Erpetonyx
Erpetonyx | |
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Illustration of the holotype fossil | |
Scientific classification | |
Domain: | Eukaryota |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Chordata |
Class: | Reptilia |
Clade: | †Parareptilia |
Order: | †Procolophonomorpha |
Clade: | † Bolosauria
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Genus: | †Erpetonyx Modesto et al., 2015 |
Type species | |
†Erpetonyx arsenaultorum Modesto et al., 2015
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Erpetonyx is an
Discovery
Erpetonyx is known from a single specimen, a remarkably well-preserved skeleton, designated ROM 55402. This specimen hailed from Cape Egmont, in southwestern
The name Parareptilia was identified by the American zoologist, Olson (1910-1993), in 1947[3] and Bolosauria was identified by Oskar Kuhn in 1959.[4] Erpetonyx arsenaultorum was described and named by Modesto et al. in 2015. It is the closest relative of bolosaurids.[1]
Description
The skull was crushed and partially eroded, but some features (like the tooth row) were preserved well enough to be informative. The teeth were sharp, conical, and slightly curved. They gradually decreased in size towards the rear of the skull. Some broken teeth reveal that they had an internal structure of folded dentine, formally known as plicidentine. Plicidentine was once considered to characterize "labyrinthodont" amphibians such as temnospondyls, but it is now known to occur in some extinct amniotes as well. The supratemporal bones at the rear of the skull roof formed small horns, and the palate (roof of the mouth) was covered in small cones known as denticles. Denticles reached almost as far back in the mouth as the large, robust quadrate bones which formed the upper part of the jaw joint. Preserved portions of the braincase were generally similar to those of other reptiles, with the exception of a large opening (likely for the hyomandibular branch of the facial nerve) at the front edge of the base of the braincase.[1]
The body was relatively elongated compared to other parareptiles. There were 5 cervical (neck) vertebrae and 24 dorsal (torso) vertebrae. This leads to a total of 29 presacral (pre-hip) vertebrae, while other parareptiles typically had 26 or fewer. The presacrals were hourglass-shaped when seen from above and tightly connected to each other by means of large, rounded
The forelimbs were generally similar to those of other early reptiles. The humerus (upper arm bone) was slightly longer than the ulna and radius (lower arm bones). The knobs and joints forming the elbow were poorly developed, meaning that Erpetonyx may have had more flexible forelimbs than its contemporaries. The hand was incomplete, and some the carpals (wrist bones) were large while others were unusually small. On the other hand, the unguals (claws) were long and sharply pointed, with robust flexor tubercules (tendon attachment bumps). Some of the hip bones were obscured by the rest of the skeleton, but the ischium (rear lower plate) was longer than the pubis (front lower plate). The femur (thigh bone) was twisted, with the knee joints offset at 45 degrees from the rest of the shaft. In other early reptiles, this angle of torsion was smaller, usually 10 to 30 degrees. The slender tibia and fibula (lower leg bones) were shorter than the femur. The tarsals (ankle bones) were much more robust than the carpals, but also more disarticulated. The fourth metatarsal was the longest bone of the foot, and it was unusually expanded near the toe. The ungual of the fourth toe was tall, curved, and sharply pointed. Other toe claws were longer and lower. Nevertheless, all of the toe claws were longer than the other phalanges (toe bones).[1]
References
- ^ PMID 25589601.
- ^ a b c Chung, Emily (13 January 2015). "Fossil found by P.E.I. boy fills gap in reptile evolution: Lizard-like animal named after Michael Arsenault of Prince County, P.E.I." CBC News. Retrieved 15 January 2014.
- . Retrieved 15 January 2015.
- ^ Kuhn, Oskar (1959). "Die Ordnungen der fossilen 'Amphibien' und 'Reptilien'". Neues Jahrbuch für Geologie und Paläontologie: 337–347.