|
Lagerpetidae
Lagerpetidae (; originally Lagerpetonidae) is a family of basal avemetatarsalians (early-diverging members of the reptile lineage leading to birds and other dinosaurs). Though traditionally considered the earliest-diverging dinosauromorphs (archosaurs closer to dinosaurs than to pterosaurs), fossils described in 2020 suggested that lagerpetids are instead an early branch of pterosauromorphs (closer to pterosaurs than to dinosaurs). Lagerpetid fossils are known from the Triassic of San Juan (Argentina), Arizona, New Mexico, and Texas (United States), Rio Grande do Sul (Brazil), and Madagascar. ''Scleromochlus'', a minuscule archosaur from Scotland, is sometimes regarded as a lagerpetid or close relative of the family. Lagerpetids were generally small and lightly-built animals; the largest include '' Dromomeron gigas'' (from Argentina) and an indeterminate ''Dromomeron'' specimen from the Santa Rosa Formation of Texas, reaching a femoral length of . Lagerpetid fossils are rare ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Dinosauromorpha
Dinosauromorpha is a clade of avemetatarsalians ( archosaurs closer to birds than to crocodilians) that includes the Dinosauria (dinosaurs) and some of their close relatives. It was originally defined to include dinosauriforms and lagerpetids, with later formulations specifically excluding pterosaurs from the group. Birds are the only dinosauromorphs which survive to the present day. Classification The name "Dinosauromorpha" was briefly coined by Michael J. Benton in 1985. It was considered an alternative name for the group "Ornithosuchia", which was named by Jacques Gauthier to correspond to archosaurs closer to dinosaurs than to crocodilians. Although "Ornithosuchia" was later recognized as a misnomer (since ornithosuchids are now considered closer to crocodilians than to dinosaurs), it was still a more popular term than Dinosauromorpha in the 1980s. The group encompassed by Gauthier's "Ornithosuchia" and Benton's "Dinosauromorpha" is now given the name Avemetatarsalia ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pterosauromorphs
Pterosauromorpha (meaning "pterosaur-like forms") is one of the two basic divisions of Ornithodira that includes pterosaurs and all taxa that are closer to them than to dinosaurs and their close relatives (i.e. Dinosauromorpha). In addition to pterosaurs, Pterosauromorpha also includes the basal clade Lagerpetidae and some other Late Triassic ornithodirans (such as ''Scleromochlus''). Classification The name Pterosauromorpha was originally coined by Emil Kuhn-Schnyder and Hans Rieber (1986) for a reptilian subclass distinct from Archosauria which includes pterosaurs. In 1997, Kevin Padian classified Pterosauromorpha as a clade of archosaurs and proposed phylogenetic definition for this group: "Pterosauria and all ornithodiran archosaurs closer to them than to dinosaurs". Brian Andres and Kevin Padian redefined Pterosauromorpha as: "The clade consisting of ''Pterodactylus'' (originally ''Ornithocephalus'') ''antiquus'' (Sömmerring 1812) (Pterosauria) and all organisms or spe ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Faxinalipterus
''Faxinalipterus'' is a genus of ornithodiran archosaur, originally described as a pterosaur, from the Late Triassic Caturrita Formation of southern Brazil. A study from 2022 reinterpreted the fossil remains and instead suggests them to belong to a member of the Lagerpetidae, another clade of pterosauromorphs. Description The type species, ''Faxinalipterus minima'' was named and described in 2010 by José Fernando Bonaparte, Marina Bento Soares and César Leandro Schultz. The generic name is derived from Faxinal do Soturno and a Latinised Greek ''pteron'', "wing". The specific name (zoology), specific name, from Latin ''minima'', means "smallest". The name was later amended and changed to ''minimus'' in accordance with the rules of the International Commission on Zoological Nomenclature, International Commission on Zoological Nomenclature (ICZN). Fossils of the species were found in 2002 and 2005 at a site 1.5 kilometres northeast of Faxinal do Soturno, Rio Grande do Sul, from ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Kongonaphon
