Sharovipterygidae

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Sharovipterygidae
Temporal range: Middle Triassic-Late Triassic, 230–225  Ma
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Sharovipteryx mirabilis fossil.JPG
Type specimen of Sharovipteryx
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Reptilia
Clade: Archosauromorpha
Family: Sharovipterygidae
Tatarinov, 1989
Type species
Podopteryx mirabilis
Sharov, 1971
Genera

Sharovipterygidae is a family of strange gliding archosauromorphs from the mid-Triassic of Eurasia, notable for their short forelimbs and long, wing-like hindlimbs, which supported membranes for gliding. They are represented by Sharovipteryx and Ozimek volans . [1] [2]

A 2019 phylogenetic analysis suggested that Ozimek, and by extension Sharovipteryx, may belong to the Tanystropheidae. [3]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Archosauromorpha</span> Infraclass of reptiles

Archosauromorpha is a clade of diapsid reptiles containing all reptiles more closely related to archosaurs rather than lepidosaurs. Archosauromorphs first appeared during the late Middle Permian or Late Permian, though they became much more common and diverse during the Triassic period.

<i>Kuehneosaurus</i> Genus of reptiles

Kuehneosaurus is an extinct genus of Late Triassic kuehneosaurid reptile known from the Late Triassic of the Penarth Group of southwest England and the Steinmergel Group of Luxembourg. Temperature at this stage and region would have ranged from 28 to 35 °C. It was named by P. L. Robinson in 1962 in honour of paleontologist Walther Kühn, and the type and only species is Kuehneosaurus latus. Measuring 72 centimetres long, it had "wings" formed from ribs which jutted out from its body by as much as 14.3 cm, connected by a membrane which allowed it to slow its descent when jumping from trees. It is a member of a family of extinct gliding reptiles, the Kuehneosauridae, within a larger living group the Lepidosauromorpha, which contain modern lizards and tuatara.

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

Sharovipteryx is a genus of early gliding reptiles containing the single species Sharovipteryx mirabilis. It is known from a single fossil and is the only glider with a membrane surrounding the pelvis instead of the pectoral girdle. This lizard-like reptile was found in 1965 in the Madygen Formation, Dzailauchou, on the southwest edge of the Fergana Valley in Kyrgyzstan, in what was then the Asian part of the U.S.S.R. dating to the middle-late Triassic period. The Madygen horizon displays flora that put it in the Upper Triassic. An unusual reptile, Longisquama, was also found there.

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

Longisquama is a genus of extinct reptile. There is only one species, Longisquama insignis, known from a poorly preserved skeleton and several incomplete fossil impressions from the Middle to Late Triassic Madygen Formation in Kyrgyzstan. It is known from the type fossil specimen, slab and counterslab and five referred specimens of possible integumentary appendages. All specimens are in the collection of the Paleontological Institute of the Russian Academy of Sciences in Moscow.

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

Trilophosaurs are lizard-like Triassic allokotosaur reptiles related to the archosaurs. The best known genus is Trilophosaurus, a herbivore up to 2.5 metres long. It had a short, unusually heavily built skull, equipped with massive, broad flattened cheek teeth with sharp shearing surfaces for cutting up tough plant material. Teeth are absent from the premaxilla and front of the lower jaw, which in life were probably equipped with a horny beak.

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

Brachyrhinodon is an extinct genus of sphenodontian from the Late Triassic Lossiemouth Sandstone of Scotland.

Tsylmosuchus is an extinct genus of proterosuchid archosauriform reptile known from Western Russia. Fossils referred to Tsylmosuchus occurred over a wide area in sediments corresponding to the Induan and Olenekian stages of the Early Triassic. Most of these fossils are fragmentary neck vertebrae which were originally reported as sharing similarities with crocodile-line archosaurs (pseudosuchians) such as Mandasuchus. As a result, Tsylmosuchus was first described as part of the family Rauisuchidae, making it supposedly one of the oldest known archosaurs. However, its fragmentary remains do not show any of the distinguishing features of rauisuchids or even pseudosuchians in general, so Tsylmosuchus has more recently been interpreted as an indeterminate archosauriform. Although three species of Tsylmosuchus have been named, they lack diagnostic traits and are probably not distinct from each other. In 2023, Tsylmosuchus was reinterpreted as a proterosuchid, specifically a member of the subfamily Chasmatosuchinae.

