Dsungaripteridae

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Dsungaripterids
Temporal range: Early Cretaceous
Dsungaripterus weii 01.jpg
Restored skeleton of Dsungaripterus weii
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Order:† Pterosauria
Suborder:† Pterodactyloidea
Clade:† Ornithocheiroidea
Family:† Dsungaripteridae
Young, 1964
Type species
† Dsungaripterus weii
Young, 1964
Genera

Dsungaripteridae is a group of pterosaurs within the suborder Pterodactyloidea. [2] They were robust pterosaurs with good terrestrial abilities and flight honed for inland settings, [3] and were commonly interpreted as durophagous and possibly piscivorous pterosaurs. [4] Fossils have been discovered from Early Cretaceous deposits in Asia, South America and possibly Europe. [5]

Contents

Classification

In 1964, Young created a family to place the genus Dsungaripterus , [6] a Chinese taxon with potenital remains also known from the Hasandong Formation of South Korea. [7] [8] Later on, Noripterus (then now with the name "Phobetor" which was already occupied, therefore the quotation marks) was also assigned to the family. [9]

In 2003, Alexander Kellner gave the exact definition as a clade: [10] the group was composed out of the latest common ancestor of Dsungaripterus, Noripterus and “Phobetor”, and all its descendants. As synapomorphies he gave the next six characteristics: a relatively small eye-socket, which is placed high up the skull; an opening below the eye-socket; a high ridge across the snout, which starts in front of the nasal opening and ends behind the eye-sockets; the maxilla reaches out down- and backwards; the absence of teeth in the first part of the jaws; the teeth in the back of the upper jaw are the biggest; the teeth have a wide oval basis. Kellner pointed out all members of the group, except for Dsungaripterus itself, were known from fragmentary remains, so only the last characteristic could be established for sure in all members. [10]

In the same year, David Unwin gave a slightly different definition: the last common ancestor of Dsungaripterus weii and Noripterus complicidens, and all its descendants. [11] The group belongs to the Dsungaripteroidea sensu Unwin and is presumably relatively closely related to the Azhdarchoidea. According to Unwin, Germanodactylus is the sister taxon to the group, but his analyses have this outcome as the only ones. According to an analysis by Brian Andres from 2008, the Dsungaripteridae are closely related to the Tapejaridae, what would actually make them members of the Azhdarchoidea. [12] Recent examinations of the palate of Dsungaripterus support an azhdarchoid interpretation. [13]

The earliest possible fossils attributed to this group are from the Berriasian age of Europe based on two specimens found in Romania, MTCO 17.764/2019 and MTCO 18.262/9651, [5] though the latter specimen has been reinterpreted as an indeterminate azhdarchoid. [14] Previous Late Jurassic records have been disputed, [15] and a possible dsungaripterid specimen from the Kimmeridgian of Germany has been suggested as an indeterminate dsungaripteroid or a specimen of Germanodactylus . [16] [17] The earliest known taxon is from the Early Cretaceous of Chile, belonging to the species Domeykodactylus ceciliae . [15] Among the latest known dsungaripterid species is Lonchognathosaurus acutirostris , from the Albian-age Lower Cretaceous Lianmuqin Formation of Xinjiang, China, about 112 million years ago. [18]

Family tree

Below is a cladogram showing the results of a phylogenetic analysis presented by Andres and colleagues in 2014. They recovered Dsungaripteridae within the Dsungaripteromorpha (a subgroup within the Azhdarchoidea), sister taxon to the subfamily Thalassodrominae. The found Dsungaripteridae to consist of two subfamilies called Dsungaripterinae and Noripterinae (which consists only of Noripterus species). Their cladogram is shown below. [19]

Dsungaripteromorpha

In 2019, a different topology, this time by Kellner and colleagues, was published. In this study, Dsungaripteridae was recovered outside the Azhdarchoidea, within the larger group Tapejaroidea. The cladogram of the analysis is shown below. [20]

Related Research Articles

<i>Dsungaripterus</i> Genus of dsungaripterid pterosaur from the Early Cretaceous

Dsungaripterus is a genus of dsungaripterid pterosaur which lived during the Early Cretaceous in what is now China and possibly South Korea. Its first fossil was found in the Tugulu Group of the Junggar Basin.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Azhdarchidae</span> Family of large azhdarchoid pterosaurs

Azhdarchidae is a family of pterosaurs known primarily from the Late Cretaceous Period, though an isolated vertebra apparently from an azhdarchid is known from the Early Cretaceous as well. Azhdarchids are mainly known for including some of the largest flying animals discovered, but smaller cat-size members have also been found. Originally considered a sub-family of Pteranodontidae, Nesov (1984) named the Azhdarchinae to include the pterosaurs Azhdarcho, Quetzalcoatlus, and Titanopteryx. They were among the last known surviving members of the pterosaurs, and were a rather successful group with a worldwide distribution. Previously it was thought that by the end of the Cretaceous, most pterosaur families except for the Azhdarchidae disappeared from the fossil record, but recent studies indicate a wealth of pterosaurian fauna, including pteranodontids, nyctosaurids, tapejarids and several indeterminate forms. In several analyses, some taxa such as Navajodactylus, Bakonydraco and Montanazhdarcho were moved from Azhdarchidae to other clades.

