<p>We present a detailed description of an incomplete but excellently preserved braincase and a digitally generated endocast of a pseudosuchian archosaur from the Upper Triassic (Carnian) Evangeline Member of the Wolfville Formation of Nova Scotia (Canada). The general morphology of the braincase particularly resembles that of the rauisuchid <i>Postosuchus kirkpatricki</i> from the Upper Triassic (Norian) of Texas. Indeed, the quantitative phylogenetic analyses found the Wolfville specimen within Rauisuchidae (<i>Postosuchus</i> spp., <i>Polonosuchus silesiacus</i>, and <i>Rauisuchus tiradentes</i>) among loricatan pseudosuchians based on the presence of a deep and dorsoventrally elongate basisphenoid recess. Although the specimen described here shows differences from <i>Postosuchus kirkpatricki</i> and <i>Postosuchus alisonae</i>, its fragmentary condition and the absence of overlapping elements with other rauisuchids (<i>Polonosuchus silesiacus</i> and <i>Rauisuchus tiradentes</i>) led us to be cautious and identify it as aff. <i>Postosuchus</i> sp. The Wolfville rauisuchid braincase provides evidence for the presence of this clade in low paleolatitudes during the Carnian, bridging the higher paleolatitude occurrences of Rauisuchidae in southern Brazil and in Poland, respectively.</p>

错误:搜索内容不能为空,请输入英文关键词
错误:关键词超出字数限制,请精简
高级检索

Braincase and digital endocast of a loricatan pseudosuchian (Reptilia: Archosauria) from the Upper Triassic of Nova Scotia (Canada)

  • Hans-Dieter Sues,
  • Waisum Ma,
  • Martín D. Ezcurra

摘要

We present a detailed description of an incomplete but excellently preserved braincase and a digitally generated endocast of a pseudosuchian archosaur from the Upper Triassic (Carnian) Evangeline Member of the Wolfville Formation of Nova Scotia (Canada). The general morphology of the braincase particularly resembles that of the rauisuchid Postosuchus kirkpatricki from the Upper Triassic (Norian) of Texas. Indeed, the quantitative phylogenetic analyses found the Wolfville specimen within Rauisuchidae (Postosuchus spp., Polonosuchus silesiacus, and Rauisuchus tiradentes) among loricatan pseudosuchians based on the presence of a deep and dorsoventrally elongate basisphenoid recess. Although the specimen described here shows differences from Postosuchus kirkpatricki and Postosuchus alisonae, its fragmentary condition and the absence of overlapping elements with other rauisuchids (Polonosuchus silesiacus and Rauisuchus tiradentes) led us to be cautious and identify it as aff. Postosuchus sp. The Wolfville rauisuchid braincase provides evidence for the presence of this clade in low paleolatitudes during the Carnian, bridging the higher paleolatitude occurrences of Rauisuchidae in southern Brazil and in Poland, respectively.