Topic
Rebbachisaurus
About: Rebbachisaurus is a research topic. Over the lifetime, 11 publications have been published within this topic receiving 810 citations.
Papers
TL;DR: These results reaffirm previous work suggesting the presence of diverse feeding strategies in sauropods and provide solid evidence for two different feeding behaviors in Diplodocoidea, such that non-selective, ground-height behaviors are restricted to open, savanna-type environments.
Abstract: Background
As gigantic herbivores, sauropod dinosaurs were among the most important members of Mesozoic communities. Understanding their ecology is fundamental to developing a complete picture of Jurassic and Cretaceous food webs. One group of sauropods in particular, Diplodocoidea, has long been a source of debate with regard to what and how they ate. Because of their long lineage duration (Late Jurassic-Late Cretaceous) and cosmopolitan distribution, diplodocoids formed important parts of multiple ecosystems. Additionally, fortuitous preservation of a large proportion of cranial elements makes them an ideal clade in which to examine feeding behavior.
Methodology/Principal Findings
Hypotheses of various browsing behaviors (selective and nonselective browsing at ground-height, mid-height, or in the upper canopy) were examined using snout shape (square vs. round) and dental microwear. The square snouts, large proportion of pits, and fine subparallel scratches in Apatosaurus, Diplodocus, Nigersaurus, and Rebbachisaurus suggest ground-height nonselective browsing; the narrow snouts of Dicraeosaurus, Suuwassea, and Tornieria and the coarse scratches and gouges on the teeth of Dicraeosaurus suggest mid-height selective browsing in those taxa. Comparison with outgroups (Camarasaurus and Brachiosaurus) reinforces the inferences of ground- and mid-height browsing and the existence of both non-selective and selective browsing behaviors in diplodocoids.
Conclusions/Significance
These results reaffirm previous work suggesting the presence of diverse feeding strategies in sauropods and provide solid evidence for two different feeding behaviors in Diplodocoidea. These feeding behaviors can subsequently be tied to paleoecology, such that non-selective, ground-height behaviors are restricted to open, savanna-type environments. Selective browsing behaviors are known from multiple sauropod clades and were practiced in multiple environments.
126 citations
TL;DR: Cladistic analysis supports the hypothesis that nemegtosaurid are the sister-group to a clade containing Rebbachisaurus, dicraeosaurids and diplodocids and the presence of the plesiomorphic state cannot be confirmed in higher titanosauroids.
Abstract: The phylogenetic relationships of the Late Cretaceous Mongolian sauropods Nemegtosaurus and Quaesitosaurus are controversial. Previous studies have interpreted nemegtosaurids as members of the Diplodocoidea or Titanosauroidea. The conflicting character sets, which support these alternative hypotheses, are examined and critically evaluated. Only two derived states are unique to nemegtosaurids and one or more titanosauroid taxa. At least five synapomorphies (e.g., transverse narrowing of the rostral end of the premaxilla, elongation of the subnarial foramen, and extreme retraction of the external nares) support the inclusion of the nemegtosaurids within the Diplodocoidea, but the presence of the plesiomorphic state cannot always be confirmed in higher titanosauroids. Cladistic analysis supports the hypothesis that nemegtosaurids are the sister-group to a clade containing Rebbachisaurus, dicraeosaurids and diplodocids. Antarctosaurus wichmannianus, a problematic taxon from the Late Cretaceous of Arg...
85 citations
1 Jun 2016
TL;DR: A well preserved middle caudal vertebra from middle Cretaceous (Albian-lower Cenomanian) deposits informally known as the "Kem Kem beds" exposed in the Gara Sbaa region of Morocco is attributed to a large-bodied titanosaurian sauropod dinosaur as discussed by the authors.
Abstract: A well preserved middle caudal vertebra from middle Cretaceous (Albian–lower Cenomanian) deposits informally known as the “Kem Kem beds” exposed in the Gara Sbaa region of Morocco is attributed to a large-bodied titanosaurian sauropod dinosaur. It represents one of the best-preserved and most complete skeletal elements reported for this sauropod group from the Kem Kem sequence. The vertebra is generally similar to middle caudals of the lithostrotian titanosaur Baurutitan britoi from the Upper Cretaceous Bauru Group of Brazil, but differs in several respects, such as: (1) a transversely compressed (as opposed to more square in posterior view) centrum; (2) a taller, anteroposteriorly longer, and more anteriorly positioned neural spine; and (3) prezygapophyses that are subtriangular in lateral view. It represents an animal that likely attained a very large body size (possibly over 25 m in total length), considerably larger than the diplodocoid Rebbachisaurus garasbae, the only named sauropod from the Kem Kem assemblage. Additional, selected specimens from the Kem Kem beds are described, with some probably referable to Titanosauria. In the Kem Kem sequence, sauropod fossils are far less common than those of predatory dinosaurs, which include several coeval, multi-ton taxa. This was likely due to an abundance of potential aquatic prey as well as complex niche partitioning among sympatric theropods, pterosaurs, and crocodyliforms. Nevertheless, some predators, such as the giant theropod Carcharodontosaurus saharicus, likely preyed on sauropods. The taxon represented by the new vertebra (and possibly other isolated remains from the Kem Kem region) and the giant Egyptian titanosaurian Paralititan stromeri rank among the largest known sauropods. Most other North African Cretaceous sauropods appear to have reached only modest adult body sizes; this could, however, be an artifact of the limited number of fossils and uncertainty in the ontogenetic stages represented by most specimens. The morphology of the Kem Kem vertebra suggests that the taxon it represents may have been more closely related to South American and/or European titanosaurians than to other members of this clade from sub-Saharan Africa.
21 citations
TL;DR: The results suggest that there are dangers inherent in the view that ‘higher’ level sauropod phylogeny can be accurately reconstructed using only a small number of well-known taxa, and that the results of the randomization tests indicate that the data-matrix probably contains a strong phylogenetic ‘signal’.
TL;DR: The Cretaceous (likely Aptian-Cenomanian) Kem Kem Kem beds of Morocco are famous for their fossil-richness, including theropods, including Rebbachisaurus garasbae, as well as isolated sauropod teeth as mentioned in this paper.
Related Topics (5)
Performance Metrics
| Year | Papers |
|---|---|
| 2020 | 1 |
| 2018 | 1 |
| 2016 | 1 |
| 2015 | 2 |
| 2013 | 1 |
| 2011 | 1 |