Discriminating between medium-sized tridactyl trackmakers : tracking ornithopod tracks in the base of the Cretaceous (Berriasian, Spain)
Castanera, Diego (Universidad de Zaragoza. Grupo Aragosaurus-IUCA)
Pascual, C. (Soria)
Razzolini, Novella L. (Institut Català de Paleontologia Miquel Crusafont)
Vila Ginestí, Bernat (Universidad de Zaragoza. Grupo Aragosaurus-IUCA)
Barco, José Luis (Paleoymás)
Canudo, José Ignacio (Universidad de Zaragoza. Grupo Aragosaurus-IUCA)

Date:	2013
Abstract:	Background: Recent work on the Jurassic-Cretaceous transition of the Iberian Range (Spain) has opened a new window onto the interpretation of the trackmakers of some medium-sized tridactyl tracks. The ichnotaxon Therangospodus oncalensis has been described in the Huérteles Formation (Berriasian) and is one of the classical tracks from the area assigned to medium-sized theropods. - Methodology/Principal Findings: A review of the type locality of Therangospodus oncalensis (Fuentesalvo tracksite) and other tracksites from the Huérteles Formation (Berriasian) has yielded new information on the morphology, gait and trackmaker identity of the aforementioned ichnospecies. The new data suggest that the trackmaker is an ornithopod rather than a theropod on the basis of the length/width ratio, the anterior triangle lengthwidth ratio, the short steps, the round to quadrangular heel pad impression and the probable manus impressions. - Conclusions/Significance: T. oncalensis shows similarities with various tracks from the Berriasian of Europe assigned to Iguanodontipus. The ichnotaxonomical status of this ichnospecies is here considered as Iguanodontipus? oncalensis due to the current state of knowledge of the ichnotaxonomy of medium-sized ornithopod tracks. This reassessment of I? oncalensis also has two significant implications for the palaeoecology of the faunas during the deposition of the Huérteles Formation: 1- the high number and percentage of theropod tracks would be lower than previous papers have suggested. 2- the gregarious behaviour described in the type locality (Fuentesalvo) would be among ornithopods instead of theropods.
Grants:	Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación CGL2011-30069-C02-01 Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación JDC-2011 Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación CGL2010-16447 Ministerio de Educación, Cultura y Deporte AP2008-01340
Rights:	Aquest document està subjecte a una llicència d'ús Creative Commons. Es permet la reproducció total o parcial, la distribució, la comunicació pública de l'obra i la creació d'obres derivades, fins i tot amb finalitats comercials, sempre i quan es reconegui l'autoria de l'obra original.
Language:	Anglès
Document:	Article ; recerca ; Versió publicada
Published in:	PloS one, Vol. 8, issue 11 (Nov. 2013) , e81830, ISSN 1932-6203

DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0081830
PMID: 24303075

20 p, 7.4 MB

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Research literature > UAB research groups literature > Research Centres and Groups (research output) > Experimental sciences > Institut Català de Paleontologia Miquel Crusafont (ICP)
Articles > Research articles
Articles > Published articles