Hitchhiker's New Papers to the Galaxy

["Jerry D. Harris" <jharris@dixie.edu>]

Hi All -

  Before we get to the juicy stuff, here's some new things:

Rinehart, L.F., Lucas, S.G., and Hunt, A.P. 2007. Furculae in the Late 
Triassic theropod dinosaur Coelophysis bauri. Paläontologische Zeitschrift 
81(2):174-180.

ABSTRACT: Furculae have been identified in many dinosaurs and are 
synapomorphic in some clades (e.g., dromaeosaurids). All coelophysid 
dinosaurs except Coelophysis bauri have been shown to possess furculae. To 
date, the oldest well-docunlented furculae have been those of the Early 
Jurassic coelophysids, Coelophysis kayentakatae and Coelophysis 
rhodesiensis. The confirmation of furculae in Apachean-aged C. bauri further 
documents appearance of these elements in the Late Triassic and shows that 
furculae are synapomorphic in the Coelophysidae. A total of five furculae 
have been found in New Mexico Museum of Natural History's (NMMNH) Ghost 
Ranch, New Mexico Whitaker Quarry block C-8-82. We describe three furculae 
in articulated juvenile skeletons; two that are missing fragments but are 
nearly complete, and one apparently complete, a small fragment of a furcula 
associated with an adult C. bauri, and one complete but isolated furcula. We 
access the morphology and allometry of the scapulocoracoid and furcula and 
show that they grow, at least in juveniles, in isometry with the humerus. 
The furcula of C. bauri has a widely opened U shape that subtends an angle 
of ~120° . All the furculae have groove-like epicleidial facets at the 
distal ends of the rami and some possess a small centrally located 
hypocleideal process. We reconstruct the conlplete shoulder girdle of C. 
bauri with proper spacing and angles between the elements and find that the 
coracoids are very close together under the center of the furcula.


Zhou, C.-F., Gao, K.-Q., Fox, R.C., and Du, X.-K. 2007. Endocranial 
morphology of psittacosaurs (Dinosauria: Ceratopsia) based on CT scans of 
new fossils from the Lower Cretaceous, China. Palaeoworld. doi: 
10.1016/j.palwor.2007.07.0.

ABSTRACT: Psittacosaurs, small basal ceratopsians with a parrot-like beak, 
are among the most abundant dinosaurs, but occur only in the Early 
Cretaceous of East Asia. Although the general morphology of psittacosaurs is 
fairly well understood, the endocranial anatomy of the group has never been 
described. New discoveries of well-preserved skulls from the celebrated 
Liaoning beds in northeastern China provide the material for conducting 
research on psittacosaur endocranial morphology. Using computed tomography 
scans of three-dimensionally preserved skulls, this study reveals basic 
endocranial anatomy of psittacosaurs and provides the first 
palaeoneurological evidence of psittacosaurs in relation to their behaviour. 
Although commonly believed to have had a small brain and small eyes, 
psittacosaurs had relatively high brain/body size ratios that are comparable 
to those in the large theropod Tyrannosaurus, and probably had a keen sense 
of smell and acute vision, as evidenced by their enlarged olfactory lobes 
and bulbous optic lobes. The configuration of the semicircular canals agrees 
with limb proportions to suggest that psittacosaurs were agile animals, 
perhaps better able to escape predation by carnivorous dinosaurs on that 
account. The behavioural adaptations implied by this study may have been 
crucial for the successful radiation of psittacosaurs during the Early 
Cretaceous of East Asia.



Missell, C.A. 2004. Thermoregulatory adaptations of Acrocanthosaurus 
atokensis - evidence from oxygen isotopes. Masters thesis 
thesis/dissertation, Marine, Earth, and Atmospheric Sciences, North Carolina 
State University, Raleigh, 82 pp.

(available free at 
http://www.lib.ncsu.edu/theses/available/etd-12312003-115912/unrestricted/etd.pdf)



OK, now onto the continuing saga of Pakistani dinosaurs: a new paper -- I 
freely admit I only just learned of this (thanks, Rob!) and haven't read it 
yet, but it's available free at 
http://usindh.edu.pk/surj/vol_39_01_2007.pdf:

Malkani, M.S. 2007. Trackways evidence of sauropod dinosaurs confronted by a 
theropod found from Middle Jurassic Samana Suk Limestone of Pakistan. Sindh 
University Research Journal (Science Series) 39(1):1-14.

