Araripesaurus
Araripesaurus | |
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Scientific classification | |
Domain: | Eukaryota |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Chordata |
Order: | †Pterosauria |
Suborder: | †Pterodactyloidea |
Family: | †Ornithocheiridae |
Genus: | †Araripesaurus |
Species: | †A. castilhoi
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Binomial name | |
†Araripesaurus castilhoi Price, 1971
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Araripesaurus is a genus a pterosaur belonging to the suborder Pterodactyloidea, it was discovered in the Romualdo Formation of the Santana Group in northeastern Brazil, which dates back to the Aptian and Albian of the Early Cretaceous. The type species is A. castilhoi.[1]
Discovery and naming
The genus was named in 1971 by Brazilian
In 1985 Peter Wellnhofer has named a second species, Araripesaurus santanae;[3] this and two unnamed Araripesaurus sp. indicated by Wellhofer, were in 1990 by Kellner moved to Anhanguera as Anhanguera santanae.[4][5]
Classification
Price placed Araripesaurus in the Ornithocheiridae.[1] Araripesaurus was the first pterosaur known from the Santana Formation. Later, other species were named from more complete remains and this raised the question whether they could be identical to Araripesaurus. In 1991 researcher Alexander Kellner concluded that Araripesaurus was identical to Santanadactylus and that due to a lack of distinguishing features it could only be more generally classified as a pterodactyloid. In 2000 Kellner reassessed the genus and concluded that precisely because of such a lack of autapomorphies (unique characters), it could not be synonymized with Santanadactylus and gave its position after a cladistic analysis as close to Anhangueridae, more derived than Istiodactylus. Kellner also indicated that Araripesaurus resembled Anhanguera piscator in morphology, albeit considerably smaller. [6][7]
See also
- Timeline of pterosaur research
- List of pterosaurs
References
- ^ a b c Price, L.L., 1971, "A Presença de Pterosauria no Cretáceo Inferior da Chapada do Araripe, Brasil", Anais da Academia Brasileira de Ciências, 43: 451-461
- ^ R. L. Carroll. 1988. Vertebrate Paleontology and Evolution 1-698 [A. Behrensmeyer/A. Behrensmeyer/M. Uhen]
- ^ P. Wellnhofer. 1985. Neue Pterosaurier aus der Santana-Formation (Apt) der Chapada do Araripe, Brasilien. Palaeontographica Abteilung A 187:105-182
- ^ Eberhard Frey, Helmut Tischlinger, Marie-Céline Buchy and David M. Martill (2003). Geological Society, London, Special Publications, 217, 233-266.
- ^ P. Wellnhofer. 1991. Weitere Pterosaurierfunde aus der Santana-Formation (Apt) der Chapada do Araripe, Brasilien. Palaeontographica Abteilung A 215:43-101
- doi:10.1038/332398a0
- ^ Dalla, F.V.; Ligabue, G. (1993). "On the presence of a giant pterosaur in the Lower Cretaceous (Aptian) of Chapada do Araripe (northeastern Brazil)". Bollettino della Società Paleontologica Italiana. 32 (1): 131–136.