Dataset Information

Ferrodraco lentoni gen. et sp. nov., a new ornithocheirid pterosaur from the Winton Formation (Cenomanian-lower Turonian) of Queensland, Australia.

ABSTRACT: The Australian pterosaur record is poor by world standards, comprising fewer than 20 fragmentary specimens. Herein, we describe the new genus and species Ferrodraco lentoni gen. et sp. nov., based on the most complete pterosaur specimen ever found in Australia, and the first reported from the Winton Formation (Cenomanian-lower Turonian). The presence of premaxillary and mandibular crests, and spike-shaped teeth with subcircular bases, enable Ferrodraco to be referred to Anhangueria. Ferrodraco can be distinguished from all other anhanguerian pterosaurs based on two dental characters: the first premaxillary and mandibular tooth pairs are small; and the fourth-seventh tooth pairs are smaller than the third and eighth ones. Ferrodraco was included in a phylogenetic analysis of Pterosauria and resolved as the sister taxon to Mythunga camara (upper Albian Toolebuc Formation, Australia), with that clade occupying the most derived position within Ornithocheiridae. Ornithocheirus simus (Albian Cambridge Greensand, England), Coloborhynchus clavirostris (Valanginian Hastings Sands, England), and Tropeognathus mesembrinus (upper Aptian-lower Albian Romualdo Formation, Brazil) were resolved as successive sister taxa, which suggests that ornithocheirids were cosmopolitan during the Albian-Cenomanian. Furthermore, the stratigraphic age of Ferrodraco lentoni (Cenomanian-lower Turonian) implies that anhanguerians might have survived later in Australia than elsewhere.

SUBMITTER: Pentland AH

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6776501 | biostudies-literature | 2019 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

ACCESS DATA

Publications

Ferrodraco lentoni gen. et sp. nov., a new ornithocheirid pterosaur from the Winton Formation (Cenomanian-lower Turonian) of Queensland, Australia.

Pentland Adele H AH Poropat Stephen F SF Tischler Travis R TR Sloan Trish T Elliott Robert A RA Elliott Harry A HA Elliott Judy A JA Elliott David A DA

Scientific reports 20191003 1

The Australian pterosaur record is poor by world standards, comprising fewer than 20 fragmentary specimens. Herein, we describe the new genus and species Ferrodraco lentoni gen. et sp. nov., based on the most complete pterosaur specimen ever found in Australia, and the first reported from the Winton Formation (Cenomanian-lower Turonian). The presence of premaxillary and mandibular crests, and spike-shaped teeth with subcircular bases, enable Ferrodraco to be referred to Anhangueria. Ferrodraco c ...[more]

PMID: 31582757

Similar Datasets

Project description:A new giant sauropod, Australotitan cooperensis gen. et sp. nov., represents the first record of dinosaurs from the southern-central Winton Formation of the Eromanga Basin, Australia. We estimate the type locality to be 270-300 m from the base of the Winton Formation and compare this to the semi-contemporaneous sauropod taxa, Diamantinasaurus matildae Hocknull et al., 2009, Wintonotitan wattsi Hocknull et al., 2009 and Savannasaurus elliottorum Poropat et al., 2016. The new titanosaurian is the largest dinosaur from Australia as represented by osteological remains and based on limb-size comparisons it reached a size similar to that of the giant titanosaurians from South America. Using 3-D surface scan models we compare features of the appendicular skeleton that differentiate Australotitan cooperensis gen. et sp. nov. as a new taxon. A key limitation to the study of sauropods is the inability to easily and directly compare specimens. Therefore, 3-D cybertypes have become a more standard way to undertake direct comparative assessments. Uncoloured, low resolution, and uncharacterized 3-D surface models can lead to misinterpretations, in particular identification of pre-, syn- and post-depositional distortion. We propose a method for identifying, documenting and illustrating these distortions directly onto the 3-D geometric surface of the models using a colour reference scheme. This new method is repeatable for researchers when observing and documenting specimens including taphonomic alterations and geometric differences. A detailed comparative and preliminary computational phylogenetic assessment supports a shared ancestry for all four Winton Formation taxa, albeit with limited statistical support. Palaeobiogeographical interpretations from these resultant phylogenetic hypotheses remain equivocal due to contrary Asian and South American relationships with the Australian taxa. Temporal and palaeoenvironmental differences between the northern and southern-central sauropod locations are considered to explain the taxonomic and morphological diversity of sauropods from the Winton Formation. Interpretations for this diversity are explored, including an eco-morphocline and/or chronocline across newly developed terrestrial environments as the basin fills.

Dataset Information

Ferrodraco lentoni gen. et sp. nov., a new ornithocheirid pterosaur from the Winton Formation (Cenomanian-lower Turonian) of Queensland, Australia.

Publications

Ferrodraco lentoni gen. et sp. nov., a new ornithocheirid pterosaur from the Winton Formation (Cenomanian-lower Turonian) of Queensland, Australia.

Similar Datasets

OmicsDI is part of the ELIXIR infrastructure

Tweets