Acta Palaeontologica Polonica

New sauropodomorph and cynodont remains from the Late Triassic Sacisaurus site in southern Brazil and its stratigraphic position in the Norian Caturrita Formation

Júlio C.A. Marsola, Jonathas S. Bittencourt, Átila A.S. Da Rosa, Agustín G. Martinelli, Ana Maria Ribeiro, Jorge Ferigolo, and Max C. Langer

Acta Palaeontologica Polonica 63 (4), 2018: 653-669 doi:https://doi.org/10.4202/app.00492.2018

Sacisaurus agudoensis is the only silesaurid known from the Triassic beds of the Santa Maria Supersequence and the correlation of its type locality to the other Triassic deposits of south Brazil has always been controversial. In an  attempt to improve this, a handful of dinosaur and cynodont remains found associated to S. agudoensis are here described and compared. The anatomy of the sauropodomorph is more similar to that of Norian forms such as Pantydraco caducus and Unaysaurus tolentinoi than to that of Carnian taxa such as Saturnalia tupiniquim and Pampadromaeus barberenai. The cynodonts recovered based on isolated teeth include a brasilodontid and a Riograndia-like form. This assemblage is consistent with a Norian age, as is also suggested by local stratigraphic correlation, which positions the site in the Caturrita Formation.

Key words: Dinosauria, Sauropodomorpha, Dinosauriformes, Cynodontia, Triassic, Norian, Caturrita Formation, Brazil.

Júlio C.A. Marsola [juliomarsola@gmail.com] and Max C. Langer [langer.mc@gmail.com], Departamento de Biologia, FFCLRP, Universidade de São Paulo, Ribeirão Preto, SP, 14040-901, Brazil. Jonathas S. Bittencourt [sigmaorionis@yahoo.com.br], Departamento de Geologia, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, MG, 31270-901, Brazil. Átila A.S. Da Rosa [atila@smail.ufsm.br], Laboratório de Estratigrafia e Paleobiologia, Departamento de Geociências, Universidade Federal de Santa Maria, Santa Maria, RS, 97.105-900, Brazil. Agustín G. Martinelli [agustin_martinelli@yahoo.com.ar], Laboratório de Paleontologia de Vertebrados, Departamento de Paleontologia e Estratigrafia, Instituto de Geociências, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, RS, 91540-000, Brazil. Ana Maria Ribeiro [ana.ribeiro@fzb.rs.gov.br] and Jorge Ferigolo [jorgeferigolo@gmail.com], Seção de Paleontologia, Museu de Ciências Naturais, Fundação Zoobotânica do Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, RS, 90690-000, Brazil.


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