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Tributo a Ignacio Aureliano Machado Brito: Um Professor de Paleontologia

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Ossos de pterosauro da Formação Portezuelo (Cretáceo), Grupo Neuquén, Patagônia, Argentina

The Futalognko quarry, located 90km northwest of Neuquén city, Argentina, has yielded several fossil vertebrates. All come from the upper part of the Portezuelo Formation (Turonian-Early Coniacian) and include some pterosaur remains, the first ones from the Cretaceous strata of the Neuquén Group. The material consists of a proximal end of a large ulna (MUCPv-358), the proximal part of a wing-phalanx (MUCPv-359), and another ulna associated with a radius (MUCPv-600). All specimens are referred to the Pterodactyloidea, and possibly represent members of the Azhdarchoidea. Histological sections of the large ulna (MUCPv-358) indicate that it belonged to an animal that was still growing at time of death. Comparisons with more complete specimens indicate that MUCPv-358 represents an animal with a wingspan of six meters, making it the largest pterosaur known from Argentina.O jazigo Futalognko está situado 90km a noroeste da cidade de Neuquén, Argentina, e forneceu uma grande quantidade de vertebrados fósseis, todos da parte superior da Formação Portezuelo (Turoniano- Eoconiaciano). Dentre os exemplares recuperados encontram-se alguns exemplares de pterossauros indicando a primeira ocorrência deste grupo para as rochas cretácicas do Grupo Neuquén. O material está representado pela parte proximal de uma ulna de grandes proporções (MUCPv-358), a parte proximal de uma primeira falange alar (MUCPv-359), e uma segunda ulna associada com o rádio (MUCPv-600). Todos estes exemplares são referidos a Pterodactyloidea e possivelmente representam formas de Azhdarchoidea. Seções histológicas da ulna maior (MUCPv-358) indicam que ela representa um animal jovem que estava em fase de crescimento quando morreu. Comparações com outros exemplares mais completos sugerem que MUCPv-358 tenha pertencido a um pterossauro com uma abertura alar em torno de seis metros, fazendo dele o maior réptil voador coletado até o presente momento na Argentina

Sobre uma coluna vertebral de um titanossaurídeo (Dinosauria, Sauropoda) do grupo Bauru, Neocretáceo do Brasil

A new titanosaurid dinosaur from the Late Cretaceous continental deposits of the Bauru Group is described. Trigonosaurus pricei n.gen., n.sp., is based on two specimens, both collected at the Caieira Quarry near Peirópolis, Minas Gerais. The holotype consists of the five most posterior cervical vertebrae, 10 dorsals, six sacrals and the left ilium (MCT 1488-R). The second specimen (paratype) consists of 10 caudal vertebrae that according to a quarry map, were found isolated but show a similar morphology and compatible size suggesting that they belonged to one individual (MCT 1719-R). Trigonosaurus pricei is diagnosed by a combination of characters such as elongated cervicals and middorsals, dorsal vertebrae 9 and 10 with incipient postzygodiapophyseal lamina and transverse processes well developed throughout the sequence formed by anterior and medial caudals. The occurrence of this new taxon indicates a higher diversity of titanosaurids in the Brazil during the Cretaceous period.Um novo titanossaurídeo procedente dos depósitos continentais do grupo Bauru (Neocretáceo) é descrito. Trigonosaurus pricei n.gen., n.sp. é baseado em dois exemplares coletados na localidade Caieira na região de Peirópolis, Minas Gerais. O holótipo é composto das últimas cinco vértebras cervicais, 10 vértebras dorsais, seis sacrais e o ílio esquerdo (MCT 1488-R). O segundo exemplar (parátipo) é formado por 10 vértebras caudais que, de acordo com um mapa da escavação, foram encontradas isoladas, mas apresentam o mesmo padrão morfológico e um tamanho compatível, sendo, deste modo, consideradas como pertencentes a um mesmo indivíduo (MCT 1719-R). Trigonosaurus pricei é diagnosticado por uma combinação de caracteres tais como vértebras cervicais e dorsais médias alongadas, vértebras dorsais 9 e 10 com uma incipiente lâmina diapopós-zigapofisiária e processos transversos bem desenvolvidos por toda seqüência anterior e média da série caudal. A ocorrência deste novo táxon demonstra a existência de uma maior diversidade de titanosaurídeos no Brasil durante o período Cretáceo

Floresta dos Borbas, uma nova localidade com pistas de dinossauros na Bacia de Sousa, Paraíba, Brasil.

