References
Reference
Cruickshank, Arthur R I and Fordyce, R. Ewan (2000) A new marine reptile (sauropterygia) from New Zealand: Further evidence for a late Cretaceous austral radiation of Cryptoclidid plesiosaurs; Draft Paper,
A new marine reptile (sauropterygia) from New Zealand: Further evidence for a late Cretaceous austral radiation of Cryptoclidid plesiosaurs
Principal Author
Arthur R I Cruickshank
Other Authors
R. Ewan Fordyce
Header
Draft Paper
Journal
Draft Paper
Abstract
Kaiwhekea katiki gen. et sp. nov. represents the ®rst described cryptoclidid plesiosaurian from New Zealand. It is one of the largest cryptoclidids known, at a length of over 6´5 m, and represents the third reported genus of austral Late Cretaceous cryptoclidids. Kaiwhekea katiki is from siltstones of the Katiki Formation, upper Haumurian Stage (Cenomanian±Maastrichtian; c. 69±70 Ma) of coastal Otago, South Island, New Zealand. In the Late Cretaceous, the locality lay close to the polar circle. The holotype and only known specimen is an articulated skeleton with skull, preserved mostly as natural molds, but which lacks the forelimbs and pectoral girdle. The skull is relatively large and possesses several distinct characters, including a substantial, deep, jugal. There are about 43 upper and 42 lower teeth in each jaw quadrant; all are homodont, slim, and slightly recurved, lacking prominent ornament. Kaiwhekea probably took single soft-bodied prey. Based on cranial structure, it clearly belongs with the Cryptoclididae, but is not certainly close to the southern Late Cretaceous cryptoclidids Morturneria (Seymour Island, Antarctica) and Aristonectes (Chile, Argentina).
Keywords
biogeography, systematics, stratigraphy, anatomy, plesiosaur, Sauropterygia, Cretaceous, New Zealand.
Language
English