Hyposaurus

Hyposaurus
Temporal range: 67–60 Ma

Maastrichtian–Paleocene

Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Reptilia
Superorder: Crocodylomorpha
Family: †Dyrosauridae
Genus: †Hyposaurus
Owen, 1849
Species
  • †H. rogersii Owen, 1849 (type)
  • †H. derbianus Cope, 1886
  • †H. nopcsai Swinton, 1930
  • †H. paucidens Arambourg, 1952
  • †H. wilsoni Swinton, 1930

Hyposaurus is a genus of extinct marine dyrosaurid crocodyliform. Fossils have been found in Paleocene aged rocks of the Maria Farinha Formation in Pernambuco, Brazil,[1] Iullemmeden Basin in West Africa,[2] ?Campanian–Maastrichtian (Late Cretaceous) Shendi Formation of Sudan[3] and Maastrichtian (Late Cretaceous) through Danian (Early Paleocene) strata in New Jersey, Alabama and South Carolina. Isolated teeth comparable to Hyposaurus have also been found in Thanetian (Late Paleocene) strata of Virginia.[4][5] It was related to Dyrosaurus, and is the only dyrosaurid known from the western hemisphere.

The priority of the species H. rogersii has been debated,[6][7] however there is no sound basis for the recognition of more than one species from North America. The other North American species (i.e. H. fraterculus, H. ferox and H. natator) are therefore considered nomina vanum (i.e. empty names).[5]

References

  1. ↑ Albertâo, G.; Koutshoukos, E.; Regali, M.; Attrep, M.; Martin, P. (1993). "The Cretaceous-Tertiary boundary (KTB) at Pernambuco/Paraíba Basin, Northeastern Brazil". Acta Geologica Leopoldensia 16: 59–71.
  2. ↑ Jouve, S. (2007). "Taxonomic revision of the dyrosaurid assemblage (Crocodyliformes: Mesoeucrocodylia) from the Paleocene of the Iullemmeden Basin, West Africa". Journal of Paleontology 81 (1): 163–175. doi:10.1666/0022-3360(2007)81[163:TROTDA]2.0.CO;2.
  3. ↑ Khalaf Allah O. Salih, David C. Evans, Robert Bussert, Nicole Klein, Mutwakil Nafi and Johannes Müller (2016). "First record of Hyposaurus (Dyrosauridae, Crocodyliformes) from the Upper Cretaceous Shendi Formation of Sudan". Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology 36 (1): e1115408. doi:10.1080/02724634.2016.1115408.
  4. ↑ Troxell, E.L. (1925). "Hyposaurus, a marine crocodilian". American Journal of Science, Series 5 9: 489–514.
  5. 1 2 Denton Jr., R. K., Dobie, J. L. and D. C. Parris, 1997. The Marine Crocodilian Hyposaurus in North America. from Ancient Marine Reptiles, editors J. M. Callaway and E. L. Nicholls, Academic Press.
  6. ↑ Parris, D. C. 1986, Biostratigraphy of the fossil crocodile Hyposaurus Owen from New Jersey. Investigations of the New Jersey State Museum 4:1-16
  7. ↑ Norell, M. A. and G. W. Storrs. 1989. Catalogue and review of the type fossil crocodilians in the Yale Peabody Museum. Postilla 203:1-28
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