<i>Germanodactylus</i> Genus of germanodactylid pterosaur from the Late Jurassic

Germanodactylus is a genus of germanodactylid pterodactyloid pterosaur from Upper Jurassic-age rocks of Germany, including the Solnhofen Limestone. Its specimens were long thought to pertain to Pterodactylus. The head crest of Germanodactylus is a distinctive feature.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tapejaridae</span> Family of azhdarchoid pterosaurs from the Cretaceous period

Tapejaridae are a family of pterodactyloid pterosaurs from the Cretaceous period. Members are currently known from Brazil, England, Hungary, Morocco, Spain, the United States, and China. The most primitive genera were found in China, indicating that the family has an Asian origin.

<i>Noripterus</i> Genus of dsungaripterid pterosaur from the Early Cretaceous

Noripterus is a genus of dsungaripterid pterodactyloid pterosaur from Lower Cretaceous-age Lianmuqin Formation in the Junggar Basin of Xinjiang, China. It was first named by Yang Zhongjian in 1973. Additional fossil remains have been recovered from Tsagaantsav Svita, Mongolia.

<i>Bennettazhia</i> Genus of tapejaromorph pterosaur from the Early Cretaceous

Bennettazhia is a genus of tapejaromorph pterosaur which lived during the Albian stage of the Early Cretaceous from what is now the Hudspeth Formation of the state of Oregon in the United States. Although originally identified as a species of the pteranodontoid pterosaur Pteranodon, Bennettazhia is now thought to have been a different animal. The type and only species is B. oregonensis.

<i>Eopteranodon</i> Genus of tapejarid pterosaur

Eopteranodon is a genus of tapejarid pterosaur from the Aptian-age Lower Cretaceous Yixian Formation of Beipiao City, Liaoning, China. The genus was named in 2005 by paleontologists Lü Junchang and Zhang Xingliao. The type species is Eopteranodon lii. A second species, E. yixianensis, was named in 2023.

<i>Chaoyangopterus</i> Genus of chaoyangopterid pterosaur from the Early Cretaceous

Chaoyangopterus is a genus of chaoyangopterid pterosaur known from a partial skeleton found in Liaoning, China. Chaoyangopterus was found in rocks dating back to the Aptian-age Lower Cretaceous Jiufotang Formation of Dapingfang, Chaoyang.

Lonchognathosaurus is a genus of dsungaripterid pterodactyloid pterosaur from the Aptian-Albian-age Lower Cretaceous Lianmuqin Formation of Xinjiang, China.

<i>Jidapterus</i> Genus of chaoyangopterid pterosaur from the Early Cretaceous

Jidapterus is a genus of chaoyangopterid pterosaur from the Aptian-age Lower Cretaceous Jiufotang Formation of Chaoyang, Liaoning, China. The genus was in 2003 named by Dong Zhiming, Sun Yue-Wu and Wu Shao-Yuan. The type species is Jidapterus edentus. The genus name is derived from Jílín Dàxué or "Jilin University" and a Latinized Greek pteron, "wing". The specific name means "toothless" in Latin.

<i>Lonchodectes</i> Genus of lonchodectid pterosaur from the Late Cretaceous

Lonchodectes was a genus of lonchodectid pterosaur from several formations dating to the Turonian of England, mostly in the area around Kent. The species belonging to it had been assigned to Ornithocheirus until David Unwin's work of the 1990s and 2000s. Several potential species are known; most are based on scrappy remains, and have gone through several other generic assignments. The genus is part of the complex taxonomy issues surrounding Early Cretaceous pterosaurs from Brazil and England, such as Amblydectes, Anhanguera, Coloborhynchus, and Ornithocheirus.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lonchodectidae</span> Family of pteranodontoid pterosaurs

Lonchodectidae or Lonchodraconidae is a group of pterosaurs within the clade Pterodactyloidea. It has variously been considered to be within Ctenochasmatoidea, Azhdarchoidea and Pteranodontoidea. They are notable for their high, conical tooth sockets and raised alveolar margins.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ornithocheiroidea</span> Clade of pterodactyloid pterosaurs

