Cryptovaranoides is not a squamate
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Alberta, Canada
- Department of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences, University of Alberta, Canada
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Yale University, United States
- Stamford Museum and Nature Center, United States
- Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences, Yale University, United States
- Museum of Vertebrate Zoology, Department of Integrative Biology, University of California, Berkeley, United States
- Department of Environmental Science, University of San Francisco, United States
- College of Science and Engineering, Flinders University, Australia
- Earth Sciences Section, South Australian Museum, Australia
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Princeton University, United States
Figures
Figure 1
Comparison of jugal morphologies among living lepidosaurs.
Note the variability in the presence and development of the posterior process, as well as the presence of the jugal itself. CT scan images are from digimorph.org.
Figure 2
Comparison of palatine morphologies.
Blue shading indicates choanal fossa. Top image of †Cryptovaranoides referred left palatine is from Whiteside et al. (2024) Figure 1(k). Middle is the left palatine of †Helioscopos dickersonae (Squamata: Pan-Gekkota) from the Late Jurassic Morrison Formation (Meyer et al., 2023). Bottom is the right palatine of †Eoscincus ornatus (Squamata: Pan-Scincoidea) from the Late Jurassic Morrison Formation (Brownstein et al., 2022).
Figure 3
Choanal fossa character scoring.
Figure 4
Comparison of vomer morphologies.
Top image is †Eoscincus ornatus from Brownstein et al., 2022. Note that the rows of vomerine teeth are posteriorly placed, and the vomerine ridges are large and laterally placed. Bottom image of †Cryptovaranoides holotype is from Whiteside et al. (2024) Figure 1(c).
Figure 5
Quadrate-squamosal articulation character scoring.
Figure 6
Anterior articulation of vomer and maxilla character scoring.
Figure 7
Presence of a medially positioned