A new site with dinosaur tracks from the Sousa Basin, Lower Cretaceous of Northeast Brazil is presented. Floresta dos Borbas is the sixth dinosaur tracksite found in the Antenor Navarro Formation. Two theropod trackways are described as well as three sauropod tracks. The sauropod record in this region indicates a restriction to the northern portion of the basin, mostly found in the Antenor Navarro Formation and probably the basal portion of the Sousa Formation. A preliminary analysis indicates that the lower portion of the stratigraphic sequence that forms the Sousa Basin was deposited in a different paleoenvironmental condition than the upper part, being possibly more favorable for sauropods.Uma nova localidade com pistas de dinossauros da Bacia de Sousa, parte do complexo de bacias do Rio do Peixe, Cretáceo Inferior do Nordeste do Brasil, é apresentada. A região, conhecida como Floresta dos Borbas, forma a sexta localidade com pistas e pegadas de dinossauros encontrada na Formação Antenor Navarro. Duas pistas de terópodes e três pegadas de saurópodes são descritas. O registro de pegadas de saurópodes está restrito à parte norte da bacia, procedente da Formação Antenor Navarro e possivelmente à base da Formação Sousa. Uma análise ainda bastante preliminar sugere a existência de diferentes condições paleoambientais na base da seqüência estratigráfica que forma esta bacia, possivelmente mais favorável ao desenvolvimento de uma comunidade de saurópodos do que a parte superior

Novel information on the cranial anatomy of the tapejarine pterosaur Caiuajara dobruskii

Caiuajara dobruskii is a tapejarid pterosaur from the Cretaceous of the 'Cemitério dos Pterossauros' (pterosaur graveyard) site, a unique pterosaur bonebed which is located at the municipality of Cruzeiro do Oeste (Paraná, Brazil). Preliminary inferences on Caiuajara morphology were founded on a few partial skeletons, with no detail on the skull anatomy. Here we describe a new specimen from the pterosaur graveyard site, which corresponds to the most complete skull of Caiuajara dobruskii known so far. Furthermore, we describe and compare other specimens including the holotype, a paratype, and several other undescribed specimens. The new specimen preserves the posterior portion of the skull, allowing a better comprehension of its morphology and provides an appreciation of the anatomic structures of the basicranium, enabling better interpretation of this region. We also described the lower jaw of Caiuajara, reporting a unique feature of its symphyseal which adds to the diagnosis for the species. A variability in the premaxillary crest is also noted in different specimens of Caiuajara, which might be interpreted as sexual dimorphism or ontogenetic variability. Therefore, those new findings allow a better comprehension of its skull and enables a more precise comparison between the skulls of those extinct flying reptiles

First complete pterosaur from the Afro-Arabian continent : insight into pterodactyloid diversity

Despite being known from every continent, the geological record of pterosaurs, the first group of vertebrates to develop powered flight, is very uneven, with only a few deposits accounting for the vast majority of specimens and almost half of the taxonomic diversity. Among the regions that stand out for the greatest gaps of knowledge regarding these flying reptiles, is the Afro-Arabian continent, which has yielded only a small number of very fragmentary and incomplete materials. Here we fill part of that gap and report on the most complete pterosaur recovered from this continent, more specifically from the Late Cretaceous (~95 mya) Hjoûla Lagerstätte of Lebanon. This deposit is known since the Middle Ages for the exquisitely preserved fishes and invertebrates, but not for tetrapods, which are exceedingly rare. Mimodactylus libanensis gen. et sp. nov. differs from the other Afro-Arabian pterosaur species named to date and is closely related to the Chinese species Haopterus gracilis, forming a new clade of derived toothed pterosaurs. Mimodactylidae clade nov. groups species that are related to Istiodactylidae, jointly designated as Istiodactyliformes (clade nov.). Istiodactyliforms were previously documented only in Early Cretaceous sites from Europe and Asia, with Mimodactylus libanensis the first record in Gondwana

A new gnathosaurine (Pterosauria, Archaeopterodactyloidea) from the Late Jurassic of Portugal

An incomplete, yet remarkably-sized dentated rostrum and associated partial cervical vertebrae of a pterosaur (ML 2554) were recently discovered from the Late Jurassic (Late Kimmeridgian-Early Tithonian) Lourinhã Formation of Praia do Caniçal, of central west Portugal. This specimen exhibits features such as a spatulated anterior expansion of the rostrum, robust comb-like dentition, and pronounced rims of the tooth alveoli, indicating gnathosaurine affinities. Based on its further unique tooth and dentary morphology, a new genus and species, Lusognathus almadrava gen. et spec. nov., is proposed, making this the first named pterosaur species found within Portugal. The presence of this taxon adds yet another element to the fluvio-deltaic lagoonal environment that has been suggested as representative of the Lourinhã Formation in the Late Jurassic, further contributing to the diversity and distribution of gnathosaurines worldwide