Ornithocheiroidea is a group of pterosaurs within the extinct suborder Pterodactyloidea. They were typically large pterosaurs that lived from the Early to Late Cretaceous periods, with fossil remains found all over the world except Antarctica.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dsungaripteroidea</span> Superfamily of reptiles (fossil)

Dsungaripteroidea is a group of pterosaurs within the suborder Pterodactyloidea.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Azhdarchoidea</span> Superfamily of ornithocheiroid pterosaurs

Azhdarchoidea is a group of pterosaurs within the suborder Pterodactyloidea, more specifically within the group Ornithocheiroidea. Pterosaurs belonging to this group lived throughout the Early and Late Cretaceous periods, with one tentative member, Tendaguripterus, that lived in the Late Jurassic period. The largest azhdarchoids include members of the family Azhdarchidae, examples of these are Quetzalcoatlus, Hatzegopteryx, and Arambourgiania. The Azhdarchoidea has been recovered as either closely related to the Ctenochasmatoidea, as the sister taxon of the Pteranodontoidea within the Ornithocheiroidea, or within the Tapejaroidea, which in turn was also within the Ornithocheiroidea.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Eupterodactyloidea</span> Infraorder of pterodactyloid pterosaurs

Eupterodactyloidea is an extinct group of pterodactyloid pterosaurs that existed from the latest Late Jurassic to the latest Late Cretaceous periods. Eupterodactyloids have been found on all continents except Antarctica.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Novialoidea</span> Clade of macronychopteran pterosaurs

Novialoidea is an extinct clade of macronychopteran pterosaurs that lived from the latest Early Jurassic to the latest Late Cretaceous, their fossils having been found on all continents except Antarctica.

<i>Banguela</i> Genus of azhdarchoid pterosaur from the Early Cretaceous

Banguela is a genus of azhdarchoid pterosaur from the Early Cretaceous period of what is now Brazil. Only one species is known, Banguela oberlii.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tapejaroidea</span> Clade of ornithocheiroid pterosaurs

Tapejaroidea is a group of pterosaurs belonging to the clade Ornithocheiroidea. Tapejaroids lived from the Early to Late Cretaceous periods, with one possible member, Tendaguripterus, extending the fossil range to the Late Jurassic period. Tapejaroidea contains two groups, the Dsungaripteridae and the Azhdarchoidea, which in turn includes the azhdarchids, the group that contains some of the largest flying animals. The group was named by Brazilian paleontologist Alexander Wilhelm Armin Kellner in 1996.

<i>Apatorhamphus</i> Genus of azhdarchoid pterosaur from the Late Cretaceous

Apatorhamphus is an extinct genus of azhdarchoid pterosaur from the Kem Kem Group of Morocco. It might have been part of the Chaoyangopteridae. It is only known from a few snout fragments and it likely had a wingspan of between 3–7 metres (9.8–23.0 ft)

