Camarasauridae

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Camarasaurids
Temporal range: Late Jurassic to Early Cretaceous, 170–126  Ma
Camarasaurus lentus Carnegie.jpg
Skeleton of Camarasaurus
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Clade: Dinosauria
Clade: Saurischia
Clade:† Sauropodomorpha
Clade:† Sauropoda
Clade:† Neosauropoda
Clade:† Macronaria
Clade:† Camarasauromorpha
Family:† Camarasauridae
Cope, 1877
Type genus
† Camarasaurus
Cope, 1877
Genera
Synonyms
  • Morosauridae
    Marsh, 1882

Camarasauridae is a family of sauropod dinosaurs. [1] Among sauropods, camarasaurids are small to medium-sized, with relatively short necks. They are visually identifiable by a short skull with large nares, and broad, spatulate teeth filling a thick jaw. [2] [3] Based on cervical vertebrae and cervical rib biomechanics, camarasaurids most likely moved their necks in a vertical, rather than horizontal, sweeping motion, in contrast to most diplodocids. [2]

Contents

Taxonomy

Camarasauridae was named by Edward Drinker Cope in 1877. Its type genus is Camarasaurus , and it is defined as the clade containing all species more closely related to Camarasaurus supremus than Saltasaurus loricatus . [4]

Phylogenetic relationships

Camarasauridae is typically regarded as belonging to Macronaria, one of the two major branches of Neosauropoda. Within Macronaria, it occupies a basal position, outside of Titanosauriformes. However, some studies have found Camarasauridae to lie outside Neosauropoda. [5]

Members

Camarasaurus is the only taxon uncontroversially regarded as a valid genus of camarasaurid. It contains four species: C. grandis , C. lentus , C. lewisi , and C. supremus . C. lewisi may represent a distinct genus, Cathetosaurus. [6] Lourinhasaurus , the type species of which was formerly assigned to Camarasaurus, is regarded as a camarasaurid by most studies, [7] [5] though it has also been considered to be a basal eusauropod. [8]

Oplosaurus , from the Early Cretaceous of the United Kingdom, has been suggested to be a camarasaurid, [9] but as it is only known from a tooth, its position within Eusauropoda is difficult to determine. [10] Tehuelchesaurus , from the Late Jurassic of Argentina, has been considered a camarasaurid in some studies, [7] [11] but a wide range of other phylogenetic positions have been proposed, including a close relationship to Omeisaurus , [8] a position in Turiasauria, [5] or as a non-camarasaurid basal macronarian.

Bellusaurus , which is only known from juvenile remains, may be a camarasaurid, [12] though it has also been considered a basal macronarian, turiasaur, or mamenchisaurid. [5] [11]

Former members

In 1970, Rodney Steel took an expansive concept of Camarasauridae, encompassing all sauropods then known except diplodocoids and titanosaurs. [13] In 1990, John S. McIntosh regarded Camarasauridae as made up of two subfamilies: Camarasaurinae, containing Camarasaurus, Aragosaurus, Euhelopus, and Tienshanosaurus, and Opisthocoelicaudiinae, containing Opisthocoelicaudia and Chondrosteosaurus. [14] Dashanpusaurus , from the Middle Jurassic of China, was originally described as a camarasaurid, [15] but was subsequently found to be a basal macronarian by phylogenetic analysis. [16]

Diagnostic characters

Several skeletal features have been used to characterize the camarasaurids. In the skull, these include an external narial diameter approximately 40% of the long-axis length of the skull, an arched internarial bar, a short muzzle anterior to the nares, and maxillary shelf. [17] In the rest of the axial skeleton, these include flat ventral faces on the cervical vertebrae, a triangular flare to the neural spines of the middle and posterior dorsal vertebrae, and a concave posterior surface to the anterior thoracic ribs, as well as an external haemal canal across the anterior vertebrae of the tail. [17] [18] A reduction to two carpals, long metacarpals relative to the radius, and a twisted ischial shaft serve to identify the appendicular skeleton. [2] [18]

