The osteology of Ferrodraco lentoni, an anhanguerid pterosaur from the mid-Cretaceous of Australia

ABSTRACT

Ferrodraco lentoni, an anhanguerid from the Upper Cretaceous Winton Formation of northeast Australia, is the most complete Australian pterosaur described to date, represented by a partial cranium, incomplete cervical series and wing elements. Herein we present a comprehensive osteological description of Ferrodraco, as well as an emended diagnosis for this taxon. In addition, we compare Ferrodraco with other isolated pterosaur remains from Australian Cretaceous deposits. Subtle, yet salient, differences indicate that at least three of these specimens, all derived from the upper Albian Toolebuc Formation, are distinct from Ferrodraco. However, we are uncertain whether these specimens are attributable to Mythunga camara, Aussiedraco molnari, Thapunngaka shawi, or an as yet un-named taxon. Detailed description of the postcranial material of Ferrodraco also provides an opportunity to reassess its phylogenetic position. In one analysis, Ferrodraco and Mythunga are resolved as sister taxa within Tropeognathinae, whereas in another, Ferrodraco, Mythunga, and Tropeognathus form a polytomy within Coloborhynchinae. Either way, these slight differences notwithstanding, a close relationship between Ferrodraco and Mythunga is evident, supporting the interpretation that they form a clade. By contrast, Aussiedraco molnari is resolved as a member of Targaryendraconia, a clade with a cosmopolitan distribution. The presence of several anhanguerian taxa or lineages in the late Early and early Late Cretaceous of northeast Australia is suggestive of even greater diversity in the Australian pterosaur fauna.

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

The authors would like to thank the staff and volunteers from the Australian Age of Dinosaurs Natural History Museum (AAOD) who participated in the fieldwork at the ‘Pterosaur Site’ in 2017 and AAOD volunteer preparator A. Calvey for her work on AODF 876 (Ferrodraco lentoni). We would also like to thank the Australian Synchrotron; T. Ziegler (Museums Victoria) for allowing A.H.P. and S.F.P. access to photographic equipment at Museums Victoria; and O. Panagiotopoulou and H. M. Abraha (both Monash University) for enabling S.F.P. to analyse CT scan data of AODF 876 (Ferrodraco lentoni) using Mimics. A.H.P. and S.F.P. would like to thank the Paleontological Society for an Arthur James Boucot Research Grant, which enabled firsthand observations of specimens at Queensland Museum; S. Hocknull, A. Rozefelds, and K. Spring (Queensland Museum) for allowing A.H.P. and S.F.P. access to the Australian pterosaur specimens in their care; the Willi Hennig Society; and P. Vickers-Rich, E. Martin-Silverstone, J. Harris, A. Kellner, and D. Hone for helpful insights and reviews which greatly improved the manuscript.