bone narrow, ex- time, Crompton considered that Diarthrognathus eluded from posttemporal fossa by expanded tabular might have evolved from scaloposaurians, whereas bone; we11-developed palatal processes formed by the tritylodonts were specialised cynodonts, and palatines as we11as by maxillae; jugular foramen should therefore be exeluded from the ictidosaurians. faces ventra11yrather than posteriorly; frontal con- During the sixties and seventies, many new cyn- tacts epipterygoid; posterior part of dentary elongat- odonts were found in South America (Argentina and ed to broadly overlap the surangular; postfrontal Brazil);they were described mainly by Bonaparte, by bone lost; teeth on pterygoid bone lost. Barberena and by Romer. Among the new forms, As defined by Hopson and Barghusen, the cyn- three very advanced ones can be mentioned: odonts inelude the marnmals and the ictidosaurs, , a carnivorous form which was considered as sister-groups, on the one , and the thought by Romer (1969c, 1970) to have a double tritylodonts, elassified with the gomphodont cyn- cranio-mandibular articulation, Chaliminia Bona- odonts in a superfamily Tritylodontoidea, on the oth- parte, 1978, apparently very elose to the South er hand. Indeed, without the mammals, the cyn- African genus Diarthrognathus, and odonts would become a paraphyletic group. And Bonaparte et Barberena, 1975,presented as a possible consequently, in a11subsequent works, no elear-cut

A.P.A. Publicación Especial 7, 2001 A short review of studies on cynodonts 31 limit is drawn between cynodonts and mammals: in Indeed, in 1961, Brink had described, under the Rowe (1988) and in Wible (1991),a called the name Scalopocynodon gracilis, a form which he con- Mammaliamorpha includes the tritylodonts and a sidered as a primitive cynodont with therocephalian- clade , the latter being composed of like features. But, as pointed out by Romer, 1969b,the various forms formerly considered as early mam- therocephalian-Iike features listed by Brink are in fact mals, and of a clade Mammalia restricted to the archaic therapsid characters also retained in thero- Monotremata and . cephalians, and not proper therocephalian charac- tersoIt must be added that the type and only speci- Cynodont origins men of s. gracilis was studied by serial grinding, and cannot consequently be re-examined. The cynodonts are the last major group of therap- In 1972, Kemp made a comparative analysis of sids to appear in the fossil record, as their first known cranial anatomical characters in various groups of representatives are from the uppermost Permian of therapsids (eotheriodonts, pristerognathids, scalo- South Africa and Russia. In precladistic times, it was posaurs, whaitsiids and cynodonts). In his conclu- a common attitude to look for direct ancestors, and, sions, he expressed the hypothesis that "cynodonts quite naturally, most scientists considered that such arose from therocephalians, and that among the lat- ancestors could be found within earlier groups of ter the whaitsiids are the closest known forms to the theriodonts, either the gorgonopsians, or the thero- actual cynodont ancestor (...)." But, he wrote, "... de- cephalians. This point of view is well summarized by spite the similarities between whaitsiids and cyn- Romer (1969b),who wrote: "In earlier decades, the odonts, the known whaitsiids themselves cannot be Gorgonopsia were rather generally thought to be seriously considered as cynodont ancestors because cynodont ancestors. Such ancestry was long favored of their possession of severa!"peculiarities which in by Watson (1920, 1951).In a number of regards, the no way anticipate the cynodont structure." And that gorgonopsians represent a primitive morphological is, indeed, the main weakness of Kemp's hypothesis, stage antecedent to that of the cynodonts (and, as a a weakness which he himself perceived, as he wrote minor point, are the only therapsid group apart of ten years later: "Among the known therocephalians, the cynodonts in which the primitive 2.3.4.5.3pha- the whaitsiids are possibly the closest to the cyn- langeal formula is known to have been retained). But odonts for