Palaeobiogeography

Broadly speaking, camarasaurids occupied a distribution limited to the Laurasian continent during the Upper Jurassic. [17] Most currently accepted camarasaurid specimens have been discovered in the Morrison Formation of North America, however some specimens from the African Tendaguru Formation have been speculated to belong to the genus Camarasaurus, and the closely related Lourinhasaurus was found in Portugal. [19] [20] [21]

Related Research Articles

<i>Camarasaurus</i> Camarasaurid sauropod dinosaur genus from Late Jurassic Period

Camarasaurus was a genus of quadrupedal, herbivorous dinosaurs and is the most common North American sauropod fossil. Its fossil remains have been found in the Morrison Formation, dating to the Late Jurassic epoch, between 155 and 145 million years ago.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Diplodocidae</span> Extinct family of dinosaurs

Diplodocids, or members of the family Diplodocidae, are a group of sauropod dinosaurs. The family includes some of the longest creatures ever to walk the Earth, including Diplodocus and Supersaurus, some of which may have reached lengths of up to 42 metres (138 ft).

<i>Abrosaurus</i> Extinct genus of reptiles

Abrosaurus is a genus of macronarian sauropod dinosaur from the Middle Jurassic Period of what is now Asia, one of many dinosaurs found at the Dashanpu Quarry in the Sichuan Province of China. Like most sauropods, Abrosaurus was a quadrupedal herbivore but it was rather small for a sauropod, not much more than 30 feet (9.1 m) long. Its head was boxy and topped with a tall bony arch containing the nostrils.

Agustinia is a genus of sauropod dinosaur from the Early Cretaceous of South America. The genus contains a single species, Agustinia ligabuei, known from a single specimen that was recovered from the Lohan Cura Formation of Neuquén Province in Argentina. It lived about 116–108 million years ago, in the Aptian–Albian stages of the Early Cretaceous Period.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Macronaria</span> Extinct clade of dinosaurs

Macronaria is a clade of sauropod dinosaurs. Macronarians are named after the large diameter of the nasal opening of their skull, known as the external naris, which exceeded the size of the orbit, the skull opening where the eye is located. Fossil evidence suggests that macronarian dinosaurs lived from the Middle Jurassic (Bathonian) through the Late Cretaceous (Maastrichtian). Macronarians have been found globally, including discoveries in Argentina, the United States, Portugal, China, and Tanzania. Like other sauropods, they are known to have inhabited primarily terrestrial areas, and little evidence exists to suggest that they spent much time in coastal environments. Macronarians are diagnosed through their distinct characters on their skulls, as well as appendicular and vertebral characters. Macronaria is composed of several subclades and families notably including Camarasauridae and Titanosauriformes, among several others. Titanosauriforms are particularly well known for being some of the largest terrestrial animals to ever exist.

<i>Haplocanthosaurus</i> Extinct genus of dinosaurs

Haplocanthosaurus is a genus of intermediate sauropod dinosaur. Two species, H. delfsi and H. priscus, are known from incomplete fossil skeletons. It lived during the late Jurassic period, 155 to 152 million years ago. The type species is H. priscus, and the referred species H. delfsi was discovered by a young college student named Edwin Delfs in Colorado, United States. Haplocanthosaurus specimens have been found in the very lowest layer of the Morrison Formation, along with Hesperosaurus mjosi, Brontosaurus yahnahpin, and Allosaurus jimmadseni.

<i>Camarasaurus lewisi</i> Extinct genus of dinosaurs

Camarasaurus lewisi is a species of sauropod dinosaur from the Upper Jurassic of the United States. It was named by James A. Jensen in 1988. C. lewisi was originally placed in its own genus, Cathetosaurus, but in 1996 it was reclassified as a species of Camarasaurus; most researchers since have considered it to be one of the four valid species of Camarasaurus. Two unpublished studies have since argued that the genus Cathetosaurus should be reinstated, whereas two other studies have argued that C. lewisi may be a junior synonym of another species of Camarasaurus.