Vjushkovisaurus is an extinct genus of Middle Triassic archosauriform. It is known from the Anisian-aged Donguz Gorizont in Sol-Iletsk, Orenburg Oblast, Russia. The genus was named in 1982, with the type species being V. berdjanensis. Material has been collected in the Berdyanka II locality from a fossil assemblage called the Eryosuchus Fauna along the Berdyanka River, specifically in a sand-carbonate concretion in the upper part of the main river channel. Vjushkovisaurus is known only from the holotype PIN 2865/62, a partial postcranial skeleton which consists of 12 presacral vertebrae, left humerus, ribs, a fragment of the coracoid and a fragment of the fibula.

Vonhuenia is an extinct genus of proterosuchid, a basal archosauriform from the Early Triassic of Russia. Fossils have been found in the Vokhminskaya Formation, along the Vetluga River that are Induan in age, making Vonhuenia one of the earliest archosauriforms.

Blomosuchus is an extinct genus of archosauriform from the Early Triassic of Russia. The type species was named in 1992 as Blomia georgii. However, the name Blomia was preoccupied by a genus of mites in the family Glycyphagidae (Blomia), so the genus was renamed Blomosuchus in 1997. Fossils of Blomosuchus have been found along the Vetluga River besides fossils of another problematic archosauriform, Vonhuenia.

Dongusia is an extinct genus of rauisuchid reptile from the Middle Triassic of Russia. The type species D. colorata was named by German paleontologist Friedrich von Huene in 1940 on the basis of a single vertebra. This bone was found in the Sol-Iletsky District of Orenburg Oblast. Huene thought Dongusia was a primitive archosauriform. In the 1960s, D. colorata was included in the early archosauriform genus Erythrosuchus. In 1970, similarities were noted between the Dongusia vertebra and those of the rauisuchid "Mandasuchus" from Tanzania. The vertebra is now thought to belong to a rauisuchid, but the genus Dongusia is considered a nomen dubium because there are no diagnostic features in the single bone that distinguish it from other rauisuchids.

Exilisuchus is an extinct genus of archosauromorph reptile from the Early Triassic of Russia. The type species E. tubercularis was named in 1979. Fossils are known from two Russian assemblages, the Benthosuchus - Thoosuchus assemblage and the Angusaurus assemblage. Both are Olenekian in age. Although initially believed to be a proterosuchid archosauriform, a 2016 analysis found that it also shared features with tanystropheids, and thus is currently classified as Archosauromorpha incertae sedis. Due to the small amount of preserved material, this genus is sometimes considered a nomen dubium.

The Madygen Formation is a Late Triassic (Carnian) geologic formation and Lagerstätte in the Batken and Osh Regions of western Kyrgyzstan, with minor outcrops in neighboring Tajikistan and Uzbekistan. The conglomerates, sandstones and mudstones of the 560 m (1,840 ft) thick formation were deposited in terrestrial lacustrine, alluvial, fluvial and deltaic environments.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Protorosauria</span> Extinct order of reptiles

Protorosauria is an extinct, likely paraphyletic group of basal archosauromorph reptiles from the latest Middle Permian to the end of the Late Triassic of Asia, Europe and North America. It was named by the English anatomist and paleontologist Thomas Henry Huxley in 1871 as an order, originally to solely contain Protorosaurus. Other names which were once considered equivalent to Protorosauria include Prolacertiformes and Prolacertilia.