they have a very broad, cynodont-like there are few indications among gorgonopsians of epipterygoid involved in the side wall of the brain- any trend toward a cynodont condition; the gor- case, and reduction of the suborbital vacuity. gonopsians seem to have been, so to speak, 'frozen' However, more primitive whaitsiids such as in a primitive theriodont morphological pattem, and, Moschowhaitsia (Tatarinov, 1963, 1964) still have a in addition, universally retain such gorgonopsian suborbital vacuity, and therefore this character at 'trademarks' as a preparietal bone and a reduced least may have changed independently in cynodonts cheek tooth series". and advanced whaitsiids. Certainly, the whaitsiids "If the gorgonopsians are excluded, where can we have a number of specialisations indicating that a tum? In recent decades the Therocephalia, or rather common ancestor between them and cynodonts that advanced series of therocephalians termed the could not have advanced much beyond a fairly gen- 'scaloposauroids' (which Watson and I preferred to eralised therocephalian-like form" (Kemp, 1982, p. group with their Triassic descendants, the 182). Bauriamorpha), have been favored as cynodont an- In other words, the quest for the missing link had cestors. The scaloposauroids show various advanced failed again. Soon afterwards, however, with the de- characters. The skull is lightly built, there is a trend to- velopment of cladism, ancestors were no longer ac- ward a secondary , the dentary is well devel- tively sought; instead, attempts were made to deter- oped, and so on. These trends lead toward the ad- mine sister-groups on the basis of synapomorphies, vanced condition seen in ; but, it has been sug- which in tum could be considered as the essential gested, may there not have been a second advanced features of the unknown common ancestor. line leading to the cynodonts? Tobe sure, most scalo- In their analysis of therapsid relationships, pub- posauroids tend to be long-snouted forms with a long lished in 1986,Hopson and Barghusen consider the tooth row, with, in general, little differenciation of ea- cynodonts as the sister-group of the therocephalians. nines, and with the characteristic therocephalian-bau- Their view is supported by a rather convincing list of riamorphan 'trademark' of large palatal vacuities. eleven synapomorphies. They note: "Kemp (1972) However, reversal in such features might have oc- has presented a detailed argument for the sister- cured and if transiHonal forms were to be found, be- group relationship of cynodonts and whaitsiids. The lief in a scaloposauroid ancestry of the cynodonts present analysis indicates that of the seven apomor- would attain credibility". (Romer,1969b,p. 19-20). phies shared by cynodonts and whaitsiids, only two A.P.A. Publicación Especial 7, 2001 32 B. Battail are unique to these groups. (1) epipterygoid greatly Early cynodonts (Late Permian) expanded anteroposteriorly, and (2) ex- tending far forward to incorporate the parietal fora- Early cynodonts are known mainly from South men. (...) For cynodonts to be considered the sister- Africa (procynosuchids) and from Russia (dviniids). group of whaitsiids.' the seven presumed synapo- One of the major questions regarding the early cyn- morphies would have to be balanced against a total odont families could be the following: which one is of ten to twelve convergences of whaitsiids with oth- the plesiomorphous sister-group of all other cyn- er therocephalian groups, or reversals in the ancestral odonts? According to Kemp (1982), Hopson and cynodont to a pretherocephalian condition (...). Barghusen (1986), Kemp (1988), and Hopson (1991), Derivation of cynodonts from baurioids (as suggest- the dviniids are the sister-group of all other cyn- ed by Brink, 1961), or from any other therocephalian odonts. However, it seems to me that the four char- group, would involve equally great numbers of con- acters which Hopson and Barghusen (1986) retain as vergences or reversals relative to synapomorphies. primitive features are all related to the light build of Parsimony dictates that cynodonts be regarded as the skull, and are not