Misplaced Pages

Thoracosaurus Temporal range: Late Cretaceous - Early Paleocene, 70.6–61.6 Ma PreꞒ Ꞓ O S D C P T J K Pg N
Thoracosaurus macrorhynchus skull and jaws from the Paleocene (Danian) of Sweden
Scientific classification
Domain:	Eukaryota
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Reptilia
Clade:	Archosauromorpha
Clade:	Archosauriformes
Order:	Crocodilia
Superfamily:	Gavialoidea
Genus:	†Thoracosaurus Leidy, 1852
Species
†Thoracosaurus neocesariensis (de Kay, 1842 ) (type) †Thoracosaurus isorhynchus (Pomel, 1847) †Thoracosaurus macrorhynchus (de Blainville, 1855)

Thoracosaurus (chest lizard) is an extinct genus of long-snouted eusuchian which existed during the Late Cretaceous and Early Paleocene in North America and Europe.

Taxonomy

Thoracosaurus had traditionally been thought to be related to the modern false gharial, largely because the nasal bones contact the premaxillae. Phylogenetic work starting in the 1990s instead supported affinities within Gavialoidea exclusive of such forms, although a 2018 tip dating study simultaneously using morphological, molecular (DNA sequencing), and stratigraphic (fossil age) data suggests that it might have been a non-crocodylian eusuchian.

The genus contains the type species Thoracosaurus neocesariensis in North America, and what is either Thoracosaurus isorhynchus or Thoracosaurus macrorhynchus from Europe; a recent review argues that T. macrorhynchus is a junior synonym of T. isorhynchus, but it is unclear whether the type of T. isorhynchus allows differentiation of European and North American Thoracosaurus; if not, then T. isorhynchus would be a nomen dubium. A number of species have been referred to this genus, but most are dubious.

Ecology

It is thought to have inhabited marine environments.

Gallery

• Thoracosaurus macrorhynchus skull at the Naturalis Museum in Leiden, Netherlands
• Thoracosaurus sp. teeth at the Geological Museum, Copenhagen

References

1. Rio, Jonathan P.; Mannion, Philip D. (6 September 2021). "Phylogenetic analysis of a new morphological dataset elucidates the evolutionary history of Crocodylia and resolves the long-standing gharial problem". PeerJ. 9: e12094. doi:10.7717/peerj.12094. PMC 8428266. PMID 34567843.
2. ^ Brochu, C. A. (2006). "Osteology and phylogenetic significance of Eosuchus minor (Marsh, 1870) new combination, a longirostrine crocodylian from the Late Paleocene of North America". Journal of Paleontology. 80 (1): 162–186. doi:10.1666/0022-3360(2006)080[0162:OAPSOE]2.0.CO;2.
3. Michael S. Y. Lee; Adam M. Yates (2018). "Tip-dating and homoplasy: reconciling the shallow molecular divergences of modern gharials with their long fossil record". Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences. 285 (1881): 20181071. doi:10.1098/rspb.2018.1071. PMC 6030529. PMID 30051855.
4. Page 125; A study of fossil vertebrate types in the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia: taxonomic, systematic, and historical perspectives Issue 16 of Special Publication Series, Academy of Natural Sciences (Philadelphia, Pa.) By Earle E. Spamer, Edward Daeschler, L. Gay Vostreys-Shapiro. Academy of Natural Sciences, 1995 ISBN 0-910006-51-2 ISBN 978-0-910006-51-4
5. Brignon, A. (2017). "The collecting of fossil vertebrates in Mont-Aimé (Marne, France) by the Baron de Ponsort (1792–1854)". Bulletin d'Information des Géologues du Bassin de Paris. 54 (3): 20–44.
6. Puértolas-Pascual, Eduardo; Blanco, Alejandro; Brochu, Christopher A.; Canudo, José Ignacio (January 2016). "Review of the Late Cretaceous-early Paleogene crocodylomorphs of Europe: Extinction patterns across the K-PG boundary". Cretaceous Research. 57: 565–590. doi:10.1016/j.cretres.2015.08.002.

