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Introducing... Obscure Dinosaur of the Week!

21/4/2012

2 Comments

 
Welcome to the first entry of Obscure Dinosaur of the Week! Each week, I will write about a dinosaur that is not in popular media, but I think still deserves mention, starting from A through to Z. It's truly astonishing to see just how many dinosaurs have been discovered and described but aren't widely known by the general public. The point of these entries is to remind everyone of the diversity of dinosaurs, beyond Tyrannosaurus and Triceratops!

Each entry will detail the genus and species name, meaning behind the name (etymology), how old it is, where it was found, and the fossils first ascribed to it. I'll also include a few interesting facts, and a timeline to indicate exactly how old it is relative to other periods. So, I hope you enjoy Obscure Dino of the Week! To begin, let me introduce... Alwalkeria!
Picture
Name: Alwalkeria maleriensis
Etymology: In reference to British palaeontologist Alick D. Walker, and the Maleri Formation in which the holotype was found. This genus was originally named Walkeria, but was changed to Alwalkeria due to a previously described bryozoan (Walkeria Fleming, 1823) occupying the same name.
Distribution: Late Triassic (Carnian, 235-230 Ma) of Andhra Pradesh, India.
Type Specimen:  ISI R.306 - Partial skull, several vertebrae, hindlimb elements.
Picture
Reconstruction of A. maleriensis, but is it accurate? Image sourced from dinoweb
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Carnian, Late Triassic: 235-230 Ma
Interesting fact - Is Alwalkeria a chimera?
The first described fossil material of A. maleriensis included a partial skull, several vertebrae, and hindlimb elements. It was thought to belong to coelophysoidae; relatively small, bipedal carnivorous dinosaurs. However, it is now thought to be a chimera; the original fossil actually consisting of multiple animal remains (including an ornithosuchid and prolacertiformes (both ancient reptiles), and a saurischian (a "lizard hipped" dinosaur)). If part of the fossil (specifically, an ankle bone) is indeed saurischian, then this may one of the oldest basal saurischians known and should be correctly classified.
Picture
The possible basal saurischian ankle bone (astragalus), described as A. maleriensis.
Image from Chatterjee, 1987.

References
    Chatterjee, S. 1987. A new theropod dinosaur from India with remarks on the Gondwana-        Laurasia connection in the Late Cretaceous. In: McKenzie, G.D. (Ed.). Gondwana Six: Stratigraphy, Sedimentology, and Paleontology. Geophysical Monograph 41. Washington, D.C.: American Geophysical Union. Pp. 183–189.
    Chatterjee, S. & Creisler, B.S. 1994. Alwalkeria (Theropoda) and Murturneria (Plesiosauria), new names for preoccupied Walkeria Chatterjee, 1987, and Turneria Chatterjee and Small, 1989. Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology 14(1): 142.
    Remes, K. and Rauhut, O. W. M. 2005. The oldest Indian dinosaur Alwalkeria maleriensis Chatterjee revised: a chimera including remains of a basal saurischian; p. 218 in Kellner, A. W . A., Henriques, D .D. R. and Rodrigues, T. (eds.), II Congresso Latino-Americano de Paleontologie de Vertebrados. Boletim de Resumos. Museu Nacional, Rio de Janeiro.
2 Comments
Nilesh
24/4/2012 04:56:57 am

Do you have any information about life expectancy and size of this dinosaur?

Reply
Caitlin Syme link
24/4/2012 09:43:57 am

I couldn't find any reliable estimates of body size. The original paper estimates total skull length as 90 cm, femur length as 122 cm, and astragalus height by breadth as 13 cm x 25 cm. As these elements may belong to different animals, it would be presumptuous of me to calculate body size before this is verified!

Life expectancy is also very difficult to quantify. There are general patterns we see in extant animals, such as a correlation between body size and age (larger animals tend to live longer), metabolic rate (the slower the metabolic rate, the longer the animal generally lives), and the class of the animal (reptiles and birds often live longer than mammals). We could make inferences about the relationship between reptiles, dinosaurs, and their avian descendants all living longer lives, but this would just be conjecture.

Hope this helps!

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    About the author

    Dr Caitlin Syme is a palaeontologist studying the taphonomy (preservation state) of fossil non-avian dinosaurs, crocodiles and fish from the Winton Formation, Queensland, Australia. Think forensic science or CSI for fossils, and you're on the right track!

    Posts on this blog focus mainly on vertebrate palaeontology and taphonomy, as well early career researcher (ERC) productivity tips and insights.


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