Sebastián Rozadilla, Federico L. Agnolin, Fernando E. Novas, Alexis
M. Aranciaga Rolando, Matías J. Motta, Juan M. Lirio, Marcelo P. Isasi
A new ornithopod
dinosaur from the Upper Cretaceous (Maastrichtian) Snow Hill Island Formation,
at James Ross Island, Antarctica is here described. This new taxon, named as Morrosaurus antarcticus gen. et sp. nov.,
is represented by a fragmentary right hind limb belonging to a medium-sized
individual. Our phylogenetic analysis nests the new taxon in a monophyletic
clade of Southern Hemisphere ornithopods that includes most Patagonian and
Antarctic ornithopods. Several members of this group share a slender and
bunched foot with narrow metatarsal IV, expanded chevrons, and bowed humerus
without deltopectoral crest. Several features indicate that these ornithopods
exhibit adaptations for a specialized cursorial mode of life. The recognition
of Patagonian and Antarctic Ornithopoda belonging to a monophyletic clade
reinforces palaeobiogeographical signals indicating that Patagonia, Antarctica
and Australia shared a common Late Cretaceous terrestrial fauna.
Rozadilla, S., Agnolin, F.L., Novas, F.E., Aranciaga Rolando, A.M., Motta,
M. J.,Lirio, J. M. and Isasi, M.P. 2016. A new ornithopod
(Dinosauria, Ornithischia) from the Upper Cretaceous of Antarctica and its
palaeobiogeographical implications. Cretaceous Research 57: 311-324
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