Shingopana

Shingopana (meaning "wide neck" in Swahili) is a genus of titanosaurian sauropod from the Lower Cretaceous (Albian age) Galula Formation of Tanzania. It is known from only the type species, S. songwensis.[1] Gorsak & O'Connor's phylogenetic testing suggest Shingopana is more closely related to the South American titanosaur family of Aeolosaurini than any of the titanosaurs found so far in North & South Africa.[1]

Shingopana
Temporal range: Early Cretaceous
~110–100 Ma
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Clade: Dinosauria
Clade: Saurischia
Suborder: †Sauropodomorpha
Clade: †Sauropoda
Clade: †Titanosauria
Clade: †Lithostrotia
Genus: †Shingopana
Gorscak et al. 2017
Type species
†Shingopana songwensis
Gorscak et al. 2017

Discovery and naming

Part of the holotype was discovered in 2002 by scientists affiliated with the Rukwa Rift Basin Project, which was run by Patrick O'Connor and Nancy Stevens.[1] The rest of the skeleton was excavated during the following years. The genus was officially named in 2017.[1]

Description

Shingopana was a quadrupedal Aeolosaurin sauropod that would have reached up to 8 metres (26 ft) long when fully grown, smaller than the average sauropod.[1]

Skeleton

The holotype was damaged by insect bore holes shortly after the animal died.[1]

Shingopana is known from a partial jaw, which somposes of much of the surangular and angular bones. Shingopana is also known from four cervical vertebrae; with two of these vertebrae having preserved cervical ribs and another isolated cervical rib. Instead of having spined vertebrae, Shingopana instead had balls of rough bone on top of the ribs, which probably helped to strengthen its neck.[1]

Four ribs have been preserved with the holotype, but none are complete. The ribs had flanging edges, but their function is currently unknown.[1]

A complete humerus is known and a partial femur has been discovered also. The femur is much shorter and squashed than that of the sister taxon Aeolosaurus. The legs had fewer attachment sites for muscles, making the legs less sturdy than other titanosaur species.[1]

Classification

Shingopana has been classified witnin the Aeolosaurini. It has been added into the Aeolosaurini cladogram by Silva et al. (2019).[2][3][4]

Palaeoecology

The holotype was discovered in the Albian Galula Formation of the Rukwa Rift Basin in Tanzania. It would have coexisted with the sauropods Rukwatitan[5] and Mnyamawamtuka[6], the mesoeucrocodiles Pakasuchus[7] and Rukwasuchus[8], the mammal Galulatherium[5], an unnamed notosuchian, an unnamed turtle, an unnamed theropod[5] and two types of lungfish (Lupaceradotus and an unanmed genus).

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See also

References
  1. Gorscak, E.; O'Connor, P. M.; Roberts, E. M.; Stevens, N. J. (2017). "The second titanosaurian (Dinosauria: Sauropoda) from the middle Cretaceous Galula Formation, southwestern Tanzania, with remarks on African titanosaurian diversity". Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology. 361 (4): 35–55. doi:10.1080/02724634.2017.1343250.
  2. Rodrigo M. Santucci and Antonio C. de Arruda-Campos (2011). "A new sauropod (Macronaria, Titanosauria) from the Adamantina Formation, Bauru Group, Upper Cretaceous of Brazil and the phylogenetic relationships of Aeolosaurini" (PDF). Zootaxa. 3085: 1–33.CS1 maint: uses authors parameter (link)
  3. França, M.A.G.; Marsola, J.C.d A.; Riff, D.; Hsiou, A.S.; Langer, M.C. (2016). "New lower jaw and teeth referred to Maxakalisaurus topai (Titanosauria: Aeolosaurini) and their implications for the phylogeny of titanosaurid sauropods". PeerJ. 4: e2054. doi:10.7717/peerj.2054. PMC 4906671. PMID 27330853.
  4. Silva, J.C.G. Jr.; Marinho, T.S.; Martinelli, A.G.; Langer, M.C. (2019). "Osteology and systematics of Uberabatitan ribeiroi (Dinosauria; Sauropoda): a Late Cretaceous titanosaur from Minas Gerais, Brazil". Zootaxa. 4577 (3): 401–438. doi:10.11646/zootaxa.4577.3.1.
  5. O’Connor, Patrick M.; Gottfried, Michael D.; Stevens, Nancy J.; Roberts, Eric M.; Ngasala, Sifa; Kapilima, Saidi; Chami, Remigius (March 2006). "A new vertebrate fauna from the Cretaceous Red Sandstone Group, Rukwa Rift Basin, Southwestern Tanzania". Journal of African Earth Sciences. 44 (3): 277–288. doi:10.1016/j.jafrearsci.2005.11.022. ISSN 1464-343X.
  6. Gorscak, Eric; O’Connor, Patrick M. (2019). "A new African titanosaurian sauropod dinosaur from the middle Cretaceous Galula Formation (Mtuka Member), Rukwa Rift Basin, southwestern Tanzania". PLoS ONE. 2 (14): e0211412. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0211412. PMC 6374010. PMID 30759122.
  7. O’Connor, Patrick M.; Sertich, Joseph J. W.; Stevens, Nancy J.; Roberts, Eric M.; Gottfried, Michael D.; Hieronymus, Tobin L.; Jinnah, Zubair A.; Ridgely, Ryan; Ngasala, Sifa E. (August 2010). "The evolution of mammal-like crocodyliforms in the Cretaceous Period of Gondwana". Nature. 466 (7307): 748–751. doi:10.1038/nature09061. ISSN 0028-0836. PMID 20686573.
  8. Sertich, Joseph J. W.; O’Connor, Patrick M. (2014-04-16). "A new crocodyliform from the middle Cretaceous Galula Formation, southwestern Tanzania". Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology. 34 (3): 576–596. doi:10.1080/02724634.2013.819808. ISSN 0272-4634.


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