Biology:Paralligator

From HandWiki
Short description: Extinct genus of neosuchian crocodile

Paralligator
Temporal range: Late Cretaceous,
~96–70 Ma
Paralligator Skulls.png
P. gradilifrons and P. major skulls from the Bayan Shireh Formation
Scientific classification e
Missing taxonomy template (fix): Archosauria/Reptilia
Clade: Pseudosuchia
Clade: Crocodylomorpha
Clade: Crocodyliformes
Clade: Neosuchia
Family: Paralligatoridae
Genus: Paralligator
Type species
Paralligator gradilifrons
Konzhukova, 1954
Other species
  • P. ancestralis Efimov, 1981
  • P. major Efimov, 1981
Synonyms
  • Shamosuchus tersus
    Efimov, 1983
  • Shamosuchus ulanicus
    Efimov, 1983
  • Shamosuchus ulgicus
    Efimov, 1981

Paralligator is an extinct genus of neosuchian crocodylomorph that lived during the Late Cretaceous (Cenomanian-Maastrichtian) period in what is now the Bayan Shireh and Nemegt formations of Mongolia, approximately 96 million to 70 million years ago. P. gradilifrons reached up to 4 m (13 ft) in length.[1][2]

Taxonomy

Life restoration of P. gradilifrons

Two species are recognized:[3]

  • Paralligator gradilifrons Konzhukova, 1954[4]
  • Efimov, 1981[5] Paralligator major

Misassigned species

"Paralligator" sungaricus, described from the Early Cretaceous Nenjiang Formation of Jilin Province, China , is based on postcranial remains consisting of a few presacral vertebrae, dorsal osteoderms, a partial left femur, and the proximal part of a left tibia and fibula.[6][7] However, the type material is too fragmentary to be considered diagnostic, and the species is a nomen dubium.[3] Turner (2015) also referred P. ancestralis a junior subjective synonym of P. gradilifrons.[3]

References

  1. Storrs, G. W.; Efimov, M. B. (2000). "Mesozoic crocodyliforms of north-central Eurasia". The Age of Dinosaurs in Russia and Mongolia. Cambridge University Press. pp. 402–419. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/259842662. 
  2. Turner, Alan H. (2015-02-25). "A Review of Shamosuchus and Paralligator (Crocodyliformes, Neosuchia) from the Cretaceous of Asia". PLOS ONE 10 (2): e0118116. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0118116. ISSN 1932-6203. PMID 25714338. Bibcode2015PLoSO..1018116T. 
  3. 3.0 3.1 3.2 Turner, A. H. (2015). "A review of Shamosuchus and Paralligator (Crocodyliformes, Neosuchia) from the Cretaceous of Asia". PLOS ONE 10 (2): e0118116. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0118116. PMID 25714338. Bibcode2015PLoSO..1018116T. 
  4. Konzhukova ED (1954) [New fossil crocodilian from Mongolia]. Trudy Paleontologicheskogo Instituta ANSSSR 48: 171–194.
  5. Efimov MB (1981) New paralligatorids from the Upper Cretaceous of Mongolia. Trudy Sovmestnoi Sovetsko-Mongol'skoi Paleontologicheskoi Ekspeditsii 15: 26–28.
  6. Sun, A.-L. (1958). "A new species of Paralligator from Sungarian Plain.". Vertebrata PalAsiatica 2 (4): 277–280. 
  7. Wu, X.-C.; Cheng, Z.-W.; Russell, A. P. (2001). "Cranial anatomy of a new crocodyliform (Archosauria: Crocodylomorpha) from the Lower Cretaceous of Song-Liao Plain, northeastern China". Canadian Journal of Earth Sciences 38 (12): 1653–1663. doi:10.1139/cjes-38-12-1653. 

Wikidata ☰ Q25094546 entry