Buffetaut & Suteethorn

Total Page:16

File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb

Buffetaut & Suteethorn Mesozoic vertebrates from Thailand 83 The biogeographical significance of the Mesozoic vertebrates from Thailand Eric Buffetaut1 and Varavudh Suteethorn2 1UMR CNRS 5561, Université de Bourgogne, France# Present address: 16 cour de Liégat, 75013 Paris, France 2Geological Survey Division, Department of Mineral Resources, Rama VI Road, Bangkok 10400, Thailand Key words: Thailand, Mesozoic, vertebrates, amphibians, reptiles, biogeography Abstract brates, ranging in age from Late Triassic to late Early Cretaceous (for a recent review of the di- Mesozoic non-marine vertebrate faunas from Thailand nosaurs, see Suteethorn et al#, 1995), This is by (mainly from the Indochina block) range in age from Late Triassic to late Early Cretaceous The oldest known assem- far the best record for that time interval in SE blage, from the Huai Hin Lat Formation, is Norian It in- Asia, and it allows a reconstruction of vertebrate cludes fishes, amphibians and reptiles very similar to those faunal history in that part of the world over a from the Upper Triassic of Central Europe, and indicates period of more than 100 million years, The pur- that dispersal of continental vertebrates across Eurasia was pose of this brief review is to discuss the easy in the Late Triassic A slightly younger (Rhaetian) prosauropod dinosaur is biogeographically less significant, palaeobiogeographical significance of the vari- although it may be related to Chinese forms Jurassic verte- ous Mesozoic vertebrate assemblages hitherto brates are known from both the Indochina block (Phu discovered in Thailand, Kradung Formation) and the Shan-Thai block Resem- blances between the assemblages from both areas suggest that they were already in contact in the Jurassic Similarities with Jurassic vertebrates from China indicate links with General geological setting more northerly parts of Asia The Lower Cretaceous (pre- Aptian) Sao Khua Formation contains a vertebrate fauna It is now generally accepted that Thailand con- which seems to be older than most Cretaceous assemblages sists of two continental blocks or microconti- known from other parts of Asia, and probably corresponds to a phase of relative isolation of Asia It includes dinosaurs nents (Fig,1), the eastern part (with, notably, the which may be close to the ancestry of groups which later Khorat Plateau where most Mesozoic vertebrate played an important part in Asian and North American as- localities are) belonging to the Indochina block, semblages, such as tyrannosaurids and ornithomimids while the western part (including the southern Some of the Sao Khua sauropods may be related to the poorly known Upper Cretaceous sauropods of Mongolia peninsula) is part of a terrane variously called and China The Aptian-Albian Khok Kruat Formation has Shan-Thai or Sibumasu (see Metcalfe, 1996, yielded a freshwater shark also known from the Lhasa block for a recent review), The Indochina block seems of Tibet, as well as the ceratopsian dinosaur Psittacosaurus, to have sutured to South China in the Carbonif- which was widespread in Asia during the Early Cretaceous erous (Metcalfe, 1996), The timing of the colli- It also contains remains of iguanodontid dinosaurs which are probably immigrants from Europe and show that by the sion of the Shan-Thai block with Indochina and late Early Cretaceous the isolation of Asia had ended South China is still debated (Late Permian to Triassic according to Metcalfe, 1996; as late as Late Jurassic according to Stokes et al#, 1996), Introduction The Mesozoic non-marine vertebrates found in Thailand (Table 1) can thus provide some evi- In the last twenty years, Thailand has yielded a dence concerning the late stages of the accre- number of Mesozoic non-marine fossil verte- tion history of these terranes, Biogeography and Geological Evolution of SE Asia, pp 83-90 Edited by Robert Hall and Jeremy D Holloway © 1998 Backhuys Publishers, Leiden, The Netherlands 84 E# Buffetaut and V# Suteethorn Upper Triassic: the vertebrate assemblage from the Huai Hin Lat Formation The Huai Hin Lat Formation of the Khorat Pla- teau consists mainly of lacustrine bituminous limestones and shales, It is Upper Triassic, prob- ably Norian, on the basis of plant macro-remains (Konno and Asama, 1973), palynomorphs (Haile, 1973; Racey et al#, 1996), conchostracans (Kobayashi, 1975) and vertebrates (review in Buffetaut et al#, 1993), The vertebrate assemblage from the Huai Hin Lat Formation, which consists of both isolated elements and partly articulated skeletons, in- cludes actinopterygian fishes (Martin, 1984), lungfishes (Martin and Ingavat, 1982), amphib- ians (Cyclotosaurus: Ingavat and Janvier, 1981; plagiosauroid indet: Suteethorn et al#, 1988), tur- tles (Proganochelys: Broin et al#, 1982, Broin, 1984), and phytosaurs, including a Belodon-like form and Mystriosuchus (Buffetaut and Ingavat, 1982; Buffetaut et al#, 1993), From a biogeographical point of view, the freshwater vertebrate assemblage from the Huai Hin Lat Formation is remarkable in that it closely resembles the classic vertebrate fauna from the Norian of Germany (Stubensandstein), Genera of fishes, amphibians, turtles and phytosaurs are common to the Stubensandstein and the Huai Hin Lat Formation, This clearly suggests that in the Norian, dispersal of non-marine vertebrates was possible across Eurasia between Central Europe and the Indochina block of SE Asia, In- terestingly, no assemblages closely similar to Fig1 Map of SE Asia showing approximate limits between that from the Huai Hin Lat Formation are cur- the Shan-Thai and Indochina blocks, and the location of rently known from China (where, admittedly, fossiliferous areas or localities mentioned in text (in italics) Upper Triassic vertebrates are very poorly repre- sented; Sun, 1989), Possible dispersal routes across Late Triassic Eurasia are still poorly known, but they must have existed, hitherto found in the Nam Phong Formation consists of the fused distal ends of the ischia of a large prosauropod dinosaur (Buffetaut et al#, Upper Triassic: a prosauropod dinosaur from the 1995), A more accurate identification is not pos- Nam Phong Formation sible on the basis of the available material, As prosauropods had a nearly world-wide distribu- The Nam Phong Formation, which unconform- tion, on both Gondwana and Laurasia, in the ably overlies the Huai Hin Lat Formation, con- Late Triassic and Early Jurassic, the occurrence sists of sandstones and mudstones of mainly flu- of an indeterminate prosauropod on the vial origin, It has yielded very few fossils, and its Indochina block in the Rhaetian is not especially age has long remained uncertain, Racey et al# surprising or significant, Abundant prosauropod (1994, 1996) reported palynomorphs indicating remains, belonging to several taxa, have been an age no younger than Rhaetian and no older found in the Lower Lufeng Beds of Yunnan in than Ladinian, Since the underlying Huai Hin Lat southern China, but, after much controversy Formation is well dated as Norian, a Rhaetian over their age (for a recent review, see Dong, age is likely for the Nam Phong Formation, 1992), the Lower Lufeng Beds are now usually The only recognisable vertebrate element dated as Lower Jurassic (on the basis of paly- Mesozoic vertebrates from Thailand 85 Table 1 Main Mesozoic vertebrate-bearing formations of northeastern Thailand with their possible ages and significant fossils Khok Kruat Formation Aptian-Albian Thaiodus, Psittacosaurus, Iguanodontidae Phu Phan Formation Barremian? Theropod footprints Sao Khua Formation Valanginian-Hauterivian? Siamotyrannus, Phuwiangosaurus, Ornithomimosauria Phra Wihan Formation Berriasian? Theropod footprints Phu Kradung Formation Late Jurassic Temnospondyls, euhelopodid sauropods Nam Phong Formation Rhaetian Prosauropods Huai Hin Lat Formation Norian Lungfish, Cyclotosaurus, Proganochelys, phytosaurs nomorphs and molluscs), although their lower the Khorat Plateau, Among them are the first di- part is sometimes referred to the Rhaetian, In nosaur remains from the Jurassic of Thailand, this connection, it is worth mentioning that an which consist of isolated teeth of sauropods and especially large prosauropod from the lower theropods, The theropod teeth do not exhibit part of the Lower Lufeng Beds has been de- any particular features which could point to scribed as Jingshanosaurus xinwaensis by their biogeographical affinities, The sauropod Zhang and Yang (1994), who consider it to be teeth are broad and spoon-shaped, and com- Upper Triassic, Whether the apparently even pletely different from those referred to larger prosauropod from Thailand was more or Phuwiangosaurus, the most frequent sauropod less closely related to Jingshanosaurus is uncer- in the