''Kongonaphon'' is an extinct genus of lagerpetid avemetatarsalians from the Middle to Late Triassic of Madagascar. It contains a single species, ''Kongonaphon kely'', which is known from a fragmentary partial skeleton. This fossil hails from the late Ladinian or early Carnian-age "basal Isalo II beds". As the first lagerpetid found in Africa, ''Kongonaphon'' extends the range of the family significantly. It possessed a combination of features from various other lagerpetids, but developed particularly long and slender leg bones. ''Kongonaphon'' is also the first lagerpetid for which fossils of the snout and teeth are known. It was likely an insectivore based on the shape and texture of its teeth. ''Kongonaphon'' is notable for its minuscule size, even compared to other small early avemetatarsalians. The proportionally elongated femur was only about 4 cm (1.6 inches) long, and the total height of the animal was estimated at around 10 cm (3.9 inches). Alongside other ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Venetoraptor
''Venetoraptor'' (meaning "Vale Vêneto plunderer") is an extinct genus of lagerpetid archosaurs from the Late Triassic Santa Maria Formation (Paraná Basin) of Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil. The genus contains a single species, ''V. gassenae'', known from a partial skeleton. ''Venetoraptor'' is characterized by the presence of a beak and scythe-like claws on long fingers. Discovery and naming The ''Venetoraptor'' holotype specimen, CAPPA/ UFSM 0356, was discovered in the Santa Maria Formation (''Hyperodapedon'' Assemblage Zone) in the Paraná Basin of São João do Polêsine in Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil. The partially-articulated specimen consists of an incomplete skull, cervical, dorsal, and caudal vertebrae, a partial pelvic girdle, and elements of the arms and legs. In 2023, Müller et al. described ''Venetoraptor gassenae'' as a new genus and species of lagerpetid archosaur based on these fossil remains. The generic name, "''Venetoraptor''", combines a reference to the tou ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Avemetatarsalia
Avemetatarsalia (meaning "bird metatarsals") is a clade of diapsid Reptile, reptiles containing all archosaurs more closely related to birds than to crocodilians. The two most successful groups of avemetatarsalians were the dinosaurs and pterosaurs. Dinosaur, Dinosaurs were the largest terrestrial animals for much of the Mesozoic era, Mesozoic Era, and one group of small feathered dinosaurs (Aves, i.e. birds) has survived up to the present day. Pterosaur, Pterosaurs were the first flying vertebrates and persisted through the Mesozoic before dying out at the Cretaceous–Paleogene extinction event, Cretaceous-Paleogene (K-Pg) extinction event. Both dinosaurs and pterosaurs appeared in the Triassic period, Triassic Period, shortly after avemetatarsalians as a whole. The name Avemetatarsalia was first established by British palaeontologist Michael J. Benton, Michael Benton in 1999. An alternate name is Pan-Aves, or "all birds", in reference to its definition containing all animals, li ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ixalerpeton
''Ixalerpeton'' (meaning "leaping reptile") is a genus of lagerpetid avemetatarsalian containing one species, ''I. polesinensis''. It lived in the Late Triassic of Brazil alongside the sauropodomorph dinosaur '' Buriolestes''. Discovery and naming The holotype specimen of ''Ixalerpeton'', numbered ULBRA-PVT059, consists of parts from the skull, vertebral column, and all four limbs. The specimen comes from the Carnian Santa Maria Formation of Brazil, and it was found alongside two individuals of '' Buriolestes'' as well as a set of femora belonging to second individual of ''Ixalerpeton''. The genus name of ''Ixalerpeton'' combines the Greek words ''ixalos'' ("leaping") and ''erpeton'' ("reptile"), and the species name ''polesinensis'' references the town of São João do Polêsine, where the dig site is located. Description ''Ixalerpeton'' was similar to other lagerpetids (namely '' Dromomeron'' and '' Lagerpeton'') in having long hindlimbs with well-developed muscle at ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Lagerpeton
''Lagerpeton'' is a genus of lagerpetid avemetatarsalian, comprising a single species, ''L. chanarensis''. First described from the Chañares Formation of Argentina by A. S. Romer in 1971, ''Lagerpeton'' anatomy is somewhat incompletely known, with fossil specimens accounting for the pelvic girdle, hindlimbs, posterior presacral, sacral and anterior caudal vertebrae. Skull and shoulder material has also been described. The name comes from the Greek (, "hare") plus (, "reptile"). Discovery ''Lagerpeton'' fossils have only been collected from the Chañares Formation in La Rioja Province, Argentina. The first of these fossils were discovered in a 1964-1965 expedition by the Museum of Comparative Zoology (MCZ) and Museo de la Plata (MLP), although some were also discovered in 1966 by paleontologists from the Miguel Lillo Institute (PVL) of the University of Tucuman. Alfred Romer named ''Lagerpeton chanarensis'' in 1971, based on a complete right hindlimb discovered ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Dromomeron
