The skeletal remains of the euryhaline sclerorhynchid batoid †Onchopristis (Elasmobranchii, Batoidea) from the ‘mid’ Cretaceous and its palaeontological implications
Villalobos-segura, Eduardo and Kriwet, J. and Underwood, Charlie J. and Vullo, R. and Stumpf, S. and Ward, D.J. (2021) The skeletal remains of the euryhaline sclerorhynchid batoid †Onchopristis (Elasmobranchii, Batoidea) from the ‘mid’ Cretaceous and its palaeontological implications. Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society 193 (2), pp. 746-771. ISSN 0024-4082.
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Abstract
We present the first known cranial remains of the fossil batoid †Onchopristis numidus. Based on two exceptionally well-preserved specimens collected from the “Kem Kem Beds” (Albian-Cenomanian), South-East of Morocco, an almost complete description of the rostral and cranial portions of the genus †Onchopristis is provided, along with new observations regarding the addition and arrangement of the rostral denticles series for this genus. The comparison between the rostrum length of the specimens of †Onchopristis numidus with those of extant pristids revealed a relatively large batoid species with an estimated total length between two to four meters. Overall, the cranial morphology of †Onchopristis resembles that of other sclerorhynchoids. Its robust hypertrophied rostrum with the characteristic wood-like mineralisation covering the inner layer of tessellate cartilage at the centre of the rostrum, in addition to the thick lateral layers of densely porous cartilage on the sides of the rostral cartilages, resembles that observed in †Ischyrhiza and †Shizorhiza, and differentiates †Onchopristis from other sclerorhynchoids species (e.g. †Micropristis, †Sclerorhynchus and †Libanopristis). Based on these rostral features, a phylogenetic analysis to establish the phylogenetic position of †Onchopristis within sclerorhynchoids is carried out, which results suggest a new taxonomic arrangement for the sclerorhynchoids.
Metadata
| Item Type: | Article |
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| Additional Information: | This is the peer reviewed version of the article, which has been published in final form at the link above. This article may be used for non-commercial purposes in accordance with Wiley Terms and Conditions for Self-Archiving. |
| School: | Birkbeck Faculties and Schools > Faculty of Science > School of Natural Sciences |
| Research Centres and Institutes: | Earth and Planetary Sciences, Institute of |
| Depositing User: | Charles Underwood |
| Date Deposited: | 24 Sep 2020 15:45 |
| Last Modified: | 02 Aug 2023 18:04 |
| URI: | https://eprints.bbk.ac.uk/id/eprint/40913 |
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