References

  1. ↑ Bonaparte, J.F., and Sanchez, T.M. (1975). Restos de un pterosaurio Puntanipterus globosus de la formación La Cruz provincia San Luis, Argentina. Actas Primo Congresso Argentino de Paleontologia e Biostratigraphica2:105-113. [Spanish]
  2. ↑ Unwin, David M. (2006). The Pterosaurs: From Deep Time. New York: Pi Press. p. 273. ISBN   0-13-146308-X.
  3. ↑ Witton, Mark (2013). Pterosaurs: Natural History, Evolution, Anatomy. Princeton University Press. p. 51. ISBN   978-0691150611.
  4. ↑ Bestwick, Jordan; Unwin, David M.; Butler, Richard J.; Henderson, Donald M.; Purnell, Mark A. (November 2018). "Pterosaur dietary hypotheses: a review of ideas and approaches". Biological Reviews. 93 (4): 2021–2048. doi:10.1111/brv.12431. PMC   6849529 . PMID   29877021.
  5. 1 2 Dyke, G.; Benton, M.; Posmosanu, E.; Naish, D. (2010). "Early Cretaceous (Berriasian) birds and pterosaurs from the Cornet bauxite mine, Romania". Palaeontology. 54: 79–95. doi: 10.1111/j.1475-4983.2010.00997.x . S2CID   15172374.
  6. ↑ Young, C.-C. (1964). "On a new pterosaurian from Sinkiang, China" (PDF). Vertebrate Palasiatica: 221–225.
  7. ↑ Yang, S.Y. (2015). "Study history and research ethics of the dinosaur, pterosaur and bird tracks from Korea". Journal of the Geological Society of Korea. 51 (2): 127–140. doi:10.14770/jgsk.2015.51.2.127.
  8. ↑ Kim, Jeong Yul; Huh, Min (2018). Dinosaurs, Birds, and Pterosaurs of Korea: A Paradise of Mesozoic Vertebrates (PDF). Springer Nature. ISBN   978-981-10-6998-7.
  9. ↑ Lü, J.; Azuma, Y.; Dong, Z.; Barsbold, R.; Kobayashi, Y.; Lee, Y.-N. (2009). "New material of dsungaripterid pterosaurs (Pterosauria: Pterodactyloidea) from western Mongolia and its palaeoecological implications". Geological Magazine . 146 (5): 690–700. doi:10.1017/S0016756809006414.
  10. 1 2 Kellner, A.W.A., 2003. Pterosaur phylogeny and comments on the evolutionary history of the AN group. In: Buffetaut, E., Mazin, J.M. (Eds.), Evolution and Palaeobiology of Pterosaurs. Geological Society, London, Special Publication 217, 105–137.
  11. ↑ Unwin, D. M., (2003). "On the phylogeny and evolutionary history of pterosaurs." Pp. 139-190. in Buffetaut, E. & Mazin, J.-M., (eds.) (2003). Evolution and Palaeobiology of Pterosaurs. Geological Society of London, Special Publications 217, London, 1-347.
  12. ↑ Andres, B.; Ji, Q. (2008). "A new pterosaur from the Liaoning Province of China, the phylogeny of the Pterodactyloidea, and convergence in their cervical vertebrae". Palaeontology. 51 (2): 453–469. doi: 10.1111/j.1475-4983.2008.00761.x .
  13. ↑ Chen, He; Jiang, Shunxing; Kellner, Alexander W. A.; Cheng, Xin; Zhang, Xinjun; Qiu, Rui; Li, Yang; Wang, Xiaolin (April 1, 2020). "New anatomical information on Dsungaripterus weii Young, 1964 with focus on the palatal region". PeerJ. 8: e8741. doi: 10.7717/peerj.8741 . PMC   7127482 . PMID   32274262.
  14. ↑ Alexander Averianov (2014). "Review of taxonomy, geographic distribution, and paleoenvironments of Azhdarchidae (Pterosauria)". ZooKeys (432): 1–107. doi: 10.3897/zookeys.432.7913 . PMC   4141157 . PMID   25152671.
  15. 1 2 Martill, D.M.; Frey, E.; Diaz, G.C.; Bell, C.M. (2000). "Reinterpretation of a Chilean pterosaur and the occurrence of Dsungeripteridae in South America". Geological Magazine. 137 (1): 19–25. Bibcode:2000GeoM..137...19M. doi:10.1017/S0016756800003502. S2CID   128593191.
  16. ↑ Hyder, E. S.; Witton, M. P.; Martill, D. M. (2014). "Evolution of the Pterosaur Pelvis". Acta Palaeontologica Polonica. 59 (1): 109–124. doi:10.4202/app.2011.1109. S2CID   55405758.
  17. ↑ Alexander O. Averianov; Stepan V. Ivantsov; Sergey V. Leshchinskiy; Pavel P.Skutschas (12 April 2022). "First pterosaur bone from the Lower Cretaceous of Siberia, Russia". Cretaceous Research. 135: 105230. doi:10.1016/j.cretres.2022.105230. S2CID   248136173 . Retrieved 13 April 2022.
  18. ↑ Maisch, M.W.; Matzke, A.T.; Sun, Ge (2004). "A new dsungaripteroid pterosaur from the Lower Cretaceous of the southern Junggar Basin, north-west China" (PDF). Cretaceous Research. 25 (5): 625–634. doi:10.1016/j.cretres.2004.06.002.
  19. ↑ Andres, B.; Clark, J.; Xu, X. (2014). "The Earliest Pterodactyloid and the Origin of the Group". Current Biology. 24 (9): 1011–6. doi: 10.1016/j.cub.2014.03.030 . PMID   24768054.
  20. ↑ Kellner, Alexander W. A.; Weinschütz, Luiz C.; Holgado, Borja; Bantim, Renan A. M.; Sayão, Juliana M. (19 August 2019). "A new toothless pterosaur (Pterodactyloidea) from Southern Brazil with insights into the paleoecology of a Cretaceous desert". Anais da Academia Brasileira de Ciências. 91 (suppl 2): e20190768. doi: 10.1590/0001-3765201920190768 . ISSN   0001-3765. PMID   31432888.
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