necessarily plesiomorphous having a sister-group relationship with the features. It must be stressed, in addition, that the Therocephalia as a whole rather than with any sub- known cranial material of dviniids is limited to two group of therocephalians" (Hopson and Barghusen, poorly preserved (one of them only with its 1986, p. 98, 100). lower ), and an isolated maxilla, all attributed to Dvinia prima Amalitzky: many features of Dvinia re- main unclear, and can be diversely interpreted. Cynodont diversity Most specimens of procynosuchids are known Cynodont diversity can be appreciated at two dif- from southern Africa. However, remains of ferent levels, systematic and phylogenetic. have been found in Germany (Sues Indeed, many -and certainly, too many- genera and Boy, 1988), and a form closely related to and species were created by ancient authors: in South Procynosuchus has been described from Russia África, for example, Broom described almost every (Tatarinov, 1987). newly collected specimen, whether well preserved or One word must be said also of the "silphedestids" not, as the type of a new species. In their Silphedestes Broom, 1949 and Silphedocynodon Brink, "Bibliographic list of Reptilia from the Karroo beds of 1951, known by tiny, poorly preserved specimens África", published in 1954, Haughton and Brink had from South Africa. They are considered by Hopson listed seventy species of cynodonts, belonging to and Kitching (1972) as juvenile individuals of the forty-three genera. Among these taxa, only fourteen procynosuchid Procynosuchus. One can however no- species and thirteen genera were still acknowledged tice the absence of lingual cingula on the postcanines as valid by Hopson and Kitching (1972). A similar of Silphedestes, whereas lingual cingula are developed trend occurred also in the rest of the world, and par- on the postcanines of Procynosuchus. Hopson (1991) ticularly in South America: "splitters" had been suc- argues that it can be considered a juvenile feature. I ceeded by "lumpers". The new tendency could easi- have examined a series of indisputable procyno- ly be justified: many of the ancient type specimens suchids, and noticed that lingual cingula are relative- were very incomplete or badly preserved, and there- ly better developed in the smaller specimens; that fore did not display diagnostic features; in addition, makes me doubt very much that the "silphedestids" intraspecific variability had often been ignored, so are juvenile procynosuchids. But better material that, for example, juvenile and adult individuals of would be needed to express a reliable hypothesis the same species had sometimes be described as sep- about what they really are! arate taxa. It must be added, however, that some of the synonymies that have been proposed in recent Unspecialized cynodonts of the Late Perrnian- years are weakly supported, and, consequently, de- batable. The fact remains that cynodonts are remarkably These are represented by small forms which are variable in sizes, skull proportions, postcanine tooth slightly more advanced than the early cynodonts: the structure, etc., which led to the definition of a large precanine teeth are lost, the number of incisors is re- number of families, the phylogenetic relationships duced, the coronoid process of the dentary is higher of which remain, to a certain extent, open to discus- and the masseteric fossa is larger, the quadrate is sion. smaller and the interpterygoid vacuity is reduced or For the sake of convenience, we shall examine absent. Sometimes all have been attributed to only here the various groups of cynodonts following the one , either called the thrinaxodontids (sensu stratigraphic order of their first appearence. lato) (Watson and Romer, 1956, for example), or the