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

Kuehneosuchus is an extinct genus of Late Triassic kuehneosaurid reptile known from the Late Triassic of southwest England. It was named by P. L. Robinson in 1967 and the type and only species is Kuehneosuchus latissimus. It is known from the holotype NHMUK PV R 6111, a set of associated vertebrae and ribs. It is a derived kuehneosaurid, most closely related to Kuehneosaurus. The genera are very similar and can be distinguished from one another primarily on the length of their "wing" ribs, relatively short and massive in Kuehneosaurus but up to 4 times longer and more gracile in Kuehneosuchus. However, the skull and major postcranial bones are identical in both taxa, as their age and horizon. According to aerodynamic studies Kuehneosuchus, unlike Kuehneosaurus which may be a species of the same genus or represent a different sexual morph, was probably a glider.

Koinia is an extinct genus of temnospondyl amphibian from the Late Permian of Russia. It is an archegosauroid in the subfamily Melosaurinae. Koinia was named in 1993 with the description of the type species K. silantjevi, based on fossils that were found in the Ocher Assemblage Zone, near the Vym River in the Komi Republic.

Uralosuchus is an extinct genus of temnospondyl amphibian from the Late Permian of Russia, belonging to the group Archegosauroidea. It is a member of the archegosauroidean subfamily Melosaurinae. Fossils have been found in Orenburg Oblast. Uralosuchus was named in 1993 with the description of the type species U. tverdochlebovae.

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

Wangisuchus is an extinct genus of archosauriform reptile from the Middle Triassic of China that is known from fragmentary fossil jaw bones. These bones were found at the Hsishihwa locality in the upper Ermaying Formation, which dates to the late Anisian stage about 242 million years ago. Wangisuchus was named in 1964 by Chinese paleontologist Yang Zhongjian, who described a single species, Wangisuchus tzeyii, on the basis of these bones.

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

Tanystropheidae is an extinct family of archosauromorph reptiles that lived throughout the Triassic Period, often considered to be "protorosaurs". They are characterized by their long, stiff necks formed from elongated cervical vertebrae with very long cervical ribs. Members of the group include both terrestrial and aquatic forms. While some tanystropheids were small lizard-like animals, other tanystropheids such as Tanystropheus were large animals that had necks that were several meters long, longer than the rest of their bodies.

<i>Ozimek volans</i> Extinct species of reptile

Ozimek is a genus of sharovipterygid archosauromorph reptile, known from Late Triassic deposits in Poland and closely related to the Kyrgyzstani Sharovipteryx. It contains one species, O. volans, named in 2016 by Jerzy Dzik and Tomasz Sulej. Like Sharovipteryx, Ozimek had long, slender limbs with the hindlimbs longer than the forelimbs; the hindlimbs likely supported gliding membranes as fossilized in Sharovipteryx. Another unusual characteristic was the shoulder girdle, where the massive coracoids formed a shield-like structure covering the bottom of the shoulder region that would have limited mobility. In other respects, such as its long neck, it was a typical member of the non-natural grouping Protorosauria. Phylogenetic analysis has indicated that it, possibly along with Sharovipteryx, may have been an unusual member of the protorosaur group Tanystropheidae, although further study of its anatomy is needed to resolve its precise relationships.

References

  1. Unwin, D.M.; Alifanov, V.R.; Benton, M.J. (2000). "Enigmatic small reptiles from the Middle–Late Triassic of Kyrgyzstan". In Benton, M.J.; Shishkin, M.A.; Unwin, D.M.; Kurochkin, E.N. (eds.). The Age of Dinosaurs in Russia and Mongolia. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. pp. 177–186.
  2. Dzik, J.; Sulej, Tomasz (2016). "An early Late Triassic long-necked reptile with a bony pectoral shield and gracile appendages" (PDF). Acta Palaeontologica Polonica. 64 (4): 805–823.
  3. Pritchard, A.C.; Sues, H.-D. (2019). "Postcranial remains of Teraterpeton hrynewichorum (Reptilia: Archosauromorpha) and the mosaic evolution of the saurian postcranial skeleton". Journal of Systematic Palaeontology. 17 (20): 1745–1765. Bibcode:2019JSPal..17.1745P. doi:10.1080/14772019.2018.1551249. S2CID   91446492.