Lower Cretaceous Sao Khua Formation of tain on the basis of the available material, the Khorat Plateau (see below), They are more reminiscent of those of the euhelopodid dino- saurs from the Jurassic of China, such as Jurassic: vertebrates from the Phu Kradung Euhelopus (Wiman, 1929) or Mamenchisaurus Formation of the Khorat Plateau and similar (Russell and Zheng, 1993), Although the evi- formations of the Shan-Thai block dence is admittedly still slight, these teeth sug- gest that the Jurassic sauropods of SE Asia be- The Phu Kradung Formation of the Khorat Pla- longed to the same group as the Chinese ones, teau was once dated as Lower Jurassic, Because Other interesting vertebrate fossils from the all the overlying formations of the Khorat Group Phu Kradung Formation are vertebral elements are now considered as
Recommended publications
  • For Peer Review
    Biological Journal of the Linnean Society Marine tethysuchian c rocodyliform from the ?Aptian -Albian (Early Cretaceous) of the Isle of Wight, England Journal:For Biological Peer Journal of theReview Linnean Society Manuscript ID: BJLS-3227.R1 Manuscript Type: Research Article Date Submitted by the Author: 05-May-2014 Complete List of Authors: Young, Mark; University of Edinburgh, Biological Sciences; University of Southampton, School of Ocean and Earth Science Steel, Lorna; Natural History Museum, Earth Sciences Foffa, Davide; University of Bristol, Department of Earth Sciences Price, Trevor; Dinosaur Isle Museum, Naish, Darren; University of Southampton, School of Ocean and Earth Science Tennant, Jon; Imperial College London, Department of Earth Science and Engineering Albian, Aptian, Cretaceous, Dyrosauridae, England, Ferruginous Sands Keywords: Formation, Isle of Wight, Pholidosauridae, Tethysuchia, Upper Greensand Formation Biological Journal of the Linnean Society Page 1 of 50 Biological Journal of the Linnean Society 1 2 3 Marine tethysuchian crocodyliform from the ?Aptian-Albian (Early Cretaceous) 4 5 6 of the Isle of Wight, England 7 8 9 10 by MARK T. YOUNG 1,2 *, LORNA STEEL 3, DAVIDE FOFFA 4, TREVOR PRICE 5 11 12 2 6 13 DARREN NAISH and JONATHAN P. TENNANT 14 15 16 1 17 Institute of Evolutionary Biology, School of Biological Sciences, The King’s Buildings, University 18 For Peer Review 19 of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, EH9 3JW, United Kingdom 20 21 2 School of Ocean and Earth Science, National Oceanography Centre, University of Southampton,
    [Show full text]
  • 8. Archosaur Phylogeny and the Relationships of the Crocodylia
    8. Archosaur phylogeny and the relationships of the Crocodylia MICHAEL J. BENTON Department of Geology, The Queen's University of Belfast, Belfast, UK JAMES M. CLARK* Department of Anatomy, University of Chicago, Chicago, Illinois, USA Abstract The Archosauria include the living crocodilians and birds, as well as the fossil dinosaurs, pterosaurs, and basal 'thecodontians'. Cladograms of the basal archosaurs and of the crocodylomorphs are given in this paper. There are three primitive archosaur groups, the Proterosuchidae, the Erythrosuchidae, and the Proterochampsidae, which fall outside the crown-group (crocodilian line plus bird line), and these have been defined as plesions to a restricted Archosauria by Gauthier. The Early Triassic Euparkeria may also fall outside this crown-group, or it may lie on the bird line. The crown-group of archosaurs divides into the Ornithosuchia (the 'bird line': Orn- ithosuchidae, Lagosuchidae, Pterosauria, Dinosauria) and the Croco- dylotarsi nov. (the 'crocodilian line': Phytosauridae, Crocodylo- morpha, Stagonolepididae, Rauisuchidae, and Poposauridae). The latter three families may form a clade (Pseudosuchia s.str.), or the Poposauridae may pair off with Crocodylomorpha. The Crocodylomorpha includes all crocodilians, as well as crocodi- lian-like Triassic and Jurassic terrestrial forms. The Crocodyliformes include the traditional 'Protosuchia', 'Mesosuchia', and Eusuchia, and they are defined by a large number of synapomorphies, particularly of the braincase and occipital regions. The 'protosuchians' (mainly Early *Present address: Department of Zoology, Storer Hall, University of California, Davis, Cali- fornia, USA. The Phylogeny and Classification of the Tetrapods, Volume 1: Amphibians, Reptiles, Birds (ed. M.J. Benton), Systematics Association Special Volume 35A . pp. 295-338. Clarendon Press, Oxford, 1988.
