Rodrigo A. Otero (2021)
First record of a mosasaurine mosasaur from the upper Maastrichtian of central Chile.
Cretaceous Research 104838 (advance online publication)
doi:
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cretres.2021.104838https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0195667121000859Highlights
First mosasaurine mosasaur from the upper Maastrichtian of central Chile.
Northernmost occurrence of mosasaurines in the Weddellian Province.
The new find complements the widespread Weddellian distribution of the group.
Abstract
This research presents an isolated terminal caudal centrum of a mosasaur recovered from upper Maastrichtian levels of the Quiriquina Formation in central Chile. The vertebra shows distinctive traits that allow its referral to the Mosasaurinae, a clade previously unreported in the Upper Cretaceous of the southeastern Pacific. The new find, although fragmentary, extends the local mosasaur diversity previously comprised by tylosaurines and halisaurines. It also reconfirms the widespread Weddellian distribution of mosasaurines prior to the K/Pg event.
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