Velocipes

Last updated

Velocipes
Temporal range: Late Triassic, 221.5–205.6  Ma
Velocipes guerichi fibula.jpg
Fibula of the holotype
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Clade: Dinosauria
Clade: Saurischia
Clade: Eusaurischia
Clade: Theropoda (?)
Genus: Velocipes
Huene, 1932
Species:
V. guerichi
Binomial name
Velocipes guerichi
Huene, 1932

Velocipes (meaning "quick foot") is a saurischian dinosaur genus from the Late Triassic that may have been a theropod; its fossils were found in the Norian-age Lissauer Breccia of southern Poland. [1]

Contents

Upon discovery, Velocipes was thought to have been a coelurosaur, but more recent studies have shown that Velocipes was probably a basal theropod or dinosauriform. [1]

History and taxonomy

The type species, V. guerichi, was first described by Huene in 1932 as a coelurosaur, based on GPIM UH no. 252, which consists of the proximal portion of a very poorly preserved fibula that was discovered in the Lissauer Breccia of Kocury, southern Poland by Georg Gürich around 1884; [2] [3] the bone was described but not named in 1884. [4] The bone was damaged during the Second World War and was thought to have been destroyed until it was rediscovered in 2012. [5] In 1956, von Huene placed Velocipes in the Halticosauridae, which has since become monotypic to only include Halticosaurus . [6] In 1984, Samuel Paul Welles considered Velocipes to be synonymous with Liliensternus . [7]

A later paper, published in 2000 by Rauhut and Hungerbuhler, claimed that the only specimen of this animal was not well preserved enough to be confidently identified as part of a fibula, and classified the genus as an "indeterminate vertebrate". [8] In 2004, Ronald Tykoski and Timothy Rowe listed Velocipes as a possible ceratosaur or coelophysoid. [9] Weishampel et al. (2004) also listed Velocipes as a possible ceratosaur. [10]

However, an SVP abstract reviewing putative dinosauriform remains from the Triassic of southern Poland confirmed the original theropod classification of Velocipes by von Huene, which was elaborated in detail in a 2017 paper. [11] [12] The authors considered Velocipes to have been a basal neotheropod or a taxon closely related to this clade.

Description

The surviving portion of the fibula is 16.4 cm long and after comparing the bone to other related theropods, it is believed that the full fibula was roughly 30-35 cm in length. [12] The medial surface is slightly concave, suggesting that Velocipes may have been a neotheropod, [12] and on the lateral surface of the bone there is a clear ridge about 52 mm long and about 5 mm high.

It is assumed that, based on the estimated size of the fibula, Velocipes may have reached up to 3 metres (9.8 ft) long and weighed around 50 kilograms (110 lb), [12] [5] although this can only be speculated as only one specimen of Velocipes is currently known to exist. [2]

Paleoecology

Velocipes would have been contemporaneous with the aetosaur genus Kocurypelta , an indeterminate species of lungfish, and the stem-turtle Proterochersis cf. porebensis. [5]

Related Research Articles

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

Saltopus is a genus of very small bipedal dinosauriform containing the single species Saltopus elginensis from the late Triassic period of Scotland. It is one of the most famous Elgin Reptiles.

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

Staurikosaurus is a genus of herrerasaurid dinosaur from the Late Triassic of Brazil, found in the Santa Maria Formation.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tetanurae</span> Clade containing most theropod dinosaurs

Tetanurae is a clade that includes most theropod dinosaurs, including megalosauroids, allosauroids, tyrannosauroids, ornithomimosaurs, compsognathids and maniraptorans. Tetanurans are defined as all theropods more closely related to modern birds than to Ceratosaurus and contain the majority of predatory dinosaur diversity. Tetanurae likely diverged from its sister group, Ceratosauria, during the late Triassic. Tetanurae first appeared in the fossil record by the Early Jurassic about 190 mya and by the Middle Jurassic had become globally distributed.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Coelophysoidea</span> Extinct superfamily of dinosaurs

Coelophysoidea is an extinct clade of theropod dinosaurs common during the Late Triassic and Early Jurassic periods. They were widespread geographically, probably living on all continents. Coelophysoids were all slender, carnivorous forms with a superficial similarity to the coelurosaurs, with which they were formerly classified, and some species had delicate cranial crests. Sizes range from about 1 to 6 m in length. It is unknown what kind of external covering coelophysoids had, and various artists have portrayed them as either scaly or feathered. Some species may have lived in packs, as inferred from sites where numerous individuals have been found together.

