Shuotherium
| Shuotherium Temporal range: Middle-Late Jurassic | |
|---|---|
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Mammalia |
| Family: | †Shuotheriidae |
| Genus: | †Shuotherium Chow & Rich 1982 |
| Type species | |
| †Shuotherium dongi Chow & Rich 1982 | |
| Species | |
| |
Shuotherium is a fossil relative of the monotremes known from Bathonian (Middle Jurassic) layers of the Forest Marble Formation, England, and from Middle-Late Jurassic layers of the Shaximiao Formation of Sichuan, China.[1]
The original holotype is composed of a partial dentary and seven teeth (two which are incomplete). The holotypes for other species of this genus are solely represented by isolated molars. Shuotherium, along with Pseudotribos has been placed in the family Shuotheriidae as a sister taxon of the Australosphenida (see, Yinotheria).[1]
Description
In it lower molars, the talonid is situated in front of the trigonid, such a unique dental form is distinct from the typical tribosphenic pattern. In this "pseudotribosphenic" trait, the mesial cingulid is expanded to form a pseudotalonid, and its distal talonid is underdeveloped. It shares with Australosphenida a thin, slender dentary but differs from the non-monotreme Ausktribosphenida by having more developed postdentary trough. Its dental formula has been reconstructed as: <p4, m3.<ref name="Kielan-etal-2004" />[2]
Kielan-Jaworowska, Cifelli & Luo 2002 had this to say regarding the fossil:[2]
In our view, the most compelling evidence as to the affinities of Shuotherium lies in the structure of the last premolar, which shares striking similarities to that of Australosphenida
Lower molar structure of Shuotherium and Australosphenida is obviously quite different, and for this reason we do not place Shuotherium within this Gondwanan clade. Based on the limited evidence available, however, we suggest that Shuotherium is a viable sister-taxon to Australosphenida.
Notes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Kielan-Jaworowska, Cifelli & Luo 2004, pp. 214-215, 529
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Dykes: Shuoterium
References
- Chow, M.; Rich, T. H. (1982). "Shuotherium dongi, n. gen. and sp., a therian with pseudo-tribosphenic molars from the Jurassic of Sichuan, China". Australian Mammalogy 5: 127–42. Retrieved May 2013.
- "???". Dinodata.
- Dykes, Trevor. "Mesozoic Mammals: Shuotheriidae & Australosphenida, an internet directory". Retrieved May 2013.
- Kielan−Jaworowska, Z.; Cifelli, R.L.; Luo, Z.−X. (2002). "Dentition and relationships of the Jurassic mammal Shuotherium". Acta palaeontologica Polonica 47 (3): 479–86. Retrieved May 2013.
- Kielan-Jaworowska, Zofia; Cifelli, Richard L.; Luo, Zhe-Xi (2004). Mammals from the Age of Dinosaurs: Origins, Evolution, and Structure. New York: Columbia University Press. ISBN 9780231509275.
- Sigogneau-Russell, Denise (1998). "Discovery of a Late Jurassic Chinese mammal in the Upper Bathonian of England". Comptes Rendus de l'Académie des Sciences - Series IIA - Earth and Planetary Science 327 (8): 571–576. doi:10.1016/S1251-8050(99)80040-8. OCLC 4931582858.
- Wang, Yuanqing; Clemens, William A; Hu, Yaoming (1998). "A Probable Pseudo-Tribosphenic Upper Molar from the Late Jurassic of China and the Early Radiation of the Holotheria". Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology 18 (4): 777–87. doi:10.1080/02724634.1998.10011106. JSTOR 4523955. OCLC 4899517409.