Dataset Information

Evidence for a mixed-age group in a pterosaur footprint assemblage from the early Upper Cretaceous of Korea.

ABSTRACT: Here we describe a new pterosaur footprint assemblage from the Hwasun Seoyuri tracksite in the Upper Cretaceous Jangdong Formation of the Neungju Basin in Korea. The assemblage consists of many randomly oriented prints in remarkably high densities but represents a single ichnotaxon, Pteraichnus. Individuals exhibit a large but continuous size range, some of which, with a wingspan estimated at 0.5 m, are among the smallest pterosaurs yet reported from the Upper Cretaceous, adding to other recent finds which contradict the idea that large and giant forms entirely dominated this interval. Unusual features of the tracks, including relatively long, slender pedal digit impressions, do not match the pes of any known Cretaceous pterosaur, suggesting that the trackmakers are as yet unknown from the body fossil record. The Hwasun pterosaur footprints appear to record gregarious behavior at the exact location by individuals of different ages, hinting at the possibility that pterosaurs gathered in mixed-age groups.

SUBMITTER: Jung J

PROVIDER: S-EPMC9226182 | biostudies-literature | 2022 Jun

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Evidence for a mixed-age group in a pterosaur footprint assemblage from the early Upper Cretaceous of Korea.

Jung Jongyun J Huh Min M Unwin David M DM Smyth Robert S H RSH Hwang Koo-Geun KG Kim Hyun-Joo HJ Choi Byung-Do BD Xing Lida L

Scientific reports 20220623 1

Here we describe a new pterosaur footprint assemblage from the Hwasun Seoyuri tracksite in the Upper Cretaceous Jangdong Formation of the Neungju Basin in Korea. The assemblage consists of many randomly oriented prints in remarkably high densities but represents a single ichnotaxon, Pteraichnus. Individuals exhibit a large but continuous size range, some of which, with a wingspan estimated at 0.5 m, are among the smallest pterosaurs yet reported from the Upper Cretaceous, adding to other recent ...[more]

PMID: 35739247

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Project description:BackgroundPterosaurs have been known from the Cretaceous sediments of the Isle of Wight (southern England, United Kingdom) since 1870. We describe the three-dimensional pelvic girdle and associated vertebrae of a small near-adult pterodactyloid from the Atherfield Clay Formation (lower Aptian, Lower Cretaceous). Despite acknowledged variation in the pterosaur pelvis, previous studies have not adequately sampled or incorporated pelvic characters into phylogenetic analyses.Methodology/principal findingsThe new specimen represents the new taxon Vectidraco daisymorrisae gen. et sp. nov., diagnosed by the presence of a concavity posterodorsal to the acetabulum and the form of its postacetabular process on the ilium. Several characters suggest that Vectidraco belongs to Azhdarchoidea. We constructed a pelvis-only phylogenetic analysis to test whether the pterosaur pelvis carries a useful phylogenetic signal. Resolution in recovered trees was poor, but they approximately matched trees recovered from analyses of total evidence. We also added Vectidraco and our pelvic characters to an existing total-evidence matrix for pterosaurs. Both analyses recovered Vectidraco within Azhdarchoidea.Conclusions/ significanceThe Lower Cretaceous strata of western Europe have yielded members of several pterosaur lineages, but Aptian pterosaurs from western Europe are rare. With a pelvis length of 40 mm, the new animal would have had a total length of c. 350 mm, and a wingspan of c. 750 mm. Barremian and Aptian pterodactyloids from western Europe show that small-bodied azhdarchoids lived alongside ornithocheirids and istiodactylids. This assemblage is similar in terms of which lineages are represented to the coeval beds of Liaoning, China; however, the number of species and specimens present at Liaoning is much higher. While the general phylogenetic composition of western European and Chinese communities appear to have been approximately similar, the differences may be due to different palaeoenvironmental and depositional settings. The western Europe pterodactyloid record may therefore be artificially low in diversity due to preservational factors.

Project description:While the terrestrial fossil record of the mid-Cretaceous interval (Aptian to Cenomanian) in North America has been poorly studied, the recent focus on fossil localities from the western United States has offered a more detailed picture of vertebrate diversity, ecosystem dynamics and faunal turnover that took place on the western landmass of Laramidia. This is in stark contrast to the terrestrial record from the eastern landmass of Appalachia, where vertebrate fossils are rare and consist mostly of isolated and fragmentary remains. However, a detailed understanding of these fossil communities during this interval is necessary for comparison of the faunal patterns that developed during the opening of the Western Interior Seaway (WIS). The Woodbine Group of Texas is a Cenomanian age (95-100 mya) deposit consisting of shallow marine, deltaic, and terrestrial communities, which were only recently separated from their western counterparts. These deposits have yielded a wealth of vertebrate remains, yet non-avian theropods are still largely unknown. Recently, multiple localities in the Lewisville Formation of the Woodbine Group have yielded new non-avian theropod material, including numerous isolated teeth and postcranial remains. While largely fragmentary, this material is sufficiently diagnostic to identify the following taxa: a large-bodied carcharodontosaur, a mid-sized tyrannosauroid, a large ornithomimosaur, a large dromaeosaurine, a small dromaeosaurid, a small troodontid, and a small coelurosaur. Some of these groups represent the first occurrence for Appalachia and provide a broader understanding of a newly expanded faunal diversity for the Eastern landmass. The Lewisville Formation theropod fauna is similar in taxonomic composition to contemporaneous deposits in Laramidia, confirming that these groups were widespread across the continent prior to extension of the WIS. The Lewisville Formation documents the transitional nature of Cenomanian coastal ecosystems in Texas while providing additional details on the evolution of Appalachian communities shortly after WIS extension.

Dataset Information

Evidence for a mixed-age group in a pterosaur footprint assemblage from the early Upper Cretaceous of Korea.

Publications

Evidence for a mixed-age group in a pterosaur footprint assemblage from the early Upper Cretaceous of Korea.

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