ABSTRACT: The temporal distribution of sauropod trackways generally 
parallels the record of sauropod body fossils. The oldest sauropod trackways 
are found in Lower Jurassic deposits of Africa, North America, and Asia; 
trackways are abundant throughout the rest of the Jurassic and Lower 
Cretaceous, but fewer are recorded in the Upper Cretaceous rocks. The foot 
structures of the various dinosaur groups are usually fairly conservative 
within those groups. Trackways are particularly promising records of 
dinosaur locomotion because they represent the trace of an act-a moment in 
time- and therefore can provide information that is usually unavailable from 
skeletal morphology alone.
    Remains of a diversified paleobiota are found in the middle Indus 
basin, which includes plants (gymnosperm), mollusks, reptiles (cranial and 
post cranial bones). The commonest vertebrate fossils belong to sauropod and 
theropod dinosaurs, and mesoeucrocodilian fauna that occur a wide geographic 
area. Recently the author have found footprints of sauropod confronted with 
a theropod, in the middle Jurassic Samana Suk Limestone of Surghar Range, 
Mianwali district, Punjab Province, Pakistan. Five species of Late 
Cretaceous and one species of Late Jurassic titanosaurian sauropod, and one 
species of Late Cretaceous Abelisauran theropod dinosaur from Pakistan have 
already been established. But one new genus and species Malasaurus mianwali 
of middle Jurassic sauropod and one new genus and species Samanadrinda 
surghari of large bodied theropod based on only ichnofossils, are 
tentatively erected. Large pes foot print having length/width about 1 metre 
are diagnosed only for a large bodied sauropod. The manus footprints are 
totally overlapped by the pes prints. These tracks suggest the gregarious 
behavior of narrow gauge locomotors defending the attack of predatory 
theropod. This is the reason these are not referred to previously erected 
species of titanosaurs from Pakistan, because they may belongs to wide gauge 
trackways. These footprints are surely assigned to sauropod, but its 
assignment to lower level is difficult.
    Three slender toed foot prints having maximum length about 2 feet and 
width about 1.5 feet are diagnosed only for a large bodied theropod. These 
footprints are surely assigned to Theropod, but its assignment to lower 
level is difficult. Both the sauropod and theropod genera erected are named 
only to refer for future research work regarding locomotion, behavior, soft 
and hard tissues. This ichnotype reveal the scenario of confrontation among 
a carnivorous Samanadrinda surghari theropod and the groups of herbivorous 
Malasaurus Mianwali sauropods.
    This ichnocoenosis consists of exposed about 15 footprints, and 4 short 
trackways. Three trackways are interpreted as mainly produced by sauropods 
which are obliquely confronted by a track of large Theropod. They are 
indicative of a sauropod herd, composed of 3 or more individuals and furnish 
evidence of gregariousness (herd). The ichnofossils are usually deep 
footprints probably due to good granolometric sorting and the high 
plasticity of the limy substrate. In the vicinity, some foot prints of 
possibly birds/ small body theropod/coelorusaurs are also present. The 
ichnofossils of sauropod dinosaurs confronting a theropod of upper Indus 
Basin are a unique record of a middle Jurassic dinosaurian fauna which 
inhabited the north western margin of Indo-Pakistan subcontinental plate.


Note that there are two taxa named there...sort of.  They're standard 
taxon-type names, but they're actually ichnotaxa (footprint names), not the 
names of actual organisms.  I'm interested in reading it if for no other 
reason than because it purports to document ichnological evidence of a 
theropod-sauropod interaction...that would be very cool if correct.  Another 
new paper cited in the biblio (as in review) discusses other evidence of 
theropod-on-theropod interaction...not unheard of, of course.  Perhaps more 
interestingly, though, its bibliography seems to indicate that the 
publication that may well formally erect the previous names 
(_Vitakridrinda_, _Balochisaurus_, etc.) seems to have been published, 
although I've not yet been able to get a hold of it.  For reasons I won't 
get into here, the direct route didn't work, so I'm attempting an 
alternative route.  As before, if I'm ever successful in getting hold of any 
of the cited papers that aren't available on-line, I will happily let 
everyone know!