Highly specialized mammalian skulls from the Late Cretaceous of South America

Dryolestoids are an extinct mammalian group belonging to the lineage leading to modern marsupials and placentals. Dryolestoids are known by teeth and jaws from the Jurassic period of North America and Europe, but they thrived in South America up to the end of the Mesozoic era and survived to the beg...

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Autores principales: Rougier, Guillermo Walter, Gaetano, Leandro Carlos
Publicado: 2011
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jaw
Jaw
Acceso en línea:https://bibliotecadigital.exactas.uba.ar/collection/paper/document/paper_00280836_v479_n7371_p98_Rougier
http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12110/paper_00280836_v479_n7371_p98_Rougier
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spelling paper:paper_00280836_v479_n7371_p98_Rougier2023-06-08T14:54:46Z Highly specialized mammalian skulls from the Late Cretaceous of South America Rougier, Guillermo Walter Gaetano, Leandro Carlos cranium Cretaceous endemic species fossil record Gondwana Jurassic marsupial paleontology tooth article Cretaceous fossil animal jaw molar tooth nonhuman premolar tooth priority journal skull South America Animals Extinction, Biological Fossils Jaw Mammals Phylogeny Skull South America Tooth Europe North America South America Dryolestoidea Eutheria Mammalia Metatheria Dryolestoids are an extinct mammalian group belonging to the lineage leading to modern marsupials and placentals. Dryolestoids are known by teeth and jaws from the Jurassic period of North America and Europe, but they thrived in South America up to the end of the Mesozoic era and survived to the beginnings of the Cenozoic. Isolated teeth and jaws from the latest Cretaceous of South America provide mounting evidence that, at least in western Gondwana, dryolestoids developed into strongly endemic groups by the Late Cretaceous. However, the lack of pre-Late Cretaceous dryolestoid remains made study of their origin and early diversification intractable. Here we describe the first mammalian remains from the early Late Cretaceous of South America, including two partial skulls and jaws of a derived dryolestoid showing dental and cranial features unknown among any other group of Mesozoic mammals, such as single-rooted molars preceded by double-rooted premolars, combined with a very long muzzle, exceedingly long canines and evidence of highly specialized masticatory musculature. On one hand, the new mammal shares derived features of dryolestoids with forms from the Jurassic of Laurasia, whereas on the other hand, it is very specialized and highlights the endemic, diverse dryolestoid fauna from the Cretaceous of South America. Our specimens include only the second mammalian skull known for the Cretaceous of Gondwana, bridging a previous 60-million-year gap in the fossil record, and document the whole cranial morphology of a dryolestoid, revealing an unsuspected morphological and ecological diversity for non-tribosphenic mammals. © 2011 Macmillan Publishers Limited. All rights reserved. Fil:Rougier, G.W. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales; Argentina. Fil:Gaetano, L.C. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales; Argentina. 2011 https://bibliotecadigital.exactas.uba.ar/collection/paper/document/paper_00280836_v479_n7371_p98_Rougier http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12110/paper_00280836_v479_n7371_p98_Rougier
institution Universidad de Buenos Aires
institution_str I-28
repository_str R-134
collection Biblioteca Digital - Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales (UBA)
topic cranium
Cretaceous
endemic species
fossil record
Gondwana
Jurassic
marsupial
paleontology
tooth
article
Cretaceous
fossil animal
jaw
molar tooth
nonhuman
premolar tooth
priority journal
skull
South America
Animals
Extinction, Biological
Fossils
Jaw
Mammals
Phylogeny
Skull
South America
Tooth
Europe
North America
South America
Dryolestoidea
Eutheria
Mammalia
Metatheria
spellingShingle cranium
Cretaceous
endemic species
fossil record
Gondwana
Jurassic
marsupial
paleontology
tooth
article
Cretaceous
fossil animal
jaw
molar tooth
nonhuman
premolar tooth
priority journal
skull
South America
Animals
Extinction, Biological
Fossils
Jaw
Mammals
Phylogeny
Skull
South America
Tooth
Europe
North America
South America
Dryolestoidea
Eutheria
Mammalia
Metatheria
Rougier, Guillermo Walter
Gaetano, Leandro Carlos
Highly specialized mammalian skulls from the Late Cretaceous of South America
topic_facet cranium
Cretaceous
endemic species
fossil record
Gondwana
Jurassic
marsupial
paleontology
tooth
article
Cretaceous
fossil animal
jaw
molar tooth
nonhuman
premolar tooth
priority journal
skull
South America
Animals
Extinction, Biological
Fossils
Jaw
Mammals
Phylogeny
Skull
South America
Tooth
Europe
North America
South America
Dryolestoidea
Eutheria
Mammalia
Metatheria
description Dryolestoids are an extinct mammalian group belonging to the lineage leading to modern marsupials and placentals. Dryolestoids are known by teeth and jaws from the Jurassic period of North America and Europe, but they thrived in South America up to the end of the Mesozoic era and survived to the beginnings of the Cenozoic. Isolated teeth and jaws from the latest Cretaceous of South America provide mounting evidence that, at least in western Gondwana, dryolestoids developed into strongly endemic groups by the Late Cretaceous. However, the lack of pre-Late Cretaceous dryolestoid remains made study of their origin and early diversification intractable. Here we describe the first mammalian remains from the early Late Cretaceous of South America, including two partial skulls and jaws of a derived dryolestoid showing dental and cranial features unknown among any other group of Mesozoic mammals, such as single-rooted molars preceded by double-rooted premolars, combined with a very long muzzle, exceedingly long canines and evidence of highly specialized masticatory musculature. On one hand, the new mammal shares derived features of dryolestoids with forms from the Jurassic of Laurasia, whereas on the other hand, it is very specialized and highlights the endemic, diverse dryolestoid fauna from the Cretaceous of South America. Our specimens include only the second mammalian skull known for the Cretaceous of Gondwana, bridging a previous 60-million-year gap in the fossil record, and document the whole cranial morphology of a dryolestoid, revealing an unsuspected morphological and ecological diversity for non-tribosphenic mammals. © 2011 Macmillan Publishers Limited. All rights reserved.
author Rougier, Guillermo Walter
Gaetano, Leandro Carlos
author_facet Rougier, Guillermo Walter
Gaetano, Leandro Carlos
author_sort Rougier, Guillermo Walter
title Highly specialized mammalian skulls from the Late Cretaceous of South America
title_short Highly specialized mammalian skulls from the Late Cretaceous of South America
title_full Highly specialized mammalian skulls from the Late Cretaceous of South America
title_fullStr Highly specialized mammalian skulls from the Late Cretaceous of South America
title_full_unstemmed Highly specialized mammalian skulls from the Late Cretaceous of South America
title_sort highly specialized mammalian skulls from the late cretaceous of south america
publishDate 2011
url https://bibliotecadigital.exactas.uba.ar/collection/paper/document/paper_00280836_v479_n7371_p98_Rougier
http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12110/paper_00280836_v479_n7371_p98_Rougier
work_keys_str_mv AT rougierguillermowalter highlyspecializedmammalianskullsfromthelatecretaceousofsouthamerica
AT gaetanoleandrocarlos highlyspecializedmammalianskullsfromthelatecretaceousofsouthamerica
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