Open Paleo

Panphagia

Martínez & Alcober, 2009 pan-FAG-ee-uh

From Greek 'pan' meaning 'all' and 'phagein' meaning 'to eat', referring to its interpreted omnivorous diet as a basal sauropodomorph.

237.0–227.3 million years ago Carnian, Late Triassic
Late Triassic stages

Panphagia is a genus of sauropodomorph dinosaur described in 2009. It lived around 231 million years ago, during the Carnian age of the Late Triassic period in what is now northwestern Argentina. Fossils of the genus were found in the Cancha de Bochas Member of the Ischigualasto Formation in the Ischigualasto-Villa Unión Basin. The name Panphagia comes from the Greek words pan, meaning "all", and phagein, meaning "to eat", in reference to its inferred omnivorous diet. Panphagia is one of the earliest known dinosaurs, and is an important find which may mark the transition of diet in early sauropodomorph dinosaurs.

Under dispute

Panphagia protos is an early sauropodomorph from the Late Triassic of Argentina whose membership in Saturnaliidae is not firmly established. Langer and colleagues (2019) recovered it within the clade in most of their most-parsimonious trees but described its position as floating, nesting outside a less inclusive Saturnaliidae in others. Ezcurra (2010) recovered it outside Saturnaliinae as a more basal guaibasaurid, and Martinez and Alcober (2009), describing the genus, placed it as the most basal sauropodomorph, sister to Saturnalia and all more derived members of the group.

Diagnosis

  1. Anteroposteriorly elongated fossa on base of anteroventral process of nasal
  2. Wide lateral flange on quadrate with large foramen far from shaft
  3. Deep groove on lateral surface of lower jaw with prominent dorsal and ventral ridges
  4. Bifurcated posteroventral process of dentary with slender overlapping rami
  5. Retroarticular process transversally wider than articular facet for quadrate
  6. Oval scars on lateral surface of posterior cervical vertebral centra
  7. Scapular blade distal end nearly three times wider than neck
  8. Medial lamina of brevis fossa twice as wide as iliac spine

Species

Panphagia protos Martínez & Alcober, 2009

Type species

From Ancient Greek 'protos' meaning 'the first', referring to the basal phylogenetic position of the species among sauropodomorphs.

Holotype
PVSJ 874 , División de Paleontología de Vertebrados del Museo de Ciencias Naturales y Universidad Nacional de San Juan
Material
Partial skull, cervical, dorsal and caudal vertebrae, scapula, ilium, pubic apron, ischium, tibia, astragalus, metatarsal, pedal phalanges. Immature individual, ~1.30 m body length.
Horizon
lower Cancha de Bochas Member, Ischigualasto Formation, Carnian, Late Triassic , 237.0–227.3 million years ago
Locality
Valle Pintado, San Juan, Argentina

References

  1. Martínez, R. N.; Alcober, O. A. (2009). A Basal Sauropodomorph (Dinosauria: Saurischia) from the Ischigualasto Formation (Triassic, Carnian) and the Early Evolution of Sauropodomorpha. PLoS ONE 4(2): e4397. Public Library of Science (PLoS). doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0004397

    Erected Panphagia and recovered it as the most basal sauropodomorph, sister to Saturnalia and all more derived members of the group.

    martínez2009b
  2. Langer, M. C.; McPhee, B. W.; Marsola, J. C. de A.; Roberto-da-Silva, L.; Cabreira, S. F. (2019). Anatomy of the dinosaur Pampadromaeus barberenai (Saurischia—Sauropodomorpha) from the Late Triassic Santa Maria Formation of southern Brazil. PLoS ONE 14(2): e0212543. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0212543

    Recovered Panphagia within Saturnaliidae in most most-parsimonious trees, but described its position as floating.

    langer2019b
  3. Ezcurra, M. D. (2010). A new early dinosaur (Saurischia: Sauropodomorpha) from the Late Triassic of Argentina: a reassessment of dinosaur origin and phylogeny. Journal of Systematic Palaeontology 8(3): 371-425. Informa UK Limited. doi:10.1080/14772019.2010.484650

    Recovered Panphagia outside Saturnaliinae, as a guaibasaurid more basal than Saturnalia and Chromogisaurus.

    ezcurra2010a
  4. Paul, G. S. (2024). The Princeton Field Guide to Dinosaurs (3rd ed.). Princeton University Press.

    Source of the mass estimate.

    paul2024a
  5. Jones, B. (2026). The Princeton Encyclopedia of Dinosaurs: Sauropods. Princeton University Press.

    Source of the hip height estimate.

    jones2026b