An arboreal rhynchocephalian from the Late Jurassic of Germany, and the importance of the appendicular skeleton for ecomorphology in lepidosaurs
Beccari, Victor (Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München. Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences)
Guillaume, Alexandre Renaud Daniel (Universidade Nova de Lisboa)
Jones, Marc E. H. (University College London)
Villa, Andrea (Institut Català de Paleontologia Miquel Crusafont)
Cooper, Natalie (Natural History Museum (Londres, Regne Unit))
Regnault, Sophie (Aberystwyth School of Veterinary Science)
Rauhut, Oliver (Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München. Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences)

Date:	2025
Abstract:	Here, we describe a new species of Jurassic rhynchocephalian from the Solnhofen Archipelago, Sphenodraco scandentis gen. et sp. nov. , and highlight the importance of the postcranial anatomy for ecomorphological studies in the rhynchocephalian clade. The holotype of Sphenodraco scandentis is divided into a main slab, which has been mentioned in the literature and previously assigned to Homoeosaurus maximiliani, and a counterslab containing most of its skeletal remains. This new taxon shows an exclusive combination of osteological features that differs from previously described rhynchocephalians. Sphenodraco was recovered in our phylogenetic analysis as a component of a clade including Homoeosaurus and Kallimodon. To evaluate the ecomorphology of the new taxon, we compare fossil rhynchocephalians with the extant tuatara and squamates. We quantify the diversity of body proportions in lepidosaurs systematically, inferring lifestyle for extinct rhynchocephalians. Our analysis suggests that fossil rhynchocephalians had a diverse array of substrate uses, with some categorized as good climbers, and with Sphenodraco showing the extreme condition of limb elongation found in strictly arboreal lizards. This new taxon is here regarded as the first predominantly or even strictly arboreal rhynchocephalian. Furthermore, our analysis shows that the diversity of fossil rhynchocephalians might still be underestimated.
Grants:	Agència de Gestió d'Ajuts Universitaris i de Recerca 2021/BP-00038 Agència de Gestió d'Ajuts Universitaris i de Recerca 2021/SGR-00620
Rights:	Aquest document està subjecte a una llicència d'ús Creative Commons. Es permet la reproducció total o parcial, la distribució, i la comunicació pública de l'obra, sempre que no sigui amb finalitats comercials, i sempre que es reconegui l'autoria de l'obra original. No es permet la creació d'obres derivades.
Language:	Anglès
Document:	Article ; recerca ; Versió publicada
Subject:	Ecomorphology ; Germany ; Jurassic ; Rhynchocephalia ; Sphenodontian ; Taxonomy ; Tuatara
Published in:	Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society, Vol. 204, Issue 3 (July 2025) , art. zlaf073, ISSN 1096-3642

DOI: 10.1093/zoolinnean/zlaf073

39 p, 23.3 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