    [Show full text]
  • Goniopholididae) from the Albian of Andorra (Teruel, Spain): Phylogenetic Implications
    Journal of Iberian Geology 41 (1) 2015: 41-56 http://dx.doi.org/10.5209/rev_JIGE.2015.v41.n1.48654 www.ucm.es /info/estratig/journal.htm ISSN (print): 1698-6180. ISSN (online): 1886-7995 New material from a huge specimen of Anteophthalmosuchus cf. escuchae (Goniopholididae) from the Albian of Andorra (Teruel, Spain): Phylogenetic implications E. Puértolas-Pascual1,2*, J.I. Canudo1,2, L.M. Sender2 1Grupo Aragosaurus-IUCA, Departamento de Ciencias de la Tierra, Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad de Zaragoza, c/Pedro Cerbuna 12, 50009 Zaragoza, Spain. 2Departamento de Ciencias de la Tierra, Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad de Zaragoza, c/Pedro Cerbuna No. 12, 50009 Zaragoza, Spain. e-mail addresses: [email protected] (E.P.P, *corresponding author); [email protected] (J.I.C.); [email protected] (L.M.S.) Received: 15 December 2013 / Accepted: 18 December 2014 / Available online: 25 March 2015 Abstract In 2011 the partial skeleton of a goniopholidid crocodylomorph was recovered in the ENDESA coal mine Mina Corta Barrabasa (Escu- cha Formation, lower Albian), located in the municipality of Andorra (Teruel, Spain). This new goniopholidid material is represented by abundant postcranial and fragmentary cranial bones. The study of these remains coincides with a recent description in 2013 of at least two new species of goniopholidids in the palaeontological site of Mina Santa María in Ariño (Teruel), also in the Escucha Formation. These species are Anteophthalmosuchus escuchae, Hulkepholis plotos and an undetermined goniopholidid, AR-1-3422. In the present paper, we describe the postcranial and cranial bones of the goniopholidid from Mina Corta Barrabasa and compare it with the species from Mina Santa María.
    [Show full text]
  • Back Matter (PDF)
    Index Figures are shown in italic font, tables in bold Acrodontinae 99, 101–102 Buddha’s cortege 245 Actinopterygii 127, 130 burial temperature 63 adocid 143–144, 147, 148 Adocus [turtle] 166, 167 comparison, Basilochelys 155–158, 163–165 calc-alkaline volcanism 61 amber locality 86,88 calcrete 77 Ameghinichthys [fish] 129 Callialisporites [palynomorph] 72, 75, 77, 79, 80, 81 ammonites 48, 52 Carettochelyidae 166, 167 amphibian remains 2–3 Cathaysia Divide 10–12 anhydrite 70 Cathaysialand 8, 9, 15, 20 Anomoeodus [fish] 136 fauna 12–14 Anomoepodidae 264, 265, 266 flora 16 Anomoepus [ichnofossil] 256, 258, 261, 262–264 Ceno-Tethys 8, 12, 19,20 comparison 264, 265–267 Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique Ao Min, fish locality 98, 99 (France) 190 apatite 63 Champon Formation 50 Appendicisporites [palynomorph] 76,77 Chelomoidea 166, 167 Araucaria [tree] 85, 88, 92, 93 Chelonia 274, 293 Archaeornithomimus [theropod] 237–240 Chelydridae 166, 167 archosaur trackway 247 chert 18, 20 Argoland 12, 13 Chondrichthyes 98–99 Aruacariacites [palynomorph] 74 Chong Chad, oxygen isotope analysis 272, Asteracanthus [elasmobranch] 99–101 274, 275, 276, 277 comparison 101–102 Chong Chat, fish locality 127, 130, 131, 137 Asterodermus [elasmobranch] 107 Chuiella, distribution of 15 Cicatricosisporites [palynomorph] 75, 76, 77, 79 Cimmerian continent 8, 12, 15, 16, 18, 20 Baenidae 166, 167 Cimmerian Event 44, 46, 47, 51, 64 Ban Khok Sanam locality 272, 274, 276 cladistic analysis Ban Na Khrai, sauropod site 189, 190, 192, 195–214 actinopterygians 130 Ban Na
    [Show full text]
  • Preliminary Note on a Small Ornithopod Dinosaur from the Phu Kradung Formation (Terminal Jurassic – Basal Cretaceous) of Phu Noi, North-Eastern Thailand
