A 5m long Dinocephalosaurus must be seen to be believed
Spielman et al 2024 bring us
a 5m long Dinocephalosaurus (Figs 1–5), wound up like a spring, but articulated and complete. The specimen is remarkable, even if it tends to get confusing in the middle.
Figure 1. From Spiekman et al 2024, a large complete and articulated specimen of Dinocephalosaurus, IVPP V 20295. Colors added here.
” data-medium-file=”https://pterosaurheresies.files.wordpress.com/2024/02/dinocephalosaurus_traced_insitu588.gif?w=231″ data-large-file=”https://pterosaurheresies.files.wordpress.com/2024/02/dinocephalosaurus_traced_insitu588.gif?w=584″ class=”size-full wp-image-84499″ src=”https://pterosaurheresies.files.wordpress.com/2024/02/dinocephalosaurus_traced_insitu588.gif?w=584&h=760″ alt=”Figure 1. From Spiekman et al 2024, a large complete and articulated specimen of Dinocephalosaurus, IVPP V 20295.” width=”584″ height=”760″ srcset=”https://pterosaurheresies.files.wordpress.com/2024/02/dinocephalosaurus_traced_insitu588.gif?w=584&h=760 584w, https://pterosaurheresies.files.wordpress.com/2024/02/dinocephalosaurus_traced_insitu588.gif?w=115&h=150 115w, https://pterosaurheresies.files.wordpress.com/2024/02/dinocephalosaurus_traced_insitu588.gif?w=231&h=300 231w, https://pterosaurheresies.files.wordpress.com/2024/02/dinocephalosaurus_traced_insitu588.gif 588w” sizes=”(max-width: 584px) 100vw, 584px” />
Figure 1. From Spiekman et al 2024, a large complete and articulated specimen of Dinocephalosaurus, IVPP V 20295. Colors added here.
This was only one of five specimens
described or redescribed by the authors.
Figure 2. Rough DGS tracing of the IVPP V20295 specimen of Dinocephalosaurus here stretched out and compared to the holotype, a much smaller specimen IVPP V13767.
” data-medium-file=”https://pterosaurheresies.files.wordpress.com/2024/02/dinocephalosaurus2024tall588-1.gif?w=87″ data-large-file=”https://pterosaurheresies.files.wordpress.com/2024/02/dinocephalosaurus2024tall588-1.gif?w=297″ class=”size-full wp-image-84496″ src=”https://pterosaurheresies.files.wordpress.com/2024/02/dinocephalosaurus2024tall588-1.gif?w=584&h=2014″ alt=”Figure 2. Rough DGS tracing of the IVPP V20295 specimen of Dinocephalosaurus here stretched out and compared to the holotype, a much smaller specimen IVPP V13767.” width=”584″ height=”2014″ srcset=”https://pterosaurheresies.files.wordpress.com/2024/02/dinocephalosaurus2024tall588-1.gif?w=584&h=2014 584w, https://pterosaurheresies.files.wordpress.com/2024/02/dinocephalosaurus2024tall588-1.gif?w=87&h=300 87w, https://pterosaurheresies.files.wordpress.com/2024/02/dinocephalosaurus2024tall588-1.gif 588w” sizes=”(max-width: 584px) 100vw, 584px” />
Figure 2. Rough DGS tracing of the IVPP V20295 specimen of Dinocephalosaurus here stretched out and compared to the holotype, a much smaller specimen IVPP V13767, part of a composite with a broken neck.
Spiekman et al wondered about locomotion and feeding,
but chose to omit Peters, Demes and Krause 2005 (Fig 3), who argued against suction feeding and showed how respiration could have worked at a certain depth.
Figure 2. Dinocephalosaurus in resting, feeding and breathing modes. In breathing mode the throat sac would capture air that would not be inhaled until the neck was horizontal at the bottom of the shallow sea. Orbits on top of the skull support this hypothesis.
