Sphenosuchia

Sphenosuchia is a suborder of basal crocodylomorphs that first appeared in the Triassic and occurred into the Middle Jurassic. Most were small, gracile animals with an erect limb posture. They are now thought to be ancestral to crocodyliforms, a group which includes all living crocodilians.

Sphenosuchia
Temporal range: Late Triassic - Middle Jurassic, 228–165 Ma
Life restoration of Hesperosuchus agilis
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Reptilia
Superorder: Crocodylomorpha
Informal group: Sphenosuchia
von Huene, 1942
Genera

See below

Synonyms
  • Pedeticosauria Walker, 1968

Stratigraphic range

The earliest known members of the group (i.e. Hesperosuchus) are early Norian in age, found in the Blue Mesa Member of the Chinle Formation. Only one sphenosuchian is currently known from the Middle Jurassic, Junggarsuchus, from the Junggar Basin (Shishugou Formation) of China during either the Bathonian or the Callovian (~165 Ma) in age.[1]

Phylogeny

The monophyly of the group is debated, although several synapomorphies characterize the clade, including extremely slender limbs, a compact carpus and an elongate coracoid process.

In 2002, Clark and Sues found a possible sphenosuchian clade of Dibothrosuchus, Sphenosuchus, and possibly Hesperosuchus and Saltoposuchus, with several other genera in unresolved positions (Kayentasuchus, Litargosuchus, Pseudhesperosuchus, and Terrestrisuchus).[2] More recently, however, Clark et al. (2004) argued for the paraphyly of the group, contending that morphological characters were secondarily lost in more highly derived crocodylomorphs.[1] Further analysis and study is required before the group's monophyly is resolved with certainty — a perfect phylogenetic analysis is, at present, impossible due to a paucity of fossil remains demonstrating phylogenetically informative characters.

Below is a cladogram modified from Nesbitt (2011).[3] Sphenosuchians are marked by the green bracket.

Crocodylomorpha 
 

CM 73372

 
 
 

Hesperosuchus

 
 

Dromicosuchus

 
 
 

Sphenosuchus

 
 
 

Dibothrosuchus

 
 

Terrestrisuchus

 
 
 

Litargosuchus

 
 
 

Kayentasuchus

 
 Crocodyliformes 
 

Orthosuchus

 
 

Protosuchus

 
 

Alligator

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Sphenosuchians

Genera
Genus Status Age Location Unit Notes Images
Valid Early Jurassic  China Lower Lufeng Series
Valid Late Triassic  USA Newark Supergroup
Valid Late Triassic (Carnian)  Germany Schilfsandstein Formation A possible sphenosuchian;[4] alternatively, it could be an erpetosuchid.[5]
Valid Late Triassic (Carnian)  USA Chinle Formation
Valid Middle Jurassic  China Shishugou Formation
Valid Early Jurassic (Sinemurian - Pliensbachian)  USA Kayenta Formation
Valid Early Jurassic  South Africa Elliot Formation
Nomen dubium Late Triassic  USA Dockum Group An indeterminate sphenosuchian known only from undiagnostic vertebrae[6]
Valid Early Jurassic  China Lower Lufeng Series
Valid Late Triassic (Norian)  Argentina Los Colorados Formation
Valid Late Triassic  USA Redonda Formation
Valid Late Triassic (Norian)  Germany

  Switzerland  UK

 Löwenstein Formation

Trossingen Formation Lossiemouth Sandstone
Valid Early Jurassic  South Africa Elliot Formation
Valid. Late Triassic  UK
Valid Late Triassic  Argentina Ischigualasto Formation
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References
  1. Clark, J.M., et al. (2004).A Middle Jurassic 'sphenosuchian' from China and the origin of the crocodylian skull Nature 430:1021-1024.
  2. Clark, James M.; Sues, Hans-Dieter (2002). "Two new basal crocodylomorph archosaurs from the Lower Jurassic and the monophyly of the Sphenosuchia". Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society. 136: 77–95. doi:10.1046/j.1096-3642.2002.00026.x.
  3. Nesbitt, S.J. (2011). "The early evolution of archosaurs: relationships and the origin of major clades" (PDF). Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History. 352: 1–292. doi:10.1206/352.1. hdl:2246/6112.
  4. Lucas, S. G.; Wild, R.; Hunt, A. P. (1998). "Dyoplax O. Fraas, a Triassic sphenosuchian from Germany". Stuttgarter Beiträge zur Naturkunde, B. 263: 1–13.
  5. Michael W. Maisch; Andreas T. Matzke; Thomas Rathgeber (2013). "Re-evaluation of the enigmatic archosaur Dyoplax arenaceus O. Fraas, 1867 from the Schilfsandstein (Stuttgart Formation, lower Carnian, Upper Triassic) of Stuttgart, Germany". Neues Jahrbuch für Geologie und Paläontologie - Abhandlungen. 267 (3): 353–362. doi:10.1127/0077-7749/2013/0317.
  6. Clark, J. M.; Sues, H.-D.; Berman, D. S. (2001). "A new specimen of Hesperosuchus agilis from the Upper Triassic of New Mexico and the interrelationships of basal crocodylomorph archosaurs". Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology. 20 (4): 683–704. doi:10.1671/0272-4634(2000)020[0683:ANSOHA]2.0.CO;2.
  7. Harris, Jerald D.; Lucas, Spencer G.; Estep, J. W.; Jianjun Li (2000). "A new and unusual sphenosuchian (Archosauria: Crocodylomorpha) from the Lower Jurassic Lufeng Formation, People's Republic of China". Neues Jahrbuch für Geologie und Paläontologie, Abhandlungen. 215 (1): 47–68. doi:10.1127/njgpa/215/2000/47.
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