    Original Preliminary note on a small ornithopod dinosaur from the Phu Kradung Formation (terminal Jurassic – basal Cretaceous) of Phu Noi, north-eastern Thailand Eric Buffetaut1*, Suravech Suteethorn2, Varavudh Suteethorn2, Uthumporn Deesri2, Haiyan Tong2 Received: 30 July 2013; Accepted: 15 October 2013 Abstract The lower jaw of a small ornithopod from Phu Noi, a rich fossil locality in the lower part of the Phu Kradung Formation (terminal Jurassic - basal Cretaceous) of Kalasin Province, north-eastern Thailand, is briefl y described. This the best ornithopod specimen hitherto recovered from the Phu Kradung Formation and it shows a combination of characters suggesting that it belongs to a new taxon. Keywords: Ornithopoda, mandible, Phu Kradung Formation, Late Jurassic, Thailand Introduction abundant and diverse vertebrate fauna, comprising The Phu Kradung Formation of north-eastern Thailand hybodont sharks5, bony fishes6, turtles, teleosaurid contains abundant dinosaur remains, among which crocodilians, sauropods (including mamenchisaurids), mamenchisaurid sauropods are especially well represented1. theropods7 (including sinraptorids) and pterosaurs. Sinraptorid theropods have also been found2. Few The age of the Phu Kradung Formation is still ornithischian remains have hitherto been reported from the relatively uncertain. It was long considered as Late Phu Kradung Formation. They include a stegosaur vertebra3 Jurassic, but on the basis of palynological evidence Racey and a femur of a small ornithopod4. In the present preliminary and Goodall(2009)8 consider that most of it belongs to the paper, we report the discovery of a new specimen from Early Cretaceous, with the lower part possibly being Late the Phu Noi fossil locality, which provides important Jurassic. The Phu Kradung Formation probably covers new evidence about the small ornithopods from the Phu a relatively long time span and in all likelihood the fossil Kradung Formation.
    [Show full text]
  • Valérie Martin, Varavudh Suteethorn & Eric Buffetaut, Description of the Type and Referred Material of Phuwiangosaurus
    ORYCTOS, V ol . 2 : 39 - 91, Décembre 1999 DESCRIPTION OF THE TYPE AND REFERRED MATERIAL OF PHUWIANGOSAURUS SIRINDHORNAE MARTIN, BUFFETAUT AND SUTEETHORN, 1994, A SAUROPOD FROM THE LOWER CRETACEOUS OF THAILAND Valérie MARTIN 1, Varavudh SUTEETHORN 2 and Eric BUFFETAUT 3 1 Musée des Dinosaures, 11260 Espéraza, France 2 Geological Survey Division, Department of Mineral Resources, Rama VI Road, 10400 Bangkok, Thailand 3 CNRS (UMR 5561), 16 cour du Liégat, 75013 Paris, France Abstract : The type specimen of P. sirindhornae Martin, Buffetaut and Suteethorn, 1994 is an incomplete, partly articulated, skeleton discovered in the Phu Wiang area of northeastern Thailand). Most of the abundant sauropod material from the Sao Khua Formation (Early Cretaceous), collected on the Khorat Plateau, in northeastern Thailand, is referable to this species. Phuwiangosaurus is a middle-sized sauropod, which is clearly different from the Jurassic Chinese sauropods (Euhelopodidae). On the basis of a few jaw elements and teeth, P. sirindhornae may be considered as an early representative of the family Nemegtosauridae. Key words : Sauropoda, Osteology, Early Cretaceous, Thailand Description du type et du matériel rapporté de Phuwiangosaurus sirindhornae Martin, Buffetaut et Suteethorn, 1994, un sauropode du Crétacé inférieur de Thaïlande Résumé : Le spécimen type de Phuwiangosaurus sirindhornae est un squelette incomplet, partiellement articulé, découvert dans la région de Phu Wiang (Nord-Est de la Thaïlande). Phuwiangosaurus est un sauropode de taille moyenne (15 à 20 m de longueur) très différent des sauropodes du Jurassique chinois. La majeure partie de l’abondant matériel de sauropodes, récolté sur le Plateau de Khorat (Formation Sao Khua, Crétacé inférieur), est rap - portée à cette espèce.
