[Paleontology • 2018] Sibirotitan astrosacralis • A New Sauropod dinosaur from the Lower Cretaceous Ilek Formation, Western Siberia, Russia

Sibirotitan astrosacralis

Averianov, Ivantsov, Skutschas, Faingertz & Leshchinskiy, 2018

Сибиротитан звездокрестцовый  DOI: 10.1016/j.geobios.2017.12.004

Abstract

Sibirotitan astrosacralis nov. gen., nov. sp., is described based on isolated but possibly associated cervical and dorsal vertebrae, sacrum, and previously published pedal elements from the Lower Cretaceous (Barremian?) Ilek Formation at Shestakovo 1 locality (Kemerovo Province, Western Siberia, Russia). Some isolated sauropod teeth from the Shestakovo 1 locality are referred to the same taxon. The phylogenetic parsimony analyses place Sibirotitan astrosacralis nov. gen., nov. sp., as a non-titanosaurian somphospondyl titanosauriform. The new taxon exhibits four titanosauriform and one somphospondylan synapomorphies, and one autapomorphy – a hyposphene ridge that extends between the neural canal and the postzygapophyses. It differs from all other Somphospondyli by having only five sacral vertebrae. The new taxon shares with Euhelopus and Epachtosaurus sacral ribs that converge towards the middle of the sacrum in dorsal view. Sibirotitan astrosacralis nov. gen., nov. sp., is only the second sauropod taxon from Russia and one of the oldest titanosauriform described so far in Asia.

Keywords: Sibirotitan astrosacralis nov. gen., nov. sp.; Titanosauriformes; Sauropoda; Phylogenetic parsimony analysis; Early Cretaceous; Siberia; Asia

Dinosauria Owen, 1842

Saurischia Seeley, 1887

Sauropoda Marsh, 1878

Titanosauriformes Salgado et al., 1997

Genus Sibirotitan nov. gen.

Derivation of the name: from Siberia and Greek Tιτάν (titan), a member of the second order of divine beings, descended from the primordial deities and preceding the Olympian deities in Greek mythology.

Type and only species: Sibirotitan astrosacralis nov. gen., nov. sp.

Derivation of the name: from Greek αστρον (star) and Latin os sacrum (“sacred bone”), an allusion to the unusual configuration of sacral ribs which radiate, in dorsal view, from the middle of the sacrum as the rays of a star.

 S.V. Ivantsov digging out the posterior cervical vertebra PM TGU 120/8-Sh1-3 from the Malyi Yar outcrop in 2008 (Kemerovo Province, Russia). Photo by S.V. Leshchinskiy.

  

  

 Alexander Averianov, Stepan Ivantsov, Pavel Skutschas, Alexey Faingertz and Sergey Leshchinskiy. 2018. A New Sauropod dinosaur from the Lower Cretaceous Ilek Formation, Western Siberia, Russia. Geobios. In Press.  DOI: 10.1016/j.geobios.2017.12.004

Averianov, A.O., Voronkevich, A.V., Maschenko, E.N., Leshchinskiy, S.V., and Fayngertz, A.V. 2002. A sauropod foot from the Early Cretaceous of Western Siberia, Russia. Acta Palaeontologica Polonica. 47 (1): 117–124.  DOI: 10.1.1.492.1575 

Hello to the Sibirosaurus? New dinosaur discovered by university scientists http://siberiantimes.com/science/casestudy/news/n0167-hello-to-the-sibirosaurus-new-dinosaur-discovered-by-university-scientists

Познакомьтесь с новым сибирским динозавром https://metkere.com/2018/01/sibirotitan.html via @metkere

Новый род найденных в Кузбассе динозавров назвали сибиротитаном https://mediakuzbass.ru/news/obshhestvo/94522.html 

 facebook.com/mediakuzbass/photos/1397477943695761

 facebook.com/zakuzbass/posts/1997963993799281

[Paleontology • 2014] Kulindadromeus zabaikalicus • A Jurassic ornithischian Dinosaur from Siberia with both feathers and scales

Kulindadromeus zabaikalicus Godefroit, Sinitsa, Dhouailly, Bolotsky, Sizov, McNamara, Benton & Spagna, 2014
wanders the lake-dotted lowlands of Jurassic Siberia

illustration: Andrey Atuchin

ABSTRACT

Middle Jurassic to Early Cretaceous deposits from northeastern China have yielded varied theropod dinosaurs bearing feathers. Filamentous integumentary structures have also been described in ornithischian dinosaurs, but whether these filaments can be regarded as part of the evolutionary lineage toward feathers remains controversial. Here we describe a new basal neornithischian dinosaur from the Jurassic of Siberia with small scales around the distal hindlimb, larger imbricated scales around the tail, monofilaments around the head and the thorax, and more complex featherlike structures around the humerus, the femur, and the tibia. The discovery of these branched integumentary structures outside theropods suggests that featherlike structures coexisted with scales and were potentially widespread among the entire dinosaur clade; feathers may thus have been present in the earliest dinosaurs.

Pascal Godefroit, Sofia M. Sinitsa, Danielle Dhouailly, Yuri L. Bolotsky, Alexander V. Sizov, Maria E. McNamara, Michael J. Benton and Paul Spagna. 2014. A Jurassic ornithischian Dinosaur from Siberia with both feathers and scales. Science. 345(6195): 451-455. 

DOI: 10.1126/science.1253351 

researchgate.net/publication/264247851_Dinosaur_evolution._A_Jurassic_ornithischian_dinosaur_from_Siberia_with_both_feathers_and_scales

Feathers More Common Among Dinosaurs Than Previously Thought

http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/d-brief/2014/07/24/feathers-common-among-dinosaurs-previously-thought/

http://theropoda.blogspot.com/2014/07/kulindadromeus-zabaikalicus-un.html