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

Procompsognathus is an extinct genus of coelophysid theropod dinosaur that lived approximately 210 million years ago during the later part of the Triassic Period, in what is now Germany. Procompsognathus was a small-sized, lightly built, ground-dwelling, bipedal carnivore, that could grow up to 1 m (3.3 ft) long.

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

Liliensternus is an extinct genus of basal neotheropod dinosaur that lived approximately 210 million years ago during the latter part of the Triassic Period in what is now Germany. Liliensternus was a moderate-sized, bipedal, ground-dwelling carnivore, that could grow up to 5.15 m (16.9 ft) long. It is the best represented Triassic theropod from Europe and one of the largest known.

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

Ozraptor is a genus of possibly abelisauroid theropod dinosaur from the Middle Jurassic (Bajocian) Colalura Sandstone of Australia, known from fragmentary remains.

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

Gojirasaurus is a potentially dubious genus of coelophysoid theropod dinosaur named after the giant monster movie character Godzilla.

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

Alwalkeria is a genus partly based on basal saurischian dinosaur remains from the Late Triassic, living in India.

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

Avipes is a genus of extinct archosaurs represented by the single species Avipes dillstedtianus, which lived during the middle Triassic period. The only known fossil specimen, a partial foot (metatarsals), was found in Bedheim, Thuringia, Germany, in deposits of Lettenkohlensandstein. Avipes was named in 1932 by Huene. Although originally classified as a coelurosaur or a ceratosaur, a new study of the fossil specimen found that it was too incomplete to assign to a group more specific than Archosauria, and so it was regarded as indeterminate by Rauhut and Hungerbuhler in 2000.

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

Betasuchus is a genus of theropod dinosaur which lived during the Late Cretaceous Period. Betasuchus is, besides Orthomerus, the only dinosaur genus named from remains found in the Netherlands and the only non-avian theropod found in the Maastrichtian Beds.

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

Magnosaurus was a genus of theropod dinosaur from the Middle Jurassic of England. It is based on fragmentary remains and has often been confused with or included in Megalosaurus.

Halticosaurus (pron.:"HAL-tick-oh-SORE-us") is a dubious genus of theropod dinosaur from the late Triassic period. It is known from a single fragmentary fossil specimen of the species H. longotarsus, found in the Middle Stubensandstein formation of what is present-day Germany The only known specimen was poorly preserved and may have been put together from bones of unrelated animals. Further research would be required to determine which of the bones belonged together, and what kind of theropod Halticosaurus was. However, most of the bones have been lost. For these reasons, Halticosaurus is considered to be a nomen dubium.

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

Genyodectes is a genus of ceratosaurian theropod dinosaur from the Lower Cretaceous (Aptian) of South America. The holotype material was collected from the Cerro Barcino Formation, Cañadón Grande, Departamento Paso de Indios in the Chubut Province of Argentina and consists of an incomplete snout, including the premaxillae, portions of both maxillas, the right and left dentary, many teeth, a fragment of the left splenial, and parts of the supradentaries. These elements are generally poorly preserved and some are in articulation. The premaxilla of Genyodectes possesses relatively large and protruding teeth, similar to those of Ceratosaurus. The specific name, serus, means "late". In 2016 it was estimated to be 6.25 meters in length and 790 kg in weight.

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

Laevisuchus is a genus of theropod dinosaur from the Late Cretaceous. Its remains were discovered by Charles Alfred Matley near Jabalpur in Maastrichtian "Carnosaur Bed" deposits in the Lameta Formation in Madhya Pradesh, central India, and were named and described by paleontologists Friedrich von Huene and Matley in 1933.

Orthogoniosaurus was a genus of theropod dinosaur from the late Maastrichtian-age Upper Cretaceous Lameta Formation of Jabalpur, India. It is based on one small, fragmentary tooth.