    [Show full text]
  • The Origin and Early Evolution of Dinosaurs
    Biol. Rev. (2010), 85, pp. 55–110. 55 doi:10.1111/j.1469-185X.2009.00094.x The origin and early evolution of dinosaurs Max C. Langer1∗,MartinD.Ezcurra2, Jonathas S. Bittencourt1 and Fernando E. Novas2,3 1Departamento de Biologia, FFCLRP, Universidade de S˜ao Paulo; Av. Bandeirantes 3900, Ribeir˜ao Preto-SP, Brazil 2Laboratorio de Anatomia Comparada y Evoluci´on de los Vertebrados, Museo Argentino de Ciencias Naturales ‘‘Bernardino Rivadavia’’, Avda. Angel Gallardo 470, Cdad. de Buenos Aires, Argentina 3CONICET (Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Cient´ıficas y T´ecnicas); Avda. Rivadavia 1917 - Cdad. de Buenos Aires, Argentina (Received 28 November 2008; revised 09 July 2009; accepted 14 July 2009) ABSTRACT The oldest unequivocal records of Dinosauria were unearthed from Late Triassic rocks (approximately 230 Ma) accumulated over extensional rift basins in southwestern Pangea. The better known of these are Herrerasaurus ischigualastensis, Pisanosaurus mertii, Eoraptor lunensis,andPanphagia protos from the Ischigualasto Formation, Argentina, and Staurikosaurus pricei and Saturnalia tupiniquim from the Santa Maria Formation, Brazil. No uncontroversial dinosaur body fossils are known from older strata, but the Middle Triassic origin of the lineage may be inferred from both the footprint record and its sister-group relation to Ladinian basal dinosauromorphs. These include the typical Marasuchus lilloensis, more basal forms such as Lagerpeton and Dromomeron, as well as silesaurids: a possibly monophyletic group composed of Mid-Late Triassic forms that may represent immediate sister taxa to dinosaurs. The first phylogenetic definition to fit the current understanding of Dinosauria as a node-based taxon solely composed of mutually exclusive Saurischia and Ornithischia was given as ‘‘all descendants of the most recent common ancestor of birds and Triceratops’’.