A.P.A. Publicación Especial 7, 2001 A short review of studies on cynodonts 33 galesaurids (sensu lato) (Kemp, 1982, for example). been expressed regarding the phylogenetic relation- They are now usually split into two families, the ships of the cynognathids within the eucynodonts: galesaurids (sensu stricto) and the thrinaxodontids they are usually considered either as the sister-group (sensu stricto). The galesaurids retain a plesiomorphic of all other eucynodonts (Kemp, 1982, 1988; Rowe, feature, a deft in the secondary palate, and are char- 1993) or as the sister-group of the gomphodonts acterized by the loss of cingulum cusps on the post- (Hopson and Barghusen, 1986; Hopson, 1991). canine teeth. The thrinaxodontids have a complete Hopson and Bargusen found only one synapomor- osseous secondary palate. phy of the cynognathids + gomphodonts: "jugal with Galesaurids and thrinaxodontids are essentially descending flange on the anterior of the zygo- represented in southern Africa; however, matic arch". 1 do not think that this character is of is also known from Antarctica, and Nanocynodon se- much value: it is only induced by an important de- ducius Tatarinov, 1968, from Russia, is probably a velopment of the superficial masseter, and, as such, thrinaxodontid. In my opinion, the South American can appear independently in various forrns; in addi- forms Cromptodon mamiferoides Bonaparte, 1972,and tion, it is not known in small traversodontids such as "Thrinaxodon" brasiliensis Barberena, Bonaparte et Rusconiodon or . Later, Hopson (1991) Texeira, 1987, should not be referred to the thrinax- introduced new synapomorphies of the cynog- odontids, but to the chiniquodontids (Battail, 1991a, nathids+gomphodonts, one of them being the spe- 1991b). cialized condition of the costal plates on the lumbar ribs, and three of them concerning the skull: Advanced cynodonts (Late Early Triassic, _"The posteroventral part of the Middle and , ) expanded laterally at, or behind, the level of the quadrate, giving the skull a triangular appearence in These indude the cynognathids, the gomphodont dorsal view and creating a broad anteroventral mar- cynodonts, and the chiniquodontids and probainog- gin to the groove for the external auditory meatus". 1 nathids. Late, highly specialized cynodonts will be think that this feature is rather a character of heavily considered in the next section, dealing with the ori- built forms, not observed, for example, in the small gin of marnrnals. Advanced cynodonts, called "post- traversodontid Rusconiodon; thrinaxodontid cynodonts" by Hopson and -"The jugal portion of the zygomatic arch Barghusen (1986), and named by dorsoventrally expanded". This is equally true of Kemp (1982),are characterized, according to Hopson many non-gomphodont eucynodonts, the chiniquo- (1991),by the following cranial synapomorphies: 1. dontids for example. Dentary greatly enlarged so that it dosely approach- -"The internal carotid foramina absent". This es the jaw articulation and also forms a distinct pos- character is difficult to deal with, as these foramina, teroventral angular region. 2. Vertical portion of when they exist, are always extremely small. 1have surangular and angular reduced in height, and post- observed, on several Cynognathus skulls, what could dentary series becomes more rodlike and obliquely be tiny carotid foramina. oriented. 3. Reflected lamina of the angular further Tosum up, 1consider the hypothesis of the cynog- reduced in size from the primitive cynodont condi- nathids as the sister-group of the gomphodonts as tion. 4. Quadrate ramus of the pterygoid greatly re- weakly supported. duced or absent. 5. Secondary jaw articulation Kemp (1982, 1988) interpreted the cynognathids formed between the surangular and a flat facet on the as the sister-group of all other eucynodonts, based on descending flange of the squamosal. 6. The dentaries the presumed synapomorphic status of the following fused at the symphysis. 7. The pterygoids and ba- characters of the latter: (1) the posterior part of the sisphenoid forming an elongate ventral basicranial squamosal (lambdoidal crest) deeply incised to give girder. 