The distribution of dental features in non-avian theropod dinosaurs: Taxonomic potential, degree of homoplasy, and major evolutionary trends

Abstract

Dataset Clade t-test, ci t-test, ri M-W, ci M-W, ri Brusatte et al. (2014) Non-avian Coelurosauria 2.14E-10 4.67E-14 6.77E-10 2.26E-15 Carrano et al. (2012) Non-coelurosaur Tetanurae 2.29E-09 5.42E-13 4.61E-10 1.03E-12 Choiniere et al. (2014a) Non-avian Theropoda 0.22025 7.31E-07 0.4483 2.01E-07 Foth and Rauhut (2017) Non-avian Coelurosauria 0

Dental anatomy of the apex predator Sinraptor dongi (Theropoda: Allosauroidea) from the Late Jurassic of China

“…The distribution of apomorphic dental character states was visualized on a fully topologically constrained tree (sensu Hendrickx et al 2020) using WinClada 1.00.08 (Nixon 2002) on the basis of a Nexus file, with the data matrix and the phylogenetic tree, both created with Mesquite 3.2 (Maddison and Maddison 2017). The tree topology is congruent with the results recovered by Müller et al (2018), fifth phylogenetic analysis (which uses the data matrix of Langer et al 2017) for non-neotheropod saurischians, Ezcurra (2017) for non-averostran neotheropods, Rauhut and Carrano (2016) and Wang et al (2017) for Ceratosauria, Carrano et al (2012) and Rauhut et al (2012 for noncoelurosaurian tetanurans, Brusatte and Carr (2016) for Tyranno-sauroidea, and Cau et al (2017) on the basis of the data set of Brusatte et al (2014) for neocoelurosaurs (i.e., Compsognathidae + Maniraptoriformes; sensu Hendrickx et al 2019).…”

“…Apomorphic dental character states in Sinraptor dongi were identified by performing a phylogenetic analysis on a slightly revised version of the dentition-based data matrix created by Hendrickx and Mateus (2014a) and updated by Young et al (2019) and Hendrickx et al (2019Hendrickx et al ( , 2020. The metriacanthosaurids Yangchuanosaurus shangyouensis and "Yangchuanosaurus" hepingensis, as well as two character states related to enamel thickness and tooth replacement rate (characters 141 and 142), were added to the Hendrickx et al (2020) data set so that the resulting data matrix includes 148 characters (Supplementary Data 1 ) scored across 107 species.…”

“…Enamel undulations, mesial carinae reaching the cervix, welldeveloped interdenticular sulci, and irregular enamel surface textures are relatively common dental features that are sometimes present in many distantly related theropod clades with ziphodont teeth (see Hendrickx et al 2019). However, Sinraptor dongi exhibits two dental features whose distribution is relatively limited among non-maniraptoriform averostrans: (i) labial and lingual depressions at the bases of the crowns, resulting in figure-8-shaped cross-sectional outlines of the crowns at the cervix; and (ii) concave surfaces adjacent to the carinae on the labial and (or) lingual surfaces of lateral teeth.…”

“…However, Sinraptor dongi exhibits two dental features whose distribution is relatively limited among non-maniraptoriform averostrans: (i) labial and lingual depressions at the bases of the crowns, resulting in figure-8-shaped cross-sectional outlines of the crowns at the cervix; and (ii) concave surfaces adjacent to the carinae on the labial and (or) lingual surfaces of lateral teeth. In non-maniraptoriform theropods, the presence of both labial and lingual depressions on some lateral crowns has been reported in the early ceratosaur Berberosaurus ) and in the tyrannosauroids Alioramus (Brusatte et al 2012;Hendrickx et al 2019), Dilong , and Proceratosaurus (Rauhut et al 2010). In allosauroids, these features have also been observed in the megaraptorans Megaraptor (Porfiri et al 2014) and Orkoraptor (Novas et al 2008) and in a few lateral teeth of Allosaurus (e.g., Natural History Museum of Utah, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, Utah (UMNH) VP 5841).…”

“…Such a mesial dentition was suited for gripping and pulling on prey in a bite-and-hold manner (Sampson and Witmer 2007;Reichel 2012). If mesial teeth with lingually deflected carinae and D-and U-shaped cross sections are perfectly suited for defleshing carcasses (Reichel 2012), the wide distances between mesial and distal carinae in mesial teeth, associated with spiralling mesial carinae and deflected distal carinae in anterior lateral teeth, would make wide cuts, keeping the wounds open and ultimately causing fatal injuries to the prey (Bakker 1998;Reichel 2012;Hendrickx et al 2019). Additional evidence supports Sinraptor dongi as a predator.…”