''Dromomeron'' (meaning "running femur") is a genus of Lagerpetidae, lagerpetid Avemetatarsalia, avemetatarsalian which lived around 220 to 211.9 ± 0.7 million years ago. The genus contains species known from Late Triassic-age rocks of the Southwestern United States and northwestern Argentina. It is described as most closely related to the earlier ''Lagerpeton'' of Argentina, but was found among remains of true dinosaurs like ''Chindesaurus'', indicating that the first dinosaurs did not immediately replace related groups. Based on the study of the overlapping material of ''Dromomeron'' and ''Tawa hallae'', Christopher Bennett proposed that the two taxa were conspecific, forming a single growth series of ''Dromomeron''. However, noting prominent differences between their femurs which cannot be attributed to variation with age, Rodrigo Muller rejected this proposal in 2017. He further noted that, while ''D. romeri'' is known from juveniles only, it shares many traits in common with ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Dromomeron Gigas
''Dromomeron'' (meaning "running femur") is a genus of lagerpetid avemetatarsalian which lived around 220 to 211.9 ± 0.7 million years ago. The genus contains species known from Late Triassic-age rocks of the Southwestern United States and northwestern Argentina. It is described as most closely related to the earlier '' Lagerpeton'' of Argentina, but was found among remains of true dinosaurs like ''Chindesaurus'', indicating that the first dinosaurs did not immediately replace related groups. Based on the study of the overlapping material of ''Dromomeron'' and ''Tawa hallae'', Christopher Bennett proposed that the two taxa were conspecific, forming a single growth series of ''Dromomeron''. However, noting prominent differences between their femurs which cannot be attributed to variation with age, Rodrigo Muller rejected this proposal in 2017. He further noted that, while ''D. romeri'' is known from juveniles only, it shares many traits in common with ''D. gigas'', which is known ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pterosaur
Pterosaurs are an extinct clade of flying reptiles in the order Pterosauria. They existed during most of the Mesozoic: from the Late Triassic to the end of the Cretaceous (228 million to 66 million years ago). Pterosaurs are the earliest vertebrates known to have evolved powered flight. Their wings were formed by a membrane of skin, muscle, and other tissues stretching from the ankles to a dramatically lengthened fourth finger. There were two major types of pterosaurs. Basal pterosaurs (also called 'non-pterodactyloid pterosaurs' or ' rhamphorhynchoids') were smaller animals with fully toothed jaws and, typically, long tails. Their wide wing membranes probably included and connected the hind legs. On the ground, they would have had an awkward sprawling posture, but the anatomy of their joints and strong claws would have made them effective climbers, and some may have even lived in trees. Basal pterosaurs were insectivores or predators of small vertebrates. Later pte ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Archosaur
Archosauria () or archosaurs () is a clade of diapsid sauropsid tetrapods, with birds and crocodilians being the only extant taxon, extant representatives. Although broadly classified as reptiles, which traditionally exclude birds, the cladistics, cladistic sense of the term includes all living and extinct relatives of birds and crocodilians such as non-avian dinosaurs, pterosaurs, phytosaurs, aetosaurs and rauisuchians as well as many marine reptile#Extinct groups, Mesozoic marine reptiles. Modern paleontologists define Archosauria as a crown group that includes the most recent common ancestor of living birds and crocodilians, and all of its descendants. The base of Archosauria splits into two clades: Pseudosuchia, which includes crocodilians and their extinct relatives; and Avemetatarsalia, which includes birds and their extinct relatives (such as non-avian dinosaurs and pterosaurs). Older definitions of the group Archosauria rely on shared morphology (biology), morphological ch ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
