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(Reference retrieved automatically from Web of Science through information on FAPESP grant and its corresponding number as mentioned in the publication by the authors.)

A new dinosaur with theropod affinities from the Late Triassic Santa Maria Formation, south Brazil

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Author(s):
Marsola, Julio C. A. [1, 2] ; Bittencourt, Jonathas S. [3] ; Butler, Richard J. [1] ; Da Rosa, Atila A. S. [4] ; Sayao, Juliana M. [5] ; Langer, Max C. [2]
Total Authors: 6
Affiliation:
[1] Univ Birmingham, Sch Geog Earth & Environm Sci, Birmingham B15 2TT, W Midlands - England
[2] Univ Sao Paulo, Lab Paleontol, FFCLRP, BR-14040901 Ribeirao Preto, SP - Brazil
[3] Univ Fed Minas Gerais, Dept Geol, BR-31270901 Belo Horizonte, MG - Brazil
[4] Univ Fed Santa Maria, Dept Geociencias, Lab Estratig & Paleobiol, BR-97105900 Santa Maria, RS - Brazil
[5] Univ Fed Pernambuco, Lab Paleobiol & Microestruturas, Nucleo Biol, Ctr Acad Vitoria, BR-52050480 Vitoria De Santo Antao, PE - Brazil
Total Affiliations: 5
Document type: Journal article
Source: JOURNAL OF VERTEBRATE PALEONTOLOGY; v. 38, n. 5 SEP 3 2018.
Web of Science Citations: 3
Abstract

The Late Triassic (Carnian) upper Santa Maria Formation of south Brazil has yielded some of the oldest unequivocal records of dinosaurs. Here, we describe a new saurischian dinosaur from this formation, Nhandumirim waldsangae, gen. et sp. nov., based on a semiarticulated skeleton, including trunk, sacral, and caudal vertebrae, one chevron, right ilium, femur, partial tibia, fibula, and metatarsals II and IV, as well as ungual and non-ungual phalanges. The new taxon differs from all other Carnian dinosauromorphs through a unique combination of characters, some of which are autapomorphic: caudal centra with sharp longitudinal ventral keels; brevis fossa extending for less than three-quarters of the ventral surface of the postacetabular ala of the ilium; dorsolateral trochanter ending well distal to the level of the femoral head; distal part of the tibia with a mediolaterally extending tuberosity on its cranial surface and a tabular caudolateral flange; conspicuous, craniomedially oriented semicircular articular facet on the distal fibula; and a straight metatarsal IV. This clearly distinguishes Nhandumirim waldsangae from both Saturnalia tupiniquim and Staurikosaurus pricei, which were collected nearby and at a similar stratigraphic level. Despite not being fully grown, the differences between Nhandumirim waldsangae and those saurischians cannot be attributed to ontogeny. The phylogenetic position of Nhandumirim waldsangae suggests that it represents one of the earliest members of Theropoda. Nhandumirim waldsangae shows that some typical theropod characters were already present early in dinosaur evolution, and it represents possibly the oldest record of the group known in Brazil. (AU)

FAPESP's process: 14/03825-3 - The origin and rise of dinosaurs in Gondwana (late Triassic - early Jurassic)
Grantee:Max Cardoso Langer
Support type: Research Projects - Thematic Grants
FAPESP's process: 13/23114-1 - Review of the Carnian (Neotriassic) Sauropodomorpha (Dinosauria) with description of new elements of Saturnalia tupiniquim
Grantee:Júlio Cesar de Almeida Marsola
Support type: Scholarships in Brazil - Doctorate
FAPESP's process: 16/02473-1 - New material of Laquintasaura venezuelae (Ornithischia, Dinosauria), its phylogenetic significance for the early radiation of dinosaurs
Grantee:Júlio Cesar de Almeida Marsola
Support type: Scholarships abroad - Research Internship - Doctorate