Paleontologist Wei Feng and his colleagues have made one of the most important discoveries in paleontology today. Based on these materials, they have named a new tanystropheid genus and species, Akidostropheus oligos. This extraordinary discovery took place in the upper Blue Mesa Member of the Chinle Formation. You can see it today by visiting the Petrified Forest National Park located in Arizona. This new species had its origin between 223 and 218 million years ago. It contributes to the already stunning diversity of tanystropheids, a family that has long fascinated scientists with their bizarre body plans and special ecological adaptations.
Tanystropheids, a bizarre group of long-necked archosauromorph reptiles, prospered in both regressed (marine-influenced) and transgressed (freshwater-fronted) conditions during the Triassic. Fossils belonging to their lineage have been found all over North America, creating a fascinating story that cuts across much of this geological epoch. The finding of Akidostropheus oligos just adds to the ecological versatility and morphological diversity of these ancient creatures.
Discovery Details
Paleontologists carefully excavated the fossils of Akidostropheus oligos using state of the art paleontological techniques. This meticulous excavation highlights the importance of accuracy in paleontological science. Paleontologists gathered these fossils on Thunderstorm Ridge. This location, known as Ekalaka Quarry, division of the Blue Mesa Member, is well-known for its rich tanystropheid bone assemblage.
The collection site yielded hundreds of disarticulated and dissociated bones, lacking statistical directionality, which complicates their study yet reveals the dynamic ecosystems that existed during the Late Triassic. Akidostropheus oligos also had this huge spike that would have poked out from its neural spine. Whatever its original purpose, this feature would have made a great defensive wall.
“A diverse assemblage of tanystropheid archosauromorphs from the continental interior of Late Triassic Pangea includes a new taxon (Akidostropheus oligos gen. et sp. nov.)”
Unique Morphological Characteristics
Tanystropheids are widely recognized as bizarre animals because of their unique, extreme morphological characteristics. Akidostropheus oligos is remarkable for its autapomorphic dorsal spike, believed to be a unique structure among its close relatives. It’s this easily observed characteristic that helps the novice ungulate observer distinguish this species. It raises some serious questions about its possible roles in aggression and defense.
Beyond Akidostropheus oligos, the upper Blue Mesa Member has turned up two other distinct tanystropheid taxa. These animals all have relatively short neck bones. The first of these types, or Type 1, displays fairly stretched out neck bones that exhibit a pronounced crest beneath and minimal holes around the spinal cord. Morphotype 2 exhibited extremely long neck bones. These bones had quite a pronounced long, low top ridge as well as minimal side ridges.
Furthermore, researchers referred other cervical vertebrae from an unnamed tanystropheid as “very small.” These small vertebrae were just 6.7 mm tall and 5.5 long, illustrating the vast size variety found within these ancient reptiles.
Implications for Paleontology
This new discovery, Akidostropheus oligos improves our understanding of tanystropheid diversity. It provides important new windows into the ecosystems that existed during Triassic period’s global climate change. The findings highlight how various species adapted to different aquatic environments, enhancing knowledge about the evolutionary history of these reptiles.
The study’s findings underscore the significant role fossil evidence plays in reconstructing past ecosystems. Moreover, it further assists us in defining evolutionary trajectories of different taxa. Many more such excavations are occurring now in areas such as the Petrified Forest National Park. Such finds would do much to improve our understanding of tanystropheid diversity and function in pre-Human environments.