Ruixinia

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Ruixinia
Temporal range: Early Cretaceous (Barremian), ~125  Ma
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Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Clade: Dinosauria
Clade: Saurischia
Clade: Sauropodomorpha
Clade: Sauropoda
Clade: Macronaria
Clade: Somphospondyli
Genus: Ruixinia
Mo et al., 2022
Species:
R. zhangi
Binomial name
Ruixinia zhangi
Mo et al., 2022

Ruixinia is an extinct genus of somphospondylan titanosauriform dinosaur from the Early Cretaceous (Barremian) Yixian Formation of China. The genus contains a single species, Ruixinia zhangi. The Ruixinia holotype is a partial articulated skeleton with the most complete series of caudal vertebrae known from any Asian titanosauriform. [1]

Contents

Discovery and naming

The Ruixinia holotype specimen, ELDM EL-J009, was found in sediments of the Yixian Formation in Beipiao, Liaoning Province, northeastern China. This locality is dated to the Barremian age of the Early Cretaceous period. The fossil material consists of a partial articulated skeleton including cervical, dorsal, and sacral vertebrae, caudal vertebrae and associated chevrons, dorsal ribs, and a left ilium, pubis, femur, tibia, astragalus, metatarsal V, and possible pedal phalanx. At the time of its description, the fossil material was still partially embedded in matrix, with only the left side of the bones prepared. [1]

In 2022, Ruixinia zhangi was described as a new genus and species of titanosauriform dinosaurs by Jinyou Mo, Feimin Ma, Yilun Yu, and Xing Xu. The binomial honors Ruixin Zhang, a contributor to the Erlianhaote Dinosaur Museum. [1]

Description

Ruixinia was a mid-sized sauropod, with an estimated length of approximately 12 meters. [1]

The neck of Ruixinia was over 4 meters long and consisted of at least 15 cervical vertebrae. Such a high number of cervical vertebrae is similar to Dongbeititan , Euhelopus , and Mamenchisaurus . [1]

The tail of Ruixinia contained at least 52 vertebrae. The last few vertebrae were fused together, an unusual trait in sauropods otherwise only known to occur in some Jurassic Asian sauropods such as Shunosaurus and Mamenchisaurus. However, the structure of the fused vertebrae differs between the three taxa. In Ruixinia, the fused vertebrae form a rodlike structure. [1]

The chevrons are distinctive, particularly that of the 20th caudal vertebra, which has a pentagonal shape. [1]

Classification

Mo et al. (2022) recovered Ruixinia to be a basal titanosaur, placed as the sister taxon to a clade containing Daxiatitan and Xianshanosaurus . [1] However, both Daxiatitan and Xianshanosaurus have also been suggested to have affinities with mamenchisaurids, [2] and Mo et al. noted several similarities between Ruixinia and Mamenchisaurus. Ruixinia was not found to be closely related to either of its contemporaries, Dongbeititan or Liaoningotitan . The cladogram below displays the results of the phylogenetic analyses of Mo et al. (2022). [1]

Titanosauriformes

In their 2024 description of the basal titanosaur Gandititan , Han et al. included Ruixinia in their phylogenetic analyses, recovering it as a member of the Euhelopodidae, rather than the Titanosauria, as the sister taxon to Jiangshanosaurus . The results of their phylogenetic analyses are shown in the cladogram below: [3]

Titanosauriformes

Paleoecology

Ruixinia is a member of the Jehol Biota. Two other sauropod genera, Dongbeititan and Liaoningotitan, are also known from the Jehol Biota. [1]

Related Research Articles

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Daanosaurus was a genus of dinosaur. It was a sauropod which lived during the Late Jurassic. It lived in what is now China, and was similar to Bellusaurus.

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

Klamelisaurus is a genus of herbivorous sauropod dinosaur from the Middle Jurassic Shishugou Formation of China. The type species is Klamelisaurus gobiensis, which was named by Zhao Xijin in 1993, based on a partial skeleton discovered in 1982 near the abandoned town of Jiangjunmiao. Zhao described Klamelisaurus as the only member of a new subfamily, Klamelisaurinae, among the now-defunct primitive sauropod order Bothrosauropodoidea. Since Zhao's description, Klamelisaurus received limited attention from researchers until Andrew Moore and colleagues redescribed it in 2020.

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

Mongolosaurus is a genus of titanosauriform sauropod dinosaur which lived during the Early Cretaceous of China.

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

Phuwiangosaurus is a genus of titanosaur dinosaur from the Early Cretaceous (Valanginian-Hauterivian) Sao Khua Formation of Thailand. The type species, P. sirindhornae, was described by Martin, Buffetaut, and Suteethorn in a 1993 press release and was formally named in 1994. The species was named to honor Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn of Thailand, who was interested in the geology and palaeontology of Thailand, while the genus was named after the Phu Wiang area, where the fossil was discovered. The precise affinities of Phuwiangosaurus among titanosauriform sauropods are uncertain, though several studies have classified it as a euhelopodid.

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

Dongbeititan is a genus of sauropod dinosaur from the Early Cretaceous-age Yixian Formation of Beipiao, Liaoning, China. It is based on holotype DNHM D2867, a partial postcranial skeleton including bones from the limbs, shoulder and pelvic girdles, and vertebrae, which was described in 2007. Its describers suggested it was as a basal titanosauriform, not as derived as Gobititan or Jiutaisaurus, but more derived than Euhelopus, Fusuisaurus, and Huanghetitan. The type species is D. dongi, and it is the first named sauropod from the Yixian Formation, which is part of the well-known Jehol Group. The genus name refers to the region Dongbei and to Greek titan, "giant". The specific name honours the Chinese paleontologist Dong Zhiming. Like other sauropods, Dongbeititan would have been a large quadrupedal herbivore.