8. The paroccipital process with a posteroven- a strong W-shaped occiput; (2) emarginated posteri- tral ridge behind the jugular foramen (forming a pos- or edge of the coronoid process of the dentary; (3) terior wall to the middle-ear cavity). snout constricted in front of the orbits, so the orbits tend to face more anteriorly; (4) ventrolateral edges of the parasphenoid slightly flared to produce paras- Cynognathids phenoid alae (Kemp, 1988,p. 16). The cynognathids indude only one genus, In 1991a,1expressed yet another view regarding Cynognathus. They are mostly represented in south- the phylogenetic relationships of the cynognathids: 1 ern Africa, but are also known in Argentina considered them as the sister-group of the gale- (Bonaparte, 1969); a fragmentary lower jaw of saurids, on the basis of two supposed synapomor- Cynognathus has also been recovered from Antarctica phies: 1. Regression or disappearance of the incisure (Hammer et al., 1990). Two main hypotheses have in the dorsal border of the squamosal between the oc- A.P.A. Publicación Especial 7, 2001 34 B.Battail ciput and the posterior root of the zygomatic arch. Z. versodontíds: 3. The trítylodonts are the síster-group Loss of the lingual cingula of the postcanines. This of part of the traversodonts; and in that case, the tra- hypothesis presents however a major inconvenience: versodontids would no longer be a valid family, as it implies that many characters (the development of they would become a paraphyletic group. the dentary, the reduction of the post-dentary bones, There is another puzzling question concerning the etc.) evolved independently, as convergences, in traversodontids; at first glance, they seem to evolve cynognathids and in other advanced cynodonts, rather regularly from small forms (Pascualgnathus, which is improbable. Andescynodon, Rusconiodon, for example) to giant forms such as Scalenodontoides, or Gomphodont cynodonts Ischignathus. But, at the very end of the Triassic, tiny forms seem to appear suddenIy in The gomphodont cynodonts (if restricted to the and in western Europe. They are unfortunately diademodontids, trirachodontids and - known by quite poor material: one maxilla in North tids), appear as a relatively homogeneous group of America (the type-specimen of Boreogomphodon jeffer- herbivorous eucynodonts with laterally expanded, soni Sues et Olsen, 1990),and minute isolated postca- occluding postcanines. The families have been diag- nines in western Europe; their phylogenetic relation- nosed on the basis of postcanine structure. ships to other traversodontids are still unclear. The diademodontids are essentially represented by the southern African genus Diademodon; many Chiniquodontids and probainognathids other genera were described in the past, but they can all be regarded as junior synonyms of Diademodon, A close relationship between the chiniquodontids with the exception of a giant form from Namibia, and the probainognathids is generally accepted, Titanogomphodon Keyser, 1973. mainly on the basis of the long secondary palate The trirachodontids include three genera, characteristic of both. The probainognathids include Trirachodon and Cricodon from southern Africa, and only the genus Probainognathus, from Argentina. The Sinognathus from China. The latter genus was de- chiniquodontids, more numerous and diversified, scribed by Young (1959) as an early cynodont, but are considered, depending on the authors, either as reinterpreted as a trirachodontid by Sun Ailing (Sun exclusively south american, or as mainly South Ai-lin, 1988;Sun Ailing et al., 1992). American (in the latter case, one or several southern The traversodontids are by far the most diversi- African forms are included). fied family of gomphodont cynodonts, and they have "Chiniquodontids are eucynodonts possessing also a very wide stratigraphic range, from the end of sectorial postcanine teeth but retaining more primi- the Early Triassic to the end of the Late Triassic.Most tive skull form than Cynognathus. They are character- taxa have been described from South America, ized most readily by having a secondary palate that Argentina and Brazil, initially by Huene, later by is broad posteriorly and extends behind the level of Cabrera, and then, by Bonaparte, Romer, and the last postcanine. However, the unique distin- Barberena; a synthesis, with complete references, will guishing feature of the family is the distinct angula- be found in Bonaparte (1978);in more recent times, a tion between the ventral edge of the zygomatic