    [Show full text]
  • Implications for Predatory Dinosaur Macroecology and Ontogeny in Later Late Cretaceous Asiamerica
    Canadian Journal of Earth Sciences Theropod Guild Structure and the Tyrannosaurid Niche Assimilation Hypothesis: Implications for Predatory Dinosaur Macroecology and Ontogeny in later Late Cretaceous Asiamerica Journal: Canadian Journal of Earth Sciences Manuscript ID cjes-2020-0174.R1 Manuscript Type: Article Date Submitted by the 04-Jan-2021 Author: Complete List of Authors: Holtz, Thomas; University of Maryland at College Park, Department of Geology; NationalDraft Museum of Natural History, Department of Geology Keyword: Dinosaur, Ontogeny, Theropod, Paleocology, Mesozoic, Tyrannosauridae Is the invited manuscript for consideration in a Special Tribute to Dale Russell Issue? : © The Author(s) or their Institution(s) Page 1 of 91 Canadian Journal of Earth Sciences 1 Theropod Guild Structure and the Tyrannosaurid Niche Assimilation Hypothesis: 2 Implications for Predatory Dinosaur Macroecology and Ontogeny in later Late Cretaceous 3 Asiamerica 4 5 6 Thomas R. Holtz, Jr. 7 8 Department of Geology, University of Maryland, College Park, MD 20742 USA 9 Department of Paleobiology, National Museum of Natural History, Washington, DC 20013 USA 10 Email address: [email protected] 11 ORCID: 0000-0002-2906-4900 Draft 12 13 Thomas R. Holtz, Jr. 14 Department of Geology 15 8000 Regents Drive 16 University of Maryland 17 College Park, MD 20742 18 USA 19 Phone: 1-301-405-4084 20 Fax: 1-301-314-9661 21 Email address: [email protected] 22 23 1 © The Author(s) or their Institution(s) Canadian Journal of Earth Sciences Page 2 of 91 24 ABSTRACT 25 Well-sampled dinosaur communities from the Jurassic through the early Late Cretaceous show 26 greater taxonomic diversity among larger (>50kg) theropod taxa than communities of the 27 Campano-Maastrichtian, particularly to those of eastern/central Asia and Laramidia.
    [Show full text]
  • The Anatomy and Phylogenetic Relationships of Antetonitrus Ingenipes (Sauropodiformes, Dinosauria): Implications for the Origins of Sauropoda
    THE ANATOMY AND PHYLOGENETIC RELATIONSHIPS OF ANTETONITRUS INGENIPES (SAUROPODIFORMES, DINOSAURIA): IMPLICATIONS FOR THE ORIGINS OF SAUROPODA Blair McPhee A dissertation submitted to the Faculty of Science, University of the Witwatersrand, in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science. Johannesburg, 2013 i ii ABSTRACT A thorough description and cladistic analysis of the Antetonitrus ingenipes type material sheds further light on the stepwise acquisition of sauropodan traits just prior to the Triassic/Jurassic boundary. Although the forelimb of Antetonitrus and other closely related sauropododomorph taxa retains the plesiomorphic morphology typical of a mobile grasping structure, the changes in the weight-bearing dynamics of both the musculature and the architecture of the hindlimb document the progressive shift towards a sauropodan form of graviportal locomotion. Nonetheless, the presence of hypertrophied muscle attachment sites in Antetonitrus suggests the retention of an intermediary form of facultative bipedality. The term Sauropodiformes is adopted here and given a novel definition intended to capture those transitional sauropodomorph taxa occupying a contiguous position on the pectinate line towards Sauropoda. The early record of sauropod diversification and evolution is re- examined in light of the paraphyletic consensus that has emerged regarding the ‘Prosauropoda’ in recent years. iii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS First, I would like to express sincere gratitude to Adam Yates for providing me with the opportunity to do ‘real’ palaeontology, and also for gladly sharing his considerable knowledge on sauropodomorph osteology and phylogenetics. This project would not have been possible without the continued (and continual) support (both emotionally and financially) of my parents, Alf and Glenda McPhee – Thank you.
    [Show full text]
  • Phylogeny and Biogeography of Iguanodontian Dinosaurs, with Implications from Ontogeny and an Examination of the Function of the Fused Carpal-Digit I Complex
    Phylogeny and Biogeography of Iguanodontian Dinosaurs, with Implications from Ontogeny and an Examination of the Function of the Fused Carpal-Digit I Complex By Karen E. Poole B.A. in Geology, May 2004, University of Pennsylvania M.A. in Earth and Planetary Sciences, August 2008, Washington University in St. Louis A Dissertation submitted to The Faculty of The Columbian College of Arts and Sciences of The George Washington University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy August 31, 2015 Dissertation Directed by Catherine Forster Professor of Biology The Columbian College of Arts and Sciences of The George Washington University certifies that Karen Poole has passed the Final Examination for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy as of August 10th, 2015. This is the final and approved form of the dissertation. Phylogeny and Biogeography of Iguanodontian Dinosaurs, with Implications from Ontogeny and an Examination of the Function of the Fused Carpal-Digit I Complex Karen E. Poole Dissertation Research Committee: Catherine A. Forster, Professor of Biology, Dissertation Director James M. Clark, Ronald Weintraub Professor of Biology, Committee Member R. Alexander Pyron, Robert F. Griggs Assistant Professor of Biology, Committee Member ii © Copyright 2015 by Karen Poole All rights reserved iii Dedication To Joseph Theis, for his unending support, and for always reminding me what matters most in life. To my parents, who have always encouraged me to pursue my dreams, even those they didn’t understand. iv Acknowledgements First, a heartfelt thank you is due to my advisor, Cathy Forster, for giving me free reign in this dissertation, but always providing valuable commentary on any piece of writing I sent her, no matter how messy.
