A taxonomic revision of the Sinopterus complex (Pterosauria, Tapejaridae) from the Early Cretaceous Jehol Biota, with the new genus Huaxiadraco

PeerJ

article

Rodrigo V. Pêgas¹  Xuanyu Zhou²  Xingsheng Jin⁵  Kai Wang⁶  Waisum Ma⁷ 

[1] Laboratório de Paleontologia de Vertebrados e Comportamento Animal, Universidade Federal do ABC;Department of Natural History Sciences, Hokkaido University;Hokkaido University Museum, Hokkaido University;Beipiao Pterosaur Museum of China;Zhejiang Museum of Natural History;School of Earth Sciences and Resources, China University of Geosciences;Department of Paleobiology, National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution

关键词: Taxonomy;    Pterosaur;    Linear morphometrics;    Ontogeny;    Allometry;    Phylogeny;    Jiufotang Formation;    Osteology;   

DOI  :  10.7717/peerj.14829

学科分类：社会科学、人文和艺术（综合）

来源: Inra

【 摘 要 】

Tapejarids are edentulous pterosaurs particularly abundant in the Chinese Jiufotang Formation, counting with over 10 described specimens and dozens of undescribed ones. A total of seven nominal tapejarid species (within two genera) have been proposed, though it is disputed how many of those are valid instead of sexual or ontogenetic morphs of fewer, or a single, species. However, detailed revisions of the matter are still lacking. In the present work, we provide a specimen-level survey of anatomical variation in previously described Jiufotang tapejarid specimens, as well as of six new ones. We present qualitative and morphometric comparisons, aiming to provide a basis for a taxonomic reappraisal of the complex. Our results lead us to interpret two Jiufotang tapejarid species as valid: Sinopterus dongi and Huaxiadraco corollatus (gen. et comb. nov.). Our primary taxonomic decisions did not rely around cranial crest features, which have typically been regarded as diagnostic for most of these proposed species albeit ever-growing evidence that these structures are highly variable in pterosaurs, due to ontogeny and sexual dimorphism. However, a reassessment of premaxillary crest variation in the Sinopterus complex reveals that while much of the observed variation (crest presence and size) can easily be attributed to intraspecific (ontogenetic and sexual) variation, some of it (crest shape) does seem to represent interspecific variation indeed. A phylogenetic analysis including the species regarded as valid was also performed.

【 授权许可】

CC BY