Title |
An Abelisauroid Theropod Dinosaur from the Turonian of Madagascar
|
---|---|
Published in |
PLOS ONE, April 2013
|
DOI | 10.1371/journal.pone.0062047 |
Pubmed ID | |
Authors |
Andrew A. Farke, Joseph J. W. Sertich |
Abstract |
Geophysical evidence strongly supports the complete isolation of India and Madagascar (Indo-Madagascar) by ∼100 million years ago, though sparse terrestrial fossil records from these regions prior to ∼70 million years ago have limited insights into their biogeographic history during the Cretaceous. A new theropod dinosaur, Dahalokely tokana, from Turonian-aged (∼90 million years old) strata of northernmost Madagascar is represented by a partial axial column. Autapomorphies include a prominently convex prezygoepipophyseal lamina on cervical vertebrae and a divided infraprezygapophyseal fossa through the mid-dorsal region, among others. Phylogenetic analysis definitively recovers the species as an abelisauroid theropod and weakly as a noasaurid. Dahalokely is the only known dinosaur from the interval during which Indo-Madagascar likely existed as a distinct landmass, but more complete material is needed to evaluate whether or not it is more closely related to later abelisauroids of Indo-Madagascar or those known elsewhere in Gondwana. |
X Demographics
Geographical breakdown
Country | Count | As % |
---|---|---|
United States | 7 | 18% |
United Kingdom | 6 | 16% |
Netherlands | 3 | 8% |
Australia | 2 | 5% |
Papua New Guinea | 1 | 3% |
Singapore | 1 | 3% |
Norway | 1 | 3% |
Argentina | 1 | 3% |
Indonesia | 1 | 3% |
Other | 3 | 8% |
Unknown | 12 | 32% |
Demographic breakdown
Type | Count | As % |
---|---|---|
Members of the public | 25 | 66% |
Scientists | 11 | 29% |
Science communicators (journalists, bloggers, editors) | 2 | 5% |
Mendeley readers
Geographical breakdown
Country | Count | As % |
---|---|---|
United States | 2 | 4% |
Netherlands | 1 | 2% |
Unknown | 54 | 95% |
Demographic breakdown
Readers by professional status | Count | As % |
---|---|---|
Researcher | 9 | 16% |
Student > Ph. D. Student | 9 | 16% |
Student > Bachelor | 8 | 14% |
Student > Master | 8 | 14% |
Student > Doctoral Student | 7 | 12% |
Other | 7 | 12% |
Unknown | 9 | 16% |
Readers by discipline | Count | As % |
---|---|---|
Earth and Planetary Sciences | 24 | 42% |
Agricultural and Biological Sciences | 16 | 28% |
Computer Science | 3 | 5% |
Environmental Science | 2 | 4% |
Arts and Humanities | 1 | 2% |
Other | 1 | 2% |
Unknown | 10 | 18% |