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Abstract
Bona, P. & Paulina Carabajal, A., 2013. Caiman gasparinae sp. nov., a huge alligatorid (Caimaninae) from the late Miocene of Paraná, Argentina. Alcheringa 37, 1–12. ISSN 0311-5518
Morphological studies of South American alligatorids are scarce, and the phylogenetic relationships within Caimaninae are poorly understood. In this context, systematic revision and detailed morphological description of the enigmatic Argentinean Miocene caimanines are highly relevant. The current record is characterized by numerous species within the genus Caiman, although morphological disparity remains unclear. Here, we describe Caiman gasparinae sp. nov., which is one of the largest known Caiman species from the late Miocene of Argentina. Similar to other Caiman species and Melanosuchus, the new taxon has orbits larger than the infratemporal fenestrae and small supratemporal fenestrae that are not lost, as in Paleosuchus. Together with the absence of conspicuous rostral crests, the shape of the snout distinguishes C. gasparinae from Melanosuchus. Caiman gasparinae can be further distinguished using other cranial characters, such as a broad and low rostrum with a narial opening oriented dorsally, a relatively long interpremaxillary suture, and the occipital surface of the braincase with a poorly developed crista tuberalis exposing the carotid foramina in lateral view.
Paula Bona [[email protected]] CONICET—División Paleontología Vertebrados, Museo de La Plata. Paseo del Bosque s/n, 1900, La Plata, Argentina; Ariana Paulina Carabajal [[email protected]] CONICET—Museo Carmen Funes. Av. Córdoba 55 (8318), Plaza Huincul, Neuquén, Argentina. Received 21.8.2012; revised 29.1.2013; accepted 9.3.2013.
阿根廷Paraná晚中新世大型鳄鱼 (Caimaninae) Caiman gasparinae sp. nov.
南美鳄鱼的形态研究很少, Caimaninae内部系统关系也不甚明确。在这种情况下, 对阿根廷中新世土著caimanines进行系统性研究和详细的形态描述很有意义。目前的记录是Caiman 一属的若干种, 虽然它们的形态差异还不清楚。在此, 我们描述了Caiman gasparinae sp. nov., 它是阿根廷中新世晚期已知最大的Caiman种之一。与Caiman其它种及Melanosuchus相似, 新种具有比颞窗孔和小颞上窗孔更大的眼眶。Paleosuchus不具眼眶。口鼻部形状, 与突出的喙嵴的缺失一起, 将C. gasparinae 与Melanosuchus区分开。其它一些颅骨特征可进一步将Caiman gasparinae鉴定出来, 如一个宽而低的吻突, 鼻孔开口对着腹部方向, 较长的内前颌骨缝合线, 颅腔枕骨面带有发育欠佳的嵴结节, 侧视可见颈动脉椎间孔。
Acknowledgements
We thank M. Reguero (MLP), A. Kramarz and S. Alvarez (MACN) for allowing us to study the materials, C. Brochu and B. Marazzi for constructive comments and observations on this work, M. Tomeo for editing figures, and two anonymous reviewers for valuable comments to this manuscript. Our study was partially funded by the Agencia Nacional de Promoción Científica y Tecnológica PICT 2008-0261 (to Z. Gasparini) and PICT 2012-207 (to J. Desojo).