Zigongosaurus is a genus of sauropod dinosaur from the Middle Jurassic-Late Jurassic-age Shaximiao Formation of Zigong, Sichuan, China. Because of incomplete knowledge of Jurassic Chinese sauropods, it has been hard to interpret, with some sources assigning it to Omeisaurus, some to Mamenchisaurus, and some to its own genus.

Volkheimeria is an extinct genus of sauropod dinosaurs that lived in what is now Argentina during the Early Jurassic, 178–179 million years ago. Its type and only species is Volkheimeria chubutensis.

<i>Neosodon</i> Extinct genus of dinosaurs

Neosodon was a genus of sauropod dinosaur from the Late Tithonian-age Upper Jurassic Sables et Gres a Trigonia gibbosa of Pas-de-Calais department, France. It has never been formally given a species name, but is often seen as N. praecursor, which actually comes from a different animal. Often in the past, it had been assigned to the wastebasket taxon Pelorosaurus, but restudy has suggested that it could be related to Turiasaurus, a roughly contemporaneous giant Spanish sauropod. It is only known from six teeth.

<i>Dinheirosaurus</i> Genus of reptiles (fossil)

Dinheirosaurus is a genus of diplodocid sauropod dinosaur that is known from fossils uncovered in modern-day Portugal. It may represent a species of Supersaurus. The only species is Dinheirosaurus lourinhanensis, first described by José Bonaparte and Octávio Mateus in 1999 for vertebrae and some other material from the Lourinhã Formation. Although the precise age of the formation is not known, it can be dated around the early Tithonian of the Late Jurassic.

Lourinhasaurus was an herbivorous sauropod dinosaur genus dating from Late Jurassic strata of Estremadura, Portugal.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Neosauropoda</span> Extinct clade of dinosaurs

Neosauropoda is a clade within Dinosauria, coined in 1986 by Argentine paleontologist José Bonaparte and currently described as Saltasaurus loricatus, Diplodocus longus, and all animals directly descended from their most recent common ancestor. The group is composed of two subgroups: Diplodocoidea and Macronaria. Arising in the early Jurassic and persisting until the Cretaceous-Paleogene extinction event, Neosauropoda contains the majority of sauropod genera, including genera such as Apatosaurus, Brachiosaurus, and Diplodocus. It also includes giants such as Argentinosaurus, Patagotitan and Sauroposeidon, and its members remain the largest land animals ever to have lived.

<i>Camarasaurus grandis</i> Extinct species of dinosaur

Camarasaurus grandis is an extinct species of sauropod dinosaur in the genus that lived during the Jurassic in what is now the western United States. It is the geologically oldest of the four species of the genus Camarasaurus.

<i>Camarasaurus supremus</i> Species of sauropod dinosaur

Camarasaurus supremus is a species of sauropod dinosaur that lived during the Jurassic period in what is now the western United States. It is the type species of Camarasaurus, which also includes the species Camarasaurus grandis, Camarasaurus lentus, and Camarasaurus lewisi. C. supremus was discovered by the paleontologist Edward Drinker Cope in 1877, at the outset of the Bone Wars, a period of scientific competition between Cope and his rival Othniel Marsh. C. supremus is the largest and geologically youngest species in its genus, and was contemporary with several other exceptionally large dinosaurs, such as Saurophaganax and Maraapunisaurus. Despite being the first discovered species of Camarasaurus, C. supremus is relatively rare and poorly known.

<i>Dongyangosaurus</i> Extinct genus of dinosaurs

Dongyangosaurus is a genus of titanosaurian sauropod dinosaur from the Late Cretaceous. The only species is Dongyangosaurus sinensis, from which only a single fragmentary skeleton is known, coming from the Zhejiang province of eastern China. It was described and named by Lü Junchang and colleagues. Like other sauropods, Dongyangosaurus would have been a large quadrupedal herbivore.

