A redescription of <i>Aigialosaurus (= Opetiosaurus) bucchichi</i> (Kornhuber, 1901) (Squamata: Aigialosauridae) with comments on mosasauroid systematics

Dutchak, Alex R.

doi:10.1671/039.029.0206

Cited by 33 publications

(40 citation statements)

References 15 publications

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“…Previous phylogenetic hypotheses suggest both hydropelvic and hydropedal configurations have multiple origins [7, 8, 11, 12]. In our results, however, we detect a different evolutionary scenario by mapping the characters that account for these morphologies in the current dataset.…”

Section: Discussioncontrasting

confidence: 58%

Mosasauroid phylogeny under multiple phylogenetic methods provides new insights on the evolution of aquatic adaptations in the group

et al. 2017

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Mosasauroids were a successful lineage of squamate reptiles (lizards and snakes) that radiated during the Late Cretaceous (95–66 million years ago). They can be considered one of the few lineages in the evolutionary history of tetrapods to have acquired a fully aquatic lifestyle, similarly to whales, ichthyosaurs and plesiosaurs. Despite a long history of research on this group, their phylogenetic relationships have only been tested so far using traditional (unweighted) maximum parsimony. However, hypotheses of mosasauroid relationships and the recently proposed multiple origins of aquatically adapted pelvic and pedal features in this group can be more thoroughly tested by methods that take into account variation in branch lengths and evolutionary rates. In this study, we present the first mosasauroid phylogenetic analysis performed under different analytical methods, including maximum likelihood, Bayesian inference, and implied weighting maximum parsimony. The results indicate a lack of congruence in the topological position of halisaurines and Dallasaurus. Additionally, the genus Prognathodon is paraphyletic under all hypotheses. Interestingly, a number of traditional mosasauroid clades become weakly supported, or unresolved, under Bayesian analyses. The reduced resolutions in some consensus trees create ambiguities concerning the evolution of fully aquatic pelvic/pedal conditions under many analyses. However, when enough resolution was obtained, reversals of the pelvic/pedal conditions were favoured by parsimony and likelihood ancestral state reconstructions instead of independent origins of aquatic features in mosasauroids. It is concluded that most of the observed discrepancies among the results can be associated with different analytical procedures, but also due to limited postcranial data on halisaurines, yaguarasaurines and Dallasaurus.

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Section: Discussioncontrasting

confidence: 58%

Mosasauroid phylogeny under multiple phylogenetic methods provides new insights on the evolution of aquatic adaptations in the group

et al. 2017

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“…Mosasauroid affinities can also be excluded for both biostratigraphical (no mosasauroids are reported prior to the Cenomanian; Dutchak and Caldwell, 2009) and morphological reasons. First of all, mosasauroid teeth are characterized by a distinct 'collar' near the rootecrown junction, absent in MSNC 4475.…”

Section: Comparison To Other Vertebrate Taxamentioning

confidence: 99%

The youngest record of metriorhynchid crocodylomorphs, with implications for the extinction of Thalattosuchia

Chiarenza

Foffa

Young

et al. 2015

Cretaceous Research

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“…Aigialosaurus bucchichi (Kornhuber, 1901) Dutchak & Caldwell, –Dutchak & Caldwell () described ribs of A. bucchichi as extremely robust and probably pachyostotic. In specimen GBA 1901 both the ribs and vertebrae are massive, although they do not appear truly pachyostotic as the ribs are not particularly thickened, and the vertebral centra are not laterally convex.…”

Section: Descriptionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Palaeoecological and morphofunctional interpretation of bone mass increase: an example in Late Cretaceous shallow marine squamates

Houssaye

2012

Biological Reviews

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Bone mass increase (BMI; i.e. osteosclerosis with possible additional pachyostosis) is characteristically displayed by many Late Cretaceous squamates that adapted to shallow marine environments-plesiopelvic mosasauroids, stem-ophidians and pachyophiids. A combined morphological and microanatomical analysis of vertebrae and, to a lesser extent, ribs of these fossil squamates provides new data about the distribution and variability of this osseous specialization in these taxa. Classical thin sections and third generation synchrotron microtomography and laminography were used for the microanatomical analysis. Following the explanation of the likely involvement of this specialization in the control of buoyancy, body trim and Carrier's constraint, new palaeoecological inferences and new hypotheses about the locomotor abilities and life environment of these organisms are produced. The taxa displaying BMI are considered to have undertaken long dives, hovering slowly and maintaining a horizontal trim, in shallow and protected water environments. Conversely, marine stem-ophidians deprived of this specialization are regarded as slow surface swimmers able to live in more open marine environments. This study highlights the importance of microanatomical data for palaeoecological studies. It also discusses the significance of the use of this specialization as a character in phylogenetic studies.

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A redescription of Aigialosaurus (= Opetiosaurus) bucchichi (Kornhuber, 1901) (Squamata: Aigialosauridae) with comments on mosasauroid systematics

Cited by 33 publications

References 15 publications

Mosasauroid phylogeny under multiple phylogenetic methods provides new insights on the evolution of aquatic adaptations in the group

Mosasauroid phylogeny under multiple phylogenetic methods provides new insights on the evolution of aquatic adaptations in the group

The youngest record of metriorhynchid crocodylomorphs, with implications for the extinction of Thalattosuchia

Palaeoecological and morphofunctional interpretation of bone mass increase: an example in Late Cretaceous shallow marine squamates

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