number of papers, mostly dealing with early traver- process of the maxilla and the anteroventral margin sodontids, have been published by Goñi, Goin and of the zygomatic arch" (Hopson, 1991,p. 673). Abdala (Goñi, 1986, Goñi and Abdala, 1988; Goñi The main studies about chiniquodontids include: and Goin, 1987, 1988, 1990). In Africa, traversodon- Huene (1935-1942: description of tids are known from South Africa, Lesotho, Zambia theotonicus and Belesodon magnificus), Romer (1969a: and Tanzania (Crompton, 1955; Crompton and new description of Belesodon and Chiniquodon; 1969b: Ellenberger, 1957; Brink, 1963; Kemp, 1980; Gow, description of Probelesodon lewisi; 1973:description of 1993). A few forms have also been described from Probelesodon minor), Teixeira (1982: description of (Chatterjee, 1982), from North America Probelesodon kitchingi), Martínez and Forster (1996: (Hopson, 1984;Sues and Olsen, 1990;Sues et al., 1992, description of Probelesodon sanjuanensis), Abdala 1999),and from Europe (Tatarinov, 1973,1974;Hahn (1996:a synthesis on the of chiniquodon- et al., 1988;Godefroit and Battail, 1997). tids). The family is understood as composed only of One of the problems concerning the traversodon- South American forms with strictly sectorial postca- tids is their relationships to the highly specialized nines by Abdala and Giannini; it is extended to tritylodontids; as it will be seen below, three different Aleodon, from Tanzania, by Hopson and Kitching hypotheses have been put forward: 1. The trity- (1972),Hopson and Barghusen (1986),Hopson (1991) lodonts are not closely related to the traversodontids; and Battail (1991a);to Cromptodon, by Hopson (1991) 2. The tritylodontids are the sister-group of the tra- and Battail (1991a,1991b);to "Thrinaxodon" brasilien- A.P.A.PublicaciónEspecial7,2001 A short review of studies on cynodonts 35 sis and, with reservations, to Cistecynodon from South as the Mammaliamorpha, but the position of the Africa by Battail (1991a,1991b). is considered as unresolved: the Probainognathus, initia11y described as a Tritylodontidae could be linked to the gomphodonts, chiniquodontid by Romer (1969c),was attributed lat- or be part of the sister-group of Probainognathus; in er to a distinct family, the Probainognathidae (Romer, the latter case, two possibilities are considered, with 1973). Indeed, Probainognathus displays many pro- branching off either before or after the Trithele- gressive features; however, the mammal-like jaw ar- dontidae (Zhang Fakui et al., 1998). ticulation described by Romer is in fact an articula- tion between surangular and squamosal, as shown Cynodonts and the origin of mammals by Crompton, 1972. The affinities of the chiniquodontids and probain- The important question of the origin of mammals ognathids have been very diversely interpreted. is indeed beyond the scope of this short paper, as it Probainognathids are more often considered in phy- would involve detailed comments on the definition logenetic reconstructions, probably because they are of the Mammalia as we11as considerations on the more "mammalian". The chiniquodontids and Mammaliamorpha and Mammaliaformes. Conse- probainognathids have often be regarded as sister- quently, this chapter is only intended to point out, in groups (Hopson and Barghusen, 1986, and Kemp, broad lines, the main problems, and to provide a few 1988,for example). But Hopson (1991)writes: "1have bibliographic references. not found any synapomorphies of Probainogna- Two families of highly specialized cynodonts, the thidae plus Chiniquodontidae and so no longer rec- tritylodontids and the tritheledontids, need to be ognize the Chiniquodontoidea as a monophyletic considered here, as they are the most often regarded taxon " (Hopson, 1991,p. 675). as being very closely related to mammals. Among the many hypotheses which have been proposed in the past fifteen years concerning the T ri ty lodon tids phylogenetic position of the chiniquodontids and probainognathids, one can select a few very different This family of herbivorous cynodonts is known ones: almost worldwide. Most tritylodontids are Early or -The sister-families Chiniquodontidae