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The First Freshwater Mosasauroid (Upper Cretaceous, Hungary) and a New Clade of Basal Mosasauroids

Makádi, László and Caldwell, Michael W. and Ősi, Attila (2012) The First Freshwater Mosasauroid (Upper Cretaceous, Hungary) and a New Clade of Basal Mosasauroids. PLOS ONE, 7 (12). pp. 1-16. ISSN 1932-6203

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Abstract

Mosasauroids are conventionally conceived of as gigantic, obligatorily aquatic marine lizards (1000s of specimens from marine deposited rocks) with a cosmopolitan distribution in the Late Cretaceous (90-65 million years ago [mya]) oceans and seas of the world. Here we report on the fossilized remains of numerous individuals (small juveniles to large adults) of a new taxon, Pannoniasaurus inexpectatus gen. et sp. nov. from the Csehbanya Formation, Hungary (Santonian, Upper Cretaceous, 85.3-83.5 mya) that represent the first known mosasauroid that lived in freshwater environments. Previous to this find, only one specimen of a marine mosasauroid, cf. Plioplatecarpus sp., is known from non-marine rocks in Western Canada. Pannoniasaurus inexpectatus gen. et sp. nov. uniquely possesses a plesiomorphic pelvic anatomy, a non-mosasauroid but pontosaur-like tail osteology, possibly limbs like a terrestrial lizard, and a flattened, crocodile-like skull. Cladistic analysis reconstructs P. inexpectatus in a new clade of mosasauroids: (Pannoniasaurus (Tethysaurus (Yaguarasaurus, Russellosaurus))). P. inexpectatus is part of a mixed terrestrial and freshwater faunal assemblage that includes fishes, amphibians turtles, terrestrial lizards, crocodiles, pterosaurs, dinosaurs and birds.

Item Type: Article
Uncontrolled Keywords: SLOVENIA; SPECIMEN; PHYLOGENY; phosphates; Dinosauria; LIZARD; MOROCCO; Squamata; HALISAURUS; HUNGAROSAURUS-TORMAI
Subjects: Q Science / természettudomány > QH Natural history / természetrajz > QH526 Paleontology / őslénytan
SWORD Depositor: MTMT SWORD
Depositing User: MTMT SWORD
Date Deposited: 28 Oct 2015 16:55
Last Modified: 28 Oct 2015 16:55
URI: http://real.mtak.hu/id/eprint/29982

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