Nebulasaurus
From Latin 'nebulae' meaning 'misty cloud', in reference to Yunnan Province (meaning 'southern misty cloudy province') where the fossil was found, combined with Greek 'sauros' meaning 'lizard'.
Nebulasaurus is an extinct genus of basal eusauropod dinosaur known from the early Middle Jurassic Zhanghe Formation (Aalenian or Bajocian stage) of Yunnan Province, China. It is known only from the holotype braincase LDRC-v.d.1. A phylogenetic analysis found Nebulasaurus to be a sister taxon to Spinophorosaurus from the Middle Jurassic of Africa. This discovery is significant paleontologically because it represents a clade of basal eusauropods previously unknown from Asia.
Diagnosis
- Exoccipitals nearly excluding supraoccipital from foramen magnum (supraoccipital forming <10% of margin)
- Supraoccipital not expanded laterally between parietal and exoccipital
- Frontoparietal fenestra larger than postparietal foramen, both present at midline
- Incipient crista interfenestralis incompletely partitioning fenestra ovalis and jugular foramen
- Craniopharyngeal foramen posterior to basal tubera
Species
Nebulasaurus taito Xing, 2013
Type species
Named for the Japanese company Taito, which funded the field project that led to the holotype's discovery.
- Holotype
- LDRC-v.d.1 , Lufeng Dinosaur Research Center
- Material
- Braincase
- Horizon
- Zhanghe Formation, Aalenian–Bajocian, Middle Jurassic , 174.7–168.2 million years ago
- Locality
- Xiabanjing, Jiangyi Rural Area, Yunnan, China
References
- Xing, L. (2013). A new basal eusauropod from the Middle Jurassic of Yunnan, China, and faunal compositions and transitions of Asian sauropodomorph dinosaurs. Acta Palaeontologica Polonica. Polska Akademia Nauk Instytut Paleobiologii (Institute of Paleobiology, Polish Academy of Sciences). doi:10.4202/app.2012.0151 xing2013a
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Molina-Pérez, R.; Larramendi, A. (2020). Dinosaur Facts and Figures: The Sauropods and Other Sauropodomorphs. Princeton University Press.
Source of the body length, mass, and hip height estimates.
molina-pérez2020a