The Lissauer Breccia, sometimes referred to as the Kocury Locality, is a Norian geologic formation that is part of the larger Keuper limestone, which dominates across most of west and central Europe. Dinosaur remains diagnostic to the genus level are among the fossils that have been recovered from the formation. The site was studied in 1932 and was later forgotten and not explored until excavations began in 2012, and the Lissauer Breccia was re-described in 2021.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Timeline of coelophysoid research</span>

This timeline of coelophysoid research is a chronological listing of events in the history of paleontology focused on the coelophysoids, a group of primitive theropod dinosaurs that were among Earth's dominant predators during the Late Triassic and Early Jurassic epochs. Although formally trained scientists didn't discover coelophysoid fossils until the late 19th century, Native Americans of the modern southwestern United States may have already encountered their fossils. Navajo creation mythology describes the early Earth as being inhabited by a variety of different kinds of monsters who hunted humans for food. These monsters were killed by storms and the heroic Monster Slayers, leaving behind their bones. As these tales were told in New Mexico not far from bonebeds of Coelophysis, this dinosaur's remains may have been among the fossil remains that inspired the story.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Timeline of ceratosaur research</span>

This timeline of ceratosaur research is a chronological listing of events in the history of paleontology focused on the ceratosaurs, a group of relatively primitive, often horned, predatory theropod dinosaurs that became the apex predators of the southern hemisphere during the Late Cretaceous. The nature and taxonomic composition of the Ceratosauria has been controversial since the group was first distinguished in the late 19th century. In 1884 Othniel Charles Marsh described the new genus and species Ceratosaurus nasicornis from the Late Jurassic Morrison Formation of the western United States. He felt that it belonged in a new family that he called the Ceratosauridae. He created the new taxon Ceratosauria to include both the Ceratosauridae and the ostrich-like ornithomimids. The idea of the Ceratosauria was soon contested, however. Later that same decade both Lydekker and Marsh's hated rival Edward Drinker Cope argued that the taxon was invalid.

Kocurypelta is an extinct genus of paratypothoracin aetosaur from the Late Triassic (Norian)-aged Lissauer Breccia of southern Poland. Only the type species is known, which is K. silvestris, described by Czepiński et al. in 2021.

References

  1. 1 2 Velocipes on the Dinosaur Mailing List
  2. 1 2 Huene, F. von. (1932). Die fossile Reptil-Ordnung Saurischia, ihre Entwicklung und Geschichte. Monogr. Geol. Pal. 4 (1) pts. 1 and 2, viii + 361 pp.
  3. Gürich G. (1898), "The Paleozoic of the Polish Low Mountains", Verhandlungen der Russischen Kaiserlichen Gesellschaft zu Saint Petersburg32 1898:1–539).
  4. Gürich, G. (1884). Über einige Saurier des oberschlesischen Muschelkalkes. Zeitschrift der deutschen geologischen Gesellschaft 26: 136-141.
  5. 1 2 3 Czepiński, Ł.; Dróżdż, D.; Szczygielski, T.; Tałanda, M.; Pawlak, W.; Lewczuk, A.; Rytel, A.; Sulej, T. (2021). "An Upper Triassic Terrestrial Vertebrate Assemblage from the Forgotten Kocury Locality (Poland) with a New Aetosaur Taxon". Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology. 41: e1898977. doi:10.1080/02724634.2021.1898977. S2CID   233522981.
  6. von Huene F. (1956). Paläontologie und Phylogenie der niederen Tetrapoden. Jena: Gustav Fischer Verlag.
  7. Welles SP (1984). Dilophosaurus wetherilli (Dinosauria: Theropoda) osteology and comparisons. Palaeontographica Abteilung A 185: 85-180.
  8. Rauhut, O. W., and Hungerbühler, A. (2000). "A review of European Triassic theropods." Gaia, 15: 75-88.
  9. Tykoski RS, Rowe TB (2004). Ceratosauria. In: Weishampel DB, Dodson P., Osmólska H. (ed.). The Dinosauria . II edition. Berkeley: California University Press, pp. 47-70.
  10. Weishampel DB, Barrett PM, Coria RA, Le Loeuff J., Xu X., Zhao X., Sahni A., Gomani EMP, Noto CR (2004). Dinosaur distribution. In: Weishampel DB, Dodson P., Osmólska H. (eds). The Dinosauria. II edition. Berkeley: University of California Press, pp. 517–606.
  11. Czepinski et al., (2014). A Re-evaluation of the Purported Dinosaur Finds From The Middle-Late Triassic Of Poland. Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology 34 (Supplement to volume 5): 115A.
  12. 1 2 3 4 Skawiński, T.; Ziegler, M.; Czepiński, Ł.; Szermański, M.; Tałanda, M.; Surmik, D.; Niedźwiedzki, G. (2017). "A re-evaluation of the historical 'dinosaur' remains from the Middle-Upper Triassic of Poland". Historical Biology. 29 (4): 442–472. doi:10.1080/08912963.2016.1188385.