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

Daxiatitan is a genus of sauropod dinosaur known from the Lower Cretaceous of Gansu, China. Its type and only species is Daxiatitan binglingi. It is known from a single partial skeleton consisting of most of the neck and back vertebrae, two tail vertebrae, a shoulder blade, and a thigh bone. At the time of its discovery in 2008, Daxiatitan was regarded as potentially the largest known dinosaur from China.

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

Ruyangosaurus is a genus of titanosauriform sauropod dinosaur recovered from the Early Cretaceous Haoling Formation of China. The type species is R. giganteus, described in 2009 by Lü Junchang et al.

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

Xianshanosaurus is a genus of sauropod dinosaur from the Early Cretaceous (Aptian-Albian) of the Ruyang Basin in Henan Province, China. Its type and only species is Xianshanosaurus shijiagouensis. It was described in 2009 by a team of paleontologists led by Lü Junchang. Xianshanosaurus may be a titanosaur, and Daxiatitan may be its closest relative, but its evolutionary relationships remain controversial.

Liubangosaurus is a genus of sauropod dinosaur that lived during the Early Cretaceous in what is now China. The type and only species is Liubangosaurus hei, first described by Mo Jinyou, Xu Xing and Eric Buffetaut in 2010. Liubangosaurus is known from the holotype NHMG8152, five complete and articulated middle-caudal dorsal vertebrae that were collected from the Xinlong Formation in Fusui County, Guangxi Province. Mo et al. (2010) found that Liubangosaurus belonged to the clade Eusauropoda.

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

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<i>Tambatitanis</i> Genus of titanosauriform sauropod dinosaur

Tambatitanis is an extinct genus of titanosauriform, possibly a titanosaurian, sauropod dinosaur from the Early Cretaceous aged Ohyamashimo Formation of the Sasayama Group. It is known from a single species, Tambatitanis amicitiae, known from a partial skeleton.

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

Savannasaurus is a genus of titanosaurian sauropod dinosaur from the Late Cretaceous Winton Formation of Queensland, Australia. It contains one species, Savannasaurus elliottorum, named in 2016 by Stephen Poropat and colleagues. The holotype and only known specimen, originally nicknamed "Wade", is the most complete specimen of an Australian sauropod, and is held at the Australian Age of Dinosaurs museum. Dinosaurs known from contemporary rocks include its close relative Diamantinasaurus and the theropod Australovenator; associated teeth suggest that Australovenator may have fed on the holotype specimen.

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

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Liaoningotitan is a genus of titanosauriform sauropod from the Early Cretaceous (Barremian) Yixian Formation in Liaoning, China.

<i>Abdarainurus</i> Extinct dinosaur genus

Abdarainurus is a genus of titanosaur dinosaur from the Alagteeg Formation in Mongolia. The type and only species is A. barsboldi. Currently seen as an indeterminate titanosaur, it may represent a previously unknown lineage of Asian macronarians. Abdarainurus is not known from many remains; it is only known from eight front tail vertebrae and a middle tail vertebra and several chevrons.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Diamantinasauria</span> Clade of somphospondylan sauropod dinosaurs

Diamantinasauria is an extinct clade of somphospondylan titanosauriform sauropod dinosaurs with close affinities to the Titanosauria, known from the early Late Cretaceous (Cenomanian-Turonian) of South America and Australia. It was named by Poropat and colleagues in 2021, and contains four genera: Australotitan, Savannasaurus and Diamantinasaurus from the Winton Formation of Queensland, as well as Sarmientosaurus from the Bajo Barreal Formation of Patagonia. The existence of the clade indicates connectivity between Australia and South America via Antarctica during the Cretaceous period.

<i>Jiangxititan</i> Genus of somphospondylan sauropod dinosaurs

Jiangxititan is an extinct genus of somphospondylan titanosauriform dinosaur from the Late Cretaceous Nanxiong Formation of China. The genus contains a single species, J. ganzhouensis, known from several articulated vertebrae with ribs. Originally described as a titanosaur, Jiangxititan was later suggested to be a non-titanosaurian somphospondylan.

<i>Gandititan</i> Genus of titanosaurian dinosaurs

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References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Mo, Jinyou; Ma, Feimin; Yu, Yilun; Xu, Xing (2022-12-09). "A New Titanosauriform Sauropod with An Unusual Tail from the Lower Cretaceous of Northeastern China". Cretaceous Research. 144: 105449. doi:10.1016/j.cretres.2022.105449. ISSN   0195-6671. S2CID   254524890.
  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. ISSN   1477-2019. S2CID   219749618.
  3. Han, F.; Yang, L.; Lou, F.; Sullivan, C.; Xu, X.; Qiu, W.; Liu, H.; Yu, J.; Wu, R.; Ke, Y.; Xu, M.; Hu, J.; Lu, P. (2024). "A new titanosaurian sauropod, Gandititan cavocaudatus gen. et sp. nov., from the Late Cretaceous of southern China". Journal of Systematic Palaeontology. 22 (1). 2293038. doi:10.1080/14772019.2023.2293038.