and in age, but one form has recently Probainognathidae are united in a superfamily been recorded from the Lower of Siberia Chiniquodontoidea; the Chiniquodontoidea are the (Tatarinov and Mashchenko, 1999). The tritylodon- sister-group of the Cynognathia (Cynogna- tids are we11characterized by their postcanine teeth, thidae+ Tritylodontoidea, the latter including the broadened, composed of longitudinal rows of eres- gomphodonts and the tritylodontids) (Hopson and cent shaped cusps, and provided with several . Barghusen, 1986). There is no canine; the is absent, and -The sister-families Chiniquodontidae and both the prefrontal and the postorbital bones are lost. Probainognathidae are the sister-group of a clade The phylogenetic position of the tritylodonts is which includes the and the mam- particularly puzzling. For many authors, they are mals, and perhaps also the Tritylodontidae (as the specialized gomphodont cynodonts, and are not par- sister-group of the clade Tritheledontidae+mam- ticularly close to the ancestry of mammals. They mals) (Kemp, 1988). could then either be derived from advanced traver- -The Chiniquodontidae (including Probainogna- sodontids (Crompton and E11enberger, 1957; thus) are the sister-group of the gomphodont cyn- Crompton, 1972;Hopson, 1984, 1991;Sues, 1985),or odonts (including the Tritylodontidae) (Battail, be the sister-group of the traversodontids (Battail, 1991a). 1991a).Another hypothesis, expressed as one out of -There is an unresolved trichotomy of the several possibilities by Gow (1991),consists in con- Chiniquodontidae, the Probainognathidae and a sidering the Tritylodontoidea (gomphodont cyn- clade composed of the Tritheledontidae-i-Mammalia odonts+tritylodontids) as "the sister clade of another (Hopson, 1991). to lower Jurassic cynodont clade -Probainognaihus is the sister-taxon of a clade com- which includes Mammalia, but several key members prising the Tritheledontidae and the Mammalia- of which are not represented in the known fossil morpha, the latter including the Tritylodontidae as record" (Gow,1991,p. 144).Yetanother view consists the sister-group of a11others; the Chiniquodontidae in regarding the cranial resemblances of tritylodon- are not analyzed (Wible, 1991). tids to gomphodonts as convergences, and the many -Prohainognathus could be fue sister-Iaxon of a resemblances between tritylodontids and mammals clade comprising the Tritheledontidae and an un- as synapomorphies: the tritylodontids would then be named clade which has essentia11ythe same content phylogenetically distant from the gomphodonts, but A.P.A. Publicación Especial 7, 2001 36 B.Battail closely related to mammals. or rather to a clade con- Therioherpetidae (Bonaparte and Barberena, 1975) sisting of the Tritheledontidae-i-mammals sensu lato and the Dromatheriidae, are totally ignored in recent (Kemp, 1982; Rowe, 1988; Wible, 1991; Luo and phylogenies: indeed, the available material is poor, Crompton, 1994). Final1y, the difficulties in sorting and many taxa display too few undisputable charac- out the synapomorphies and the homoplasies also ters to be reliably included in phylogenetic schemes. led some authors to admit that the position of the Small forms have seldom been found, and usually tritylodontids is still not clear (Kemp, 1988; Zhang only very incomplete material has been recovered, as Fakui et al.,1998). is the case for the tiny Late Triassic cynodonts from westem Europe (Belgium, France and Luxemburg), Tritheledontids as yet known almost exclusively by isolated teeth (Hahn et al., 1984, 1987, 1988; Godefroit and Battail, In sharp contrast to the tritylodontids, the trithele- 1997; Godefroit, 1999). The fossil record needs defi- dontids are poorly known, being represented in col- nitely to be improved. lections by rare, incomplete and often badly pre- -A comparative analysis of the published phylo- served specimens. It is a family of specialized camiv- genetic hypotheses leads to the conclusion that ex- orous cynodonts, including three South African gen- tensive parallel in cranial and dental char- era, Tritheledon, Diarthrognaihus and , acters occurred among cynodonts, and especially in and one South American genus, Chaliminia (see the most advanced ones, obscuring their real phylo- Crompton, 1958, 1963; Bonaparte, 1978, 1980; Gow, genetic relationships. 