” data-medium-file=”https://pterosaurheresies.files.wordpress.com/2012/07/dinocephalosaurus_act.jpg?w=300″ data-large-file=”https://pterosaurheresies.files.wordpress.com/2012/07/dinocephalosaurus_act.jpg?w=584″ class=”size-full wp-image-6782″ src=”https://pterosaurheresies.files.wordpress.com/2012/07/dinocephalosaurus_act.jpg?w=584&h=536″ alt=”Dinocephalosaurus in resting, feeding and breathing modes.” width=”584″ height=”536″ srcset=”https://pterosaurheresies.files.wordpress.com/2012/07/dinocephalosaurus_act.jpg?w=584&h=536 584w, https://pterosaurheresies.files.wordpress.com/2012/07/dinocephalosaurus_act.jpg?w=150&h=138 150w, https://pterosaurheresies.files.wordpress.com/2012/07/dinocephalosaurus_act.jpg?w=300&h=276 300w, https://pterosaurheresies.files.wordpress.com/2012/07/dinocephalosaurus_act.jpg 588w” sizes=”(max-width: 584px) 100vw, 584px” />
Figure 3. From Peters, Demes and Krause 2005. Dinocephalosaurus in resting, feeding and breathing modes. In breathing mode the throat sac would capture air that would not be inhaled until the neck was horizontal at the bottom of the shallow sea. Orbits on top of the skull support this hypothesis.
A fish was found in the stomach of one of the specimens,
confirming a guess from 19 years ago (Fig 3).
Ontogeny?
No. The female with an embryo (Fig 4) is about the size of the holotype, but with different anatomy. So perhaps they are not congeneric.
Figure 1. The new Dinocephalosaurus has traits the holotype does not, like a longer neck with more vertebrae, a robust tail with deep chevrons and a distinct foot morphology with an elongate pedal digit 4.
” data-medium-file=”https://pterosaurheresies.files.wordpress.com/2017/02/dinocephalo2-recon588.jpg?w=111″ data-large-file=”https://pterosaurheresies.files.wordpress.com/2017/02/dinocephalo2-recon588.jpg?w=380″ class=”size-full wp-image-26098″ src=”https://pterosaurheresies.files.wordpress.com/2017/02/dinocephalo2-recon588.jpg?w=584&h=1575″ alt=”Figure 1. The new Dinocephalosaurus has traits the holotype does not, like a longer neck with more vertebrae, a robust tail with deep chevrons and a distinct foot morphology with an elongate pedal digit 4.” width=”584″ height=”1575″ srcset=”https://pterosaurheresies.files.wordpress.com/2017/02/dinocephalo2-recon588.jpg?w=584&h=1575 584w, https://pterosaurheresies.files.wordpress.com/2017/02/dinocephalo2-recon588.jpg?w=56&h=150 56w, https://pterosaurheresies.files.wordpress.com/2017/02/dinocephalo2-recon588.jpg?w=111&h=300 111w, https://pterosaurheresies.files.wordpress.com/2017/02/dinocephalo2-recon588.jpg 588w” sizes=”(max-width: 584px) 100vw, 584px” />
Figure 4. The female Dinocephalosaurus has traits the holotype does not, like a longer neck with more vertebrae, a robust tail with deep chevrons and a distinct foot morphology with an elongate pedal digit 4.
Unfortunately,
Spiekman et al continue the myth that Dinocephalosaurus and Tanystropheus are archosauromorphs close to protorosaurs. That seems reasonable, but when you add taxa you, too, will find protorosaurs are indeed archosauromorphs, but by convergence tanystropheids are tritosaur lepidosaurs derived from a taxon very much like Huehuecuetzpalli.
Sometimes paleontologists end up doing the popular thing, the acceptable thing, not always the right thing discovered after testing traditionally omitted candidates.
References
Li 2003.First record of protorosaurid reptile (Order Protorosauria) from the Middle Triassic of China. Acta Geologica Sinica 77, 419–23.
Li C, Rieppel O and LaBarbera MC 2004. A Triassic aquatic protorosaur with an extremely long neck. Science 305:1931.
Liu, J. et al. 2017. Live birth in an archosauromorph reptile. Nature Communications 8, 14445 doi: 10.1038/ncomms14445
Peters D, Demes B and Krause DW 2005. Suction feeding in Triassic Protorosaur? Science, 308: 1112-1113.
Spiekman SNF et al (5 co-authors) 2024. Dinocephalosaurus orientalis Li, 2003: a remarkable marine archosauromorph from the Middle Triassic of southwestern China. Earth and Environmental Science Transactions of the Royal Society of Edinburgh, 1–33.
wiki/Dinocephalosaurus
wiki/Macrocnemus
wiki/Feralisaurus
Source: https://pterosaurheresies.wordpress.com/2024/02/24/a-5m-long-dinocephalosaurus-must-be-seen-to-be-believed/
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