The Wellnhofer pterosaur meeting, 2007, Munich, Germany. Peters D 2007. The origin and radiation of the Pterosauria. Martin-Silverstone E, Unwin DM and Barrett PM 2019. A new, three-dimensionally preserved monofenestratan pterosaur form the Middle Jurassic of Scotland and the complex evolutionary history of the scapulo-vertebrael articulation. (9 co-authors) 2020. An exceptionally well preserved pterosaur from the Middle Jurassic of Scotland. Hate to be snippy here, but hyperbole is not appropriate in science simply to elevate a notion or a cladogram, especially if it lacks dozens of pertinent taxa. One more specimen that we knew about last year will not challenge a ‘long considered notion’that was never a notion to begin with. “Along with the highly diverse but fragmentary Tayton Limestone Formation assemblage of England, the new specimen challenges the long-considered notion that the European Middle Jurassic was a time of low pterosaur diversity and anatomical disparity.” Subset of the LPT showing the nesting of the Skye pterosaur from available data (Fig. None of the above taxa are closely related to R. The 2019 abstract likewise mentioned ♜T scans. “We imaged the skull using microCT, which reveals a brain endocast with a large cerebellum and floccular region wrapped by thin, curved semi-circular canals of the inner ear, similar to closely related Rhamphorhynchus muensteri.” The LRT nests the Skye pterosaur basal to the clade of wukongopterids (Fig.
By the way, in 2019 the earlier set of authors nested the Skye pterosaur with Darwinopterus and Wukongopterus, far from Angustinaripterus. Colleagues, students: create your own datasets. Borrowing other datasets usually absolves authors from mistakes made by prior authors, especially taxon exclusion issues. Sometimes more data nests taxa elsewhere, but their ‘several published datasets’ don’t include the LPT (subset Fig.
“We conducted a phylogenetic analysis by combining several published datasets, which placed the new Scottish pterosaur within the paraphyletic array of non-monofenestratans commonly called the Rhamphorhynchinae, where it shares cranial similarities to the similarly-aged Chinese Angustinaripterus longicephalus.” Then start describing some interesting traits. “The specimen represents a new genus and species diagnosed by several autapomorphies, including slender, curved humeral shaft large teardrop-shaped lower temporal fenestra a novel “jugo-lacrimal” fossa, and unique palatal arrangement with trident-shaped anterior vomer.”Īs Larry Martin was quick to note, most autapomorphies can be found in other tetrapod taxa by convergence. that this specimen was featured in an SVP abstract a year ago. Since the authors have changed, perhaps no one told Jagielska et al. It is the largest non-pterodactyloid on record, with an estimated 2 m wide wingspan.”
The new pterosaur is mostly articulated and includes the skull (which retains delicate palatal, hyoid, and neurocranial elements), complete cervical and caudal vertebral series, fully preserved paired forelimbs with partially preserved wing phalanges, a disarticulated dorsal vertebral series and ribcage, and a poorly preserved sacral, pelvis and hindlimb region.
It is the most complete fossil from the Jurassic sequence of the Scottish Hebrides, which commonly yields ichnofossils but only fragmentary archosaur remains, and the first nearly complete Middle Jurassic pterosaur from outside of China. “Here we describe a new three-dimensionally preserved partial skeleton from the Bathonian Lealt Shale Formation of Skye, Scotland, that helps fill the Middle Jurassic pterosaur gap. The descendants of Sordes in the Dorygnathus clade and their two clades of pterodactyloid-grade descendants.Ĭontinuing from the Jagielska et al.