A non-furileusaurian caudal vertebra from the Bajo de la Carpa Formation (Upper Cretaceous, Santonian) and morphological variation in the tail of Abelisauridae

Abstract

The Cerro Overo-La Invernada area in north Patagonia has provided a rich record of Cretaceous continental tetrapods in the last two decades, mainly from the Bajo de la Carpa Formation (Upper Cretaceous, Santonian). The dinosaur fauna from this area is diverse, including several new taxa, with abelisaurid theropods particularly abundant. Recently, a new isolated caudal vertebra (MAU-Pv-CO-598) was here recovered. Although fragmentary, it shows features that differentiate it from other abelisaurid remains previously found in this area. It is considered a mid-caudal vertebra and is mainly characterized by a longitudinal groove on the ventral surface of the centrum; a scarcely elevated transverse process with an anteroposteriorly expanded and laterally concave distal end; a longitudinal dorsal crest anteriorly extended from the anterior border of the neural spine; and small tubercles extended from the ends of the zygapophyses, which are considered as accessory interlocking structures between vertebrae. Some characters, such as the dorsal longitudinal crest and the accessory tubercles of the zygapophyses, are present also in the non-brachyrostran abelisaurid Majungasaurus. However, the transverse process is similar to that of caudal vertebrae of non-furileusaur brachyrostrans, such as Ilokelesia, Ekrixinatosaurus, and Skorpiovenator. A phylogenetic analysis here conducted clusters MAU-Pv-Co-598 with the latter three taxa. MAU-Pv-CO-598 comes from lower levels of the Bajo de la Carpa Formation than the furileusaurs Viavenator and Llukalkan. The presence of a specimen with non-furileusaurian affinities in this formation indicates that a possible replacement from non-furileusaur to furileusaur brachyrostrans occurred during the Santonian, after the proposed Turonian faunal turnover.