Vectiraptor

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Vectiraptor
Temporal range: Barremian, 125  Ma
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Vectiraptor Camellae by Nick Longrich.jpg
Camellate pneumaticity inside the dorsal vertebrae of Vectiraptor greeni
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Clade: Dinosauria
Clade: Saurischia
Clade: Theropoda
Family: Dromaeosauridae
Clade: Eudromaeosauria
Genus: Vectiraptor
Longrich, Martill & Jacobs, 2021
Species:
V. greeni
Binomial name
Vectiraptor greeni
Longrich, Martill and Jacobs, 2021

Vectiraptor (meaning "Isle of Wight thief") is a genus of dromaeosaurid dinosaur from the Barremian aged Wessex Formation of the United Kingdom. The type and only species is Vectiraptor greeni, known from associated dorsal vertebrae and a partial sacrum. [1]

Contents

Discovery and naming

Wessex Formation outcrops at Compton Bay, Isle of Wight, where the holotype was discovered. Vectiraptor site 2.jpg
Wessex Formation outcrops at Compton Bay, Isle of Wight, where the holotype was discovered.

Vectiraptor was initially discovered by amateur paleontologist Mick Green in 2004 in rocks of the Wessex Formation, below the cliffs of Compton Bay on the Isle of Wight, United Kingdom. The finds form the holotype IWCMS. 2021.31.1-3, consisting of two dorsal vertebrae. Later a partial sacrum of three vertebrae, IWCMS. 2021.31.2, would be discovered by the late Nick Chase. The element has been determined to belong to the holotype as all fossil elements were discovered over a short time period, and each find was located within several metres of the others. The holotype represents an adult individual, the age of which was estimated at twenty to thirty years on the basis of growth lines in the bone cortex. The vertebrae were donated to the collection of the Isle of Wight County Museum Service. [1]

The type species Vectiraptor greeni, would be erected by Nicholas Longrich, David Michael Martill and Megan Jacobs in 2021. The generic name, Vectiraptor, combines the Latin words Vectis, meaning "the Isle of Wight," and raptor meaning "thief". The specific name, greeni, is in honour of Mick Green who initially discovered and prepared the type material. [1]

Of large and wide dromaeosaurid teeth previously reported from Wight, such as the specimens IWCMS.2002.1, IWCMS.2002.3, IWCMS.2002.4 and BMNH R 16510, [2] the describing authors considered it likely that they in fact belonged to Vectiraptor, though they were not formally referred. [1]

Description

Size of Vectiraptor compared to a human 2 Fig 2 Vectiraptor silhouette-01.tif
Size of Vectiraptor compared to a human
The posterior dorsal Vectiraptor greeni dorsal vertebra by Nick Longrich.jpg
The posterior dorsal

The body length of Vectiraptor was estimated to be 2.5–3 metres (8.2–9.8 ft). [1]

The holotype includes two partial dorsal vertebrae and parts of the sacrum. Although fragmentary, the material shows a combination of features found only in the Dromaeosauridae, including relatively short and massive vertebrae, tall neural spines, and facets for the ribs set on long stalks. [1]

Two autapomorphies, or unique derived traits, were established. With the front vertebrae of the back, the usual deep triangular depression at the underside of the side process is subdivided by an extra ridge. The neural spines are robust with wide rough depressions for the attachment of ligaments. [1]

The vertebrae showed extensive pneumatisation. The dorsals had pleurocoels through which the air sacs of the respiratory system entered the vertebral bodies, forming large camellate air spaces. The diapophysal fossa also invaded the neural arch. The neural canals were expanded to behind, embaying the top of the centrum. The sacral vertebrae lacked pleurocoels and had a spongy bone structure. Their combined neural canal was so wide however, that it might have contained an air chamber, accessed by spaces between their partially fused neural arches. [1]

Phylogeny

A number of features, including the animal's large size, short dorsals, the presence of openings in the posterior dorsal vertebrae for air sacs, and the tall and narrow in side view neural spines with ligament scars, suggest the animal is a member of, or related to, the Eudromaeosauria. The resemblance to eudromaeosaurs from North America suggests a faunal exchange between North America and Europe. [1]

Related Research Articles

The Isle of Wight is one of the richest dinosaur localities in Europe, with over 20 species of dinosaur having been recognised from the early Cretaceous Period, some of which were first identified on the island, as well as the contemporary non-dinosaurian species of crocodile, turtle and pterosaur.

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

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

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

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Eucamerotus was a genus of sauropod dinosaur from the Barremian-age Lower Cretaceous Wessex Formation (Wealden) of the Isle of Wight, England.

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

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<i>Istiodactylus</i> Genus of istiodactylid pterosaur from the Early Cretaceous

Istiodactylus is a genus of pterosaur that lived during the Early Cretaceous period, about 120 million years ago. The first fossil was discovered on the English Isle of Wight in 1887, and in 1901 became the holotype specimen of a new species, O. latidens, in the genus Ornithodesmus. This species was moved to its own genus, Istiodactylus, in 2001; this name is Greek for "sail finger". More specimens were described in 1913, and Istiodactylus was the only pterosaur known from three-dimensionally preserved fossils for much of the 20th century. In 2006, a species from China, I. sinensis, was assigned to Istiodactylus, but it has also been suggested to belong to a different genus.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Velociraptorinae</span> Extinct subfamily of dinosaurs

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<i>Vallibonavenatrix</i> Genus of spinosaurid theropod dinosaur

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Wightia is a genus of tapejarid pterosaur recovered from the Lower Cretaceous (Barremian) aged Wessex Formation of the Isle of Wight of England, from which it gets its name. The only species within this genus is W. declivirostris.

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<i>Brighstoneus</i> Genus of hadrosauriform dinosaur

Brighstoneus is a genus of hadrosauriform dinosaur from the Early Cretaceous Wessex Formation of the Isle of Wight, England. The genus contains a single species, Brighstoneus simmondsi, known from a partial skeleton.

<i>Iberospinus</i> Extinct genus of spinosaurid dinosaur

IberospinusIPA:[aɪbiːʌroʊs̠piːnʊs̠] or IPA:[aɪbiːʌroʊs̠paɪnʌs̠] is an extinct genus of spinosaurid dinosaur from the Early Cretaceous (Barremian) Papo Seco Formation of Portugal. The genus contains a single species, I. natarioi, known from several assorted bones belonging to one individual. Iberospinus represents one of five known spinosaurid taxa from the Iberian Peninsula, the others being Camarillasaurus, Protathlitis, Riojavenatrix, and Vallibonavenatrix. It is important for its implications of the geographical origin of Spinosauridae and the suggested presence of potentially semi-aquatic lifestyle earlier in the evolution of this clade.

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References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Longrich, Nicholas R.; Martill, David M.; Jacobs, Megan L. (17 December 2021). "A new dromaeosaurid dinosaur from the Wessex Formation (Lower Cretaceous, Barremian) of the Isle of Wight, and implications for European palaeobiogeography". Cretaceous Research. 134: 105123. Bibcode:2022CrRes.13405123L. doi:10.1016/j.cretres.2021.105123. ISSN   0195-6671. S2CID   245324247.
  2. Sweetman, S.C., 2004. "The first record of velociraptorine dinosaurs (Saurischia, Theropoda) from the Wealden (Early Cretaceous, Barremian) of southern England". Cretaceous Research25: 353-364