1980). Like the tritylodontids, they have lost the pos- torbital bar and the prefrontal and postorbital bones; Acknow ledgments they display many resemblances to mammals, and, being camivorous, are more often accepted than trity- I would like to thank the reviewers, J.F. Bonaparte and J.A. lodontids as the sister-group of the marnmals sensu Hopson, for their cornrnents and nurnerous improvements to the lato. However, in many cranial and dental structures, manuscript. they differ very much from other advanced cyn- odonts, and, unexpectedly, they display also a few References characters which are lost in all other advanced cyn- odonts, but which recall what one observes in early Abdala, F. 1996. [Los Chiniquodontoideos (Synapasida, Cynodontia) sudamericanos. Doctoral Thesis. Universidad de cynodonts: they have kept an interpterygoid vacuity, Tucumán, 381 p. Unpublished.] and the quadrate ramus of their pterygoid is devel- Barberena, M.e., Bonaparte, J.F. and Teixeira, A.M.s. 1987. oped. Therefore, the question of the relationships of Thrinaxodon brasiliensis sp. nov. a primeira ocorréncia de cin- the tritheledontids to other cynodonts is difficult, and odontes galessauros para o Triássico do Rio Grande do Su!' 10" Congresso Brasileiro de Paleontologia (Rio de [aneiro), Anais: subject to diverse interpretations, the main recent 67-76. ones being surnmarized as follows: Barghusen, H.R. 1968. The lower jaw of cynodonts (Reptilia, -Clade Tritheledontidae-smammals sister-group Therapsida) and the evolutionary origin of mammal-like ad- of the Tritylodontidae (preferred hypothesis of ductor jaw musculature. Postilla 116:1-49. Battail, B. 1991a. Les Cynodontes (Reptilia, Therapsida): une phy- Kemp, 1988; Luo and Crompton, 1994). logénie. Bulletin du Muséum national d'Histoire naiurelle, 4eme -Clade Tritheledontidae--mammals closely related ser. 13C: 17-105. to the Chiniquodontidae and to the Probainog- Battail, B. 1991b. A reassessment of the systematic position of nathidae, the trichotomy being unresolved (Hopson, some African and south American Triassic cynodonts, and its bearing on the biogeography of the Triassic. In: Z. Kielan- 1991). Jaworowska, N. Heintz and H.A. Nakrem (Eds), Fifth -Tritheledontidae sister-group of a clade Trity- Symposium on Mesozoic Terrestrial Ecosystems and Biota, lodontidae--mammals (Wible, 1991). Extended Abstracts. Contributions from the Paleontological As can be seen from this brief analysis, the ques- Museum, University of 0510 364: 5-6. Bonaparte, J.F. 1969. Cynognathus minor n. sp. (Therapsida- tion of the origin of marnmals is still a matter of con- Cynodontia), nueva evidencia de la vinculación faunistica siderable controversy. And in my opinion, there are Afro-Sudamericana a principios del Triásico. stratig- still a number of weaknesses in the different hy- raphy, IUGS Symposium (Buenos Aires 1967), Unesco, Paris, pp. potheses, for the following reasons: 273-28l. Bonaparte, J.F. 1972. Cromptodon mamiferoides gen. et sp. nov., -The tritheledontids, though always taken into Galesauridae de la Formación Río Mendoza, Mendoza, consideration in phylogenetic reconstructions, are Argentina. (Therapsida-Cynodontia). Ameghiniana 9: 343-353. still very inadequately known, and might even be a Bonaparte, J.F. 1978. El Mesozoico de América del Sur y sus relatively heterogeneous group, judging from the di- Tetrápodos. Opera lilloana 26: 1-596. Bonaparte. J.F. 1980. El primer ictidosaurio (Reptilia-Therapsida) versity in their tooth structure, clearly shown by de América del Sur, Chaliminia musteloides, del Triásico Gow (1980). Superior de La Rioja, Republica Argentina. 2° Congreso -Many advanced cynodonts, and in particular the Argentino de Paleontología y Bioestratigrafía y 1° Congreso A.P.A.PublicaciónEspecial7,2001 A short review of studies on cynodonts 37

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Vertebrata Palasiatica 26: 173-180. Accepted: [anuary 17"',2001.

A.P.A. Publicación Especial 7, 2001