    [Show full text]
  • Inferring Body Mass in Extinct Terrestrial Vertebrates and the Evolution of Body Size in a Model-Clade of Dinosaurs (Ornithopoda)
    Inferring Body Mass in Extinct Terrestrial Vertebrates and the Evolution of Body Size in a Model-Clade of Dinosaurs (Ornithopoda) by Nicolás Ernesto José Campione Ruben A thesis submitted in conformity with the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy Ecology and Evolutionary Biology University of Toronto © Copyright by Nicolás Ernesto José Campione Ruben 2013 Inferring body mass in extinct terrestrial vertebrates and the evolution of body size in a model-clade of dinosaurs (Ornithopoda) Nicolás E. J. Campione Ruben Doctor of Philosophy Ecology and Evolutionary Biology University of Toronto 2013 Abstract Organismal body size correlates with almost all aspects of ecology and physiology. As a result, the ability to infer body size in the fossil record offers an opportunity to interpret extinct species within a biological, rather than simply a systematic, context. Various methods have been proposed by which to estimate body mass (the standard measure of body size) that center on two main approaches: volumetric reconstructions and extant scaling. The latter are particularly contentious when applied to extinct terrestrial vertebrates, particularly stem-based taxa for which living relatives are difficult to constrain, such as non-avian dinosaurs and non-therapsid synapsids, resulting in the use of volumetric models that are highly influenced by researcher bias. However, criticisms of scaling models have not been tested within a comprehensive extant dataset. Based on limb measurements of 200 mammals and 47 reptiles, linear models were generated between limb measurements (length and circumference) and body mass to test the hypotheses that phylogenetic history, limb posture, and gait drive the relationship between stylopodial circumference and body mass as critics suggest.
    [Show full text]
  • The Pelvic and Hind Limb Anatomy of the Stem-Sauropodomorph Saturnalia Tupiniquim (Late Triassic, Brazil)
    PaleoBios 23(2):1–30, July 15, 2003 © 2003 University of California Museum of Paleontology The pelvic and hind limb anatomy of the stem-sauropodomorph Saturnalia tupiniquim (Late Triassic, Brazil) MAX CARDOSO LANGER Department of Earth Sciences, University of Bristol, Wills Memorial Building, Queens Road, BS8 1RJ Bristol, UK. Current address: Departamento de Biologia, Universidade de São Paulo (USP), Av. Bandeirantes, 3900 14040-901 Ribeirão Preto, SP, Brazil; [email protected] Three partial skeletons allow a nearly complete description of the sacrum, pelvic girdle, and hind limb of the stem- sauropodomorph Saturnalia tupiniquim, from the Late Triassic Santa Maria Formation, South Brazil. The new morphological data gathered from these specimens considerably improves our knowledge of the anatomy of basal dinosaurs, providing the basis for a reassessment of various morphological transformations that occurred in the early evolution of these reptiles. These include an increase in the number of sacral vertebrae, the development of a brevis fossa, the perforation of the acetabulum, the inturning of the femoral head, as well as various modifications in the insertion of the iliofemoral musculature and the tibio-tarsal articulation. In addition, the reconstruction of the pelvic musculature of Saturnalia, along with a study of its locomotion pattern, indicates that the hind limb of early dinosaurs did not perform only a fore-and-aft stiff rotation in the parasagittal plane, but that lateral and medial movements of the leg were also present and important. INTRODUCTION sisting of most of the presacral vertebral series, both sides Saturnalia tupiniquim was described in a preliminary of the pectoral girdle, right humerus, partial right ulna, right fashion by Langer et al.
    [Show full text]