A new vertebrate fauna from the Lower Cretaceous Holly Creek Formation of the Trinity Group, southwest Arkansas, USA.

Autor:	Suarez CA; Department of Geosciences, University of Arkansas at Fayetteville, Fayetteville, Arkansas, USA., Frederickson J; Weis Earth Science Museum, University of Wisconsin Oshkosh Fox Cities Campus, Menasha, WI, USA., Cifelli RL; Department of Vertebrate Paleontology, Sam Noble Oklahoma Museum of Natural History, University of Oklahoma, Norman, OK, USA., Pittman JG; Ouachita Mountains Biological Station, Mena, Arkansas, USA., Nydam RL; Arizona College of Osteopathic Medicine, Midwestern University, Glendale, Arizona, USA., Hunt-Foster RK; Dinosaur National Monument, Jensen, UT, USA., Morgan K; Department of Geosciences, University of Arkansas at Fayetteville, Fayetteville, Arkansas, USA.
Jazyk:	angličtina
Zdroj:	PeerJ [PeerJ] 2021 Oct 21; Vol. 9, pp. e12242. Date of Electronic Publication: 2021 Oct 21 (Print Publication: 2021).
DOI:	10.7717/peerj.12242
Abstrakt:	We present a previously discovered but undescribed late Early Cretaceous vertebrate fauna from the Holly Creek Formation of the Trinity Group in Arkansas. The site from the ancient Gulf Coast is dominated by semi-aquatic forms and preserves a diverse aquatic, semi-aquatic, and terrestrial fauna. Fishes include fresh- to brackish-water chondrichthyans and a variety of actinopterygians, including semionotids, an amiid, and a new pycnodontiform, Anomoeodus caddoi sp. nov. Semi-aquatic taxa include lissamphibians, the solemydid turtle Naomichelys , a trionychid turtle, and coelognathosuchian crocodyliforms. Among terrestrial forms are several members of Dinosauria and one or more squamates, one of which, Sciroseps pawhuskai gen. et sp. nov., is described herein. Among Dinosauria, both large and small theropods ( Acrocanthosaurus , Deinonychus , and Richardoestesia ) and titanosauriform sauropods are represented; herein we also report the first occurrence of a nodosaurid ankylosaur from the Trinity Group. The fauna of the Holly Creek Formation is similar to other, widely scattered late Early Cretaceous assemblages across North America and suggests the presence of a low-diversity, broadly distributed continental ecosystem of the Early Cretaceous following the Late Jurassic faunal turnover. This low-diversity ecosystem contrasts sharply with the highly diverse ecosystem which emerged by the Cenomanian. The contrast underpins the importance of vicariance as an evolutionary driver brought on by Sevier tectonics and climatic changes, such as rising sea level and formation of the Western Interior Seaway, impacting the early Late Cretaceous ecosystem. Competing Interests: The authors declare that they have no competing interests. (© 2021 Suarez et al.)
Databáze:	MEDLINE
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