v t e Neosuchia
Kingdom: Animalia Phylum: Chordata Class: Sauropsida Clade: Pseudosuchia Clade: Metasuchia Pseudosuchia see Pseudosuchia Neosuchia see below↓
Neosuchia Neosuchia †Burkesuchus †Isisfordia †Karatausuchus †Khoratosuchus †Montsecosuchus †Stolokrosuchus? †Susisuchus †Tadzhikosuchus? †Wahasuchus? †Zhyrasuchus? †Thalattosuchia? †Tethysuchia Pholidosauridae Anglosuchus Chalawan Crocodilaemus Dakotasuchus Elosuchus Meridiosaurus Oceanosuchus Pholidosaurus Sarcosuchus Terminonaris Vectisuchus Woodbinesuchus Dyrosauridae Acherontisuchus Anthracosuchus Arambourgisuchus Atlantosuchus Brachiosuchus Cerrejonisuchus Chenanisuchus Congosaurus Dorbignysuchus Dyrosaurus Fortignathus Guarinisuchus Hyposaurus Luciasuchus Phosphatosaurus Rhabdognathus Rodeosuchus Sabinosuchus? Sokotosuchus Tilemsisuchus †Atoposauridae Alligatorellus Alligatorium Aprosuchus Atoposaurus Knoetschkesuchus Sabresuchus Theriosuchus Varanosuchus †Stomatosuchidae Laganosuchus Stomatosuchus †Paluxysuchidae Deltasuchus Paluxysuchus †Goniopholididae Amphicotylus Anteophthalmosuchus Calsoyasuchus Coelosuchus Denazinosuchus Diplosaurus Eutretauranosuchus Goniopholis Hulkepholis Nannosuchus Ophiussasuchus Oweniasuchus Pinacosuchus? Siamosuchus Sunosuchus Symptosuchus? †Bernissartiidae Bernissartia Koumpiodontosuchus †Paralligatoridae Batrachomimus Brillanceausuchus Kansajsuchus Paralligator Rugosuchus Scolomastax Shamosuchus Tarsomordeo Turanosuchus Wannchampsus Yanjisuchus Eusuchia see below↓
Eusuchia Eusuchia †Borealosuchus †Confractosuchus †Dolichochampsa †Gilchristosuchus †Heterosuchus †Isisfordia? †Portugalosuchus †Pristichampsus †Susisuchus? †Titanochampsa? †Atoposauridae? †Bernissartiidae? †Paralligatoridae? †Hylaeochampsidae Acynodon? Hylaeochampsa Iharkutosuchus Pachycheilosuchus? Pietraroiasuchus Turcosuchus Unasuchus †Allodaposuchidae Agaresuchus Allodaposuchus Arenysuchus? Ischyrochampsa Lohuecosuchus Massaliasuchus Musturzabalsuchus? †Aegyptosuchidae Aegyptosuchus Aegisuchus †"Thoracosaurs" Argochampsa Eogavialis Eosuchus Eothoracosaurus Thoracosaurus †Planocraniidae Boverisuchus Duerosuchus Planocrania Crocodilia see Crocodilia for extant taxa, and Extinct Crocodilia for extinct ones
See also: Coelognathosuchia Category

This article about a prehistoric archosaur is a stub. You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it.

• v
• t
• e

• Neosuchians
• Late Cretaceous crocodylomorphs
• Paleocene crocodylomorphs
• Late Cretaceous first appearances
• Cretaceous–Paleogene boundary
• Paleocene extinctions
• Cretaceous reptiles of North America
• Paleocene reptiles of North America
• Hell Creek fauna
• Fossil taxa described in 1852
• Taxa named by Joseph Leidy
• Prehistoric pseudosuchian genera
• Prehistoric archosaur stubs