Koleken

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Koleken
Temporal range:
Maastrichtian, ~71.7  Ma
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Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Clade: Dinosauria
Clade: Saurischia
Clade: Theropoda
Family: Abelisauridae
Subfamily: Carnotaurinae
Clade: Brachyrostra
Clade: Furileusauria
Tribe: Carnotaurini
Genus: Koleken
Species:
K. inakayali
Binomial name
Koleken inakayali
Pol et al., 2024

Koleken (meaning "coming from clay and water") is a genus of carnotaurin abelisaurid from the Maastrichtian La Colonia Formation in the Chubut Province of Argentina. The type and only species is K. inakayali, known from one immature specimen about six years old in minimum age. [1]

Contents

Discovery and naming

Koleken is known from only the holotype MPEF-PV 10826 which was initially found and reported in 2015, [2] but was not described as K. inakayali until 2024. The holotype, consists of "closely associated (but disarticulated) remains of the skull and atlas, as well as the articulated postcranial skeleton composed of the posterior most eight dorsal vertebrae, a complete sacrum, eight caudal vertebrae, an almost complete pelvis and hind limbs". It differs from the larger Carnotaurus in anatomical characteristics found in the skull, vertebrae, and leg bones. The specimen likewise is believed to represent a sub-adult based on a lack of fusion in some of the bones. [1]

The generic name, Koleken (IPA: [kɒːlɛkɛn] ), is a name in Teushen spoken by the native population of central Patagonia that means "coming from clay and water", given the specimen was found in a sedimentary section dominated by claystone representing an estuarine environment. The specific name, inakayali (IPA: [ɪnækæjælaɪ] ), honours Inakayal, one of the last chiefs of Tehuelches, native people from central Patagonia. [1]

Classification

Koleken is placed in the Carnotaurini tribe of Abelisauridae, in a polytomy with the other carnotaurins in a phylogenetic analysis: [1]

Abelisauridae

Paleoenvironment

Koleken was found in outcrops of the La Colonia Formation, which dates to the Maastrichtian (Cretaceous)–Paleocene (Paleogene) boundary. [3] This formation is best known for fossils of the abelisaurid theropod Carnotaurus and the saltasauroid titanosaur Titanomachya , [1] [4] as well as fossils of other reptiles including the turtle Patagoniaemys , the snake Alamitophis and the plesiosaurs Kawanectes , Chubutinectes and Sulcusuchus . [2] [5] [6] [7] Mammals discovered from the formation include Reigitherium , Coloniatherium , Argentodites and Ferugliotherium . [8] [9] Remains of an enantiornithine and, possibly, of a neornithine bird have been discovered. [10] [11]

Related Research Articles

<i>Carnotaurus</i> Genus of dinosaur from the Late Cretaceous period

Carnotaurus is a genus of theropod dinosaur that lived in South America during the Late Cretaceous period, probably sometime between 72 and 69 million years ago. The only species is Carnotaurus sastrei. Known from a single well-preserved skeleton, it is one of the best-understood theropods from the Southern Hemisphere. The skeleton, found in 1984, was uncovered in the Chubut Province of Argentina from rocks of the La Colonia Formation. Carnotaurus is a derived member of the Abelisauridae, a group of large theropods that occupied the large predatorial niche in the southern landmasses of Gondwana during the late Cretaceous. Within the Abelisauridae, the genus is often considered a member of the Brachyrostra, a clade of short-snouted forms restricted to South America.

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

Quilmesaurus is a genus of carnivorous abelisaurid theropod dinosaur from the Patagonian Upper Cretaceous of Argentina. It was a member of Abelisauridae, closely related to genera such as Carnotaurus. The only known remains of this genus are leg bones which share certain similarities to a variety of abelisaurids. However, these bones lack unique features, which may render Quilmesaurus a nomen vanum.

<i>Ekrixinatosaurus</i> Extinct genus of dinosaur

Ekrixinatosaurus is a genus of abelisaurid theropod which lived approximately 100 to 97 million years ago during the Late Cretaceous period. Its fossils have been found in Argentina. Only one species is currently recognized, Ekrixinatosaurus novasi, from which the specific name honors of Dr. Fernando Novas for his contributions to the study of abelisaurid theropods, while the genus name refers to the dynamiting of the holotype specimen. It was a large abelisaur, measuring between 6.5 and 8 m in length and weighing 800 kg (1,800 lb).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Anacleto Formation</span> Geologic formation in Argentina

The Anacleto Formation is a geologic formation with outcrops in the Argentine Patagonian provinces of Mendoza, Río Negro, and Neuquén. It is the youngest formation within the Neuquén Group and belongs to the Río Colorado Subgroup. Formerly that subgroup was treated as a formation, and the Anacleto Formation was known as the Anacleto Member.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Elasmosauridae</span> Extinct family of reptiles

Elasmosauridae is an extinct family of plesiosaurs, often called elasmosaurs. They had the longest necks of the plesiosaurs and existed from the Hauterivian to the Maastrichtian stages of the Cretaceous, and represented one of the two groups of plesiosaurs present at the end of the Cretaceous alongside Polycotylidae.

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Aphrosaurus was an extinct genus of plesiosaur from the Maastrichtian. The type species is Aphrosaurus furlongi, named by Welles in 1943. The holotype specimen was discovered in the Moreno Formation in Fresno County, California in 1939 by rancher Frank C. Piava. A second specimen - LACM 2832 - was also found in the same formation and initially diagnosed as a juvenile of the same species, but has since been removed from the genus.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Carnotaurinae</span> Extinct subfamily of reptiles

Carnotaurinae is a subfamily of the theropod dinosaur family Abelisauridae. As the name suggests, it includes the famous genus Carnotaurus as well as its close relatives from the Cretaceous Period of Argentina and Brazil. The group was first proposed by American paleontologist Paul Sereno in 1998, defined as a clade containing all abelisaurids more closely related to Carnotaurus than to Majungasaurus.

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">La Colonia Formation</span> Geological formation in Argentina

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

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References

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  2. 1 2 Gasparini, Zulma; Sterli, Juliana; Parras, Ana; Patricio O'Gorman, José; Salgado, Leonardo; Varela, Julio; Pol, Diego (May 2015). "Late Cretaceous reptilian biota of the La Colonia Formation, central Patagonia, Argentina: Occurrences, preservation and paleoenvironments". Cretaceous Research. 54: 154–168. Bibcode:2015CrRes..54..154G. doi:10.1016/j.cretres.2014.11.010. hdl: 11336/19244 . Retrieved 21 May 2024.
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