Malarguesaurus is a genus of titanosauriform sauropod dinosaur from the Late Cretaceous of Mendoza Province, Argentina. Its fossils, consisting of tail vertebrae, chevrons, ribs, and limb bones, were found in the upper Turonian-lower Coniacian Portezuelo Formation of the Neuquén Group. The type species, described by González Riga et al. in 2008, is M. florenciae.

<i>Diplodocus</i> Genus of diplodocid sauropod dinosaurs (fossil)

Diplodocus was a genus of diplodocid sauropod dinosaurs, whose fossils were first discovered in 1877 by S. W. Williston. The generic name, coined by Othniel Charles Marsh in 1878, is a Neo-Latin term derived from Greek διπλός (diplos) "double" and δοκός (dokos) "beam", in reference to the double-beamed chevron bones located in the underside of the tail, which were then considered unique.

Wamweracaudia is a large herbivorous sauropod dinosaur from the Late Jurassic Tendaguru Formation of Tanzania, Africa, 155-145 million years ago.

References

  1. ↑ 1. Taylor, M. P., & Naish, D. (2005). The phylogenetic taxonomy of Diplodocoidea (Dinosauria: Sauropoda). Museum of Paleontology, University of California, Berkeley.
  2. 1 2 3 1. Weishampel, D. B., Dodson, P., & Osmólska, H. (Eds.). (1990). The dinosauria. Univ of California Press.
  3. ↑ Coombs, Walter P. (February 1975). "Sauropod habits and habitats". Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology. 17 (1): 1–33. Bibcode:1975PPP....17....1C. doi:10.1016/0031-0182(75)90027-9. ISSN   0031-0182.
  4. ↑ Taylor, M. P.; Naish, D. (November 2007). "An Unusual New Neosauropod Dinosaur from the Lower Cretaceous Hastings Beds Group of East Sussex, England". Palaeontology. 50 (6): 1547–1564. Bibcode:2007Palgy..50.1547T. doi: 10.1111/j.1475-4983.2007.00728.x . ISSN   0031-0239.
  5. 1 2 3 4 Mannion, Philip D.; Upchurch, Paul; Schwarz, Daniela; Wings, Oliver (2019-02-27). "Taxonomic affinities of the putative titanosaurs from the Late Jurassic Tendaguru Formation of Tanzania: phylogenetic and biogeographic implications for eusauropod dinosaur evolution". Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society. 185 (3): 784–909. doi:10.1093/zoolinnean/zly068. eISSN   1096-3642. hdl: 10044/1/64080 . ISSN   0024-4082.
  6. ↑ Tschopp, Emanuel; Maidment, Susannah C.R.; Lamanna, Matthew C.; Norell, Mark A. (2019-11-04). "Reassessment of a Historical Collection of Sauropod Dinosaurs from the Northern Morrison Formation of Wyoming, with Implications for Sauropod Biogeography". Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History. 2019 (437): 1. doi:10.1206/0003-0090.437.1.1. ISSN   0003-0090. S2CID   207890316.
  7. 1 2 Mocho, Pedro; Royo-Torres, Rafael; Ortega, Francisco (2014). "Phylogenetic reassessment of Lourinhasaurus alenquerensis, a basal Macronaria (Sauropoda) from the Upper Jurassic of Portugal". Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society. 170 (4): 875–916. doi:10.1111/zoj.12113. ISSN   0024-4082.
  8. 1 2 Upchurch, Paul; Barrett, Paul M.; Dodson, Peter (2004). "Sauropoda". In Weishampel, David B.; Dodson, Peter; Osmólska, Halszka (eds.). The Dinosauria (2 ed.). Berkeley: University of California Press. pp. 259–322. ISBN   0-520-24209-2.
  9. ↑ Canudo, José Ignacio; Ruiz-Omeñaca, José Ignacio; Barco, José Luis (2002). "¿Saurópodos asiáticos en el Barremiense inferior (Cretácico Inferior) de España?". Ameghiniana. 39 (4): 443–452.
  10. ↑ Upchurch, Paul; Mannion, Philip D.; Barrett, Paul M. (2011). "Sauropod dinosaurs". Field Guide to English Wealden Fossils. London. pp. 476–525.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
  11. 1 2 Moore, Andrew J.; Upchurch, Paul; Barrett, Paul M.; Clark, James M.; Xu, Xing (2020-05-28). "Osteology of Klamelisaurus gobiensis (Dinosauria, Eusauropoda) and the evolutionary history of Middle–Late Jurassic Chinese sauropods". Journal of Systematic Palaeontology. 18 (16): 1299–1393. doi:10.1080/14772019.2020.1759706. eISSN   1478-0941. ISSN   1477-2019. S2CID   219749618.
  12. ↑ Lacovara, Kenneth J.; Ibiricu, L.M.; Lamanna, M.C.; Poole, J.C.; Schroeter, E.R.; Ullmann, P.V.; Voegele, K.K.; Boles, Z.M.; Egerton, V.M.; Harris, J.D.; Martínez, R.D.; Novas, F.E. (2014-09-04). "A gigantic, exceptionally complete titanosaurian sauropod dinosaur from southern Patagonia, Argentina". Scientific Reports. 4: 6196. doi:10.1038/srep06196. PMC   5385829 . PMID   25186586.
  13. ↑ Steel, Rodney (1970). Saurischia. Handbuch der Paläoherpetologie. Stuttgart: Gustav Fischer Verlag.
  14. ↑ McIntosh, J. S. (1990). "Sauropoda". In Weishampel, David B.; Dodson, Peter; Osmólska, Halszka (eds.). The Dinosauria (1 ed.). Berkeley: University of California Press. pp. 345–401.
  15. ↑ Peng, G.; Y. Ye; Y. Gao; C. Shu; S. Jiang (2005). Jurassic Dinosaur Faunas in Zigong. Chengdu: Sichuan Publishing Group People's Press. ISBN   7-220-07051-9.
  16. ↑ Ren, Xin-Xin; Jiang, Shan; Wang, Xu-Ri; Peng, Guang-Zhao; Ye, Yong; Jia, Lei; You, Hai-Lu (2022-11-14). "Re-examination of Dashanpusaurus dongi (Sauropoda: Macronaria) supports an early Middle Jurassic global distribution of neosauropod dinosaurs". Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology. 610: 111318. doi:10.1016/j.palaeo.2022.111318. ISSN   0031-0182.
  17. 1 2 3 Upchurch, Paul (1995-09-29). "The evolutionary history of sauropod dinosaurs" (PDF). Phil. Trans. R. Soc. Lond. B. 349 (1330): 365–390. doi:10.1098/rstb.1995.0125. ISSN   0962-8436.
  18. 1 2 Wilson, J. A., & Sereno, P. C. (1998). Early evolution and higher-level phylogeny of sauropod dinosaurs. Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology, 18(S2), 1-79.
  19. ↑ FosteR, J. R., & Wedel, M. J. (2014). Haplocanthosaurus (Saurischia: Sauropoda) from the lower Morrison Formation (Upper Jurassic) near Snowmass, Colorado. Volumina Jurassica, 12(2), 197-210.
  20. ↑ Foster, J. R., & Lucas, S. G. (Eds.). (2006). Paleontology and Geology of the Upper Jurassic Morrison Formation: Bulletin 36(Vol. 36). New Mexico Museum of Natural History and Science.
  21. ↑ Raath, J. S. (1987). Sauropod dinosaurs from the Central Zambezi Valley, Zimbabwe, and the age of the Kadzi Formation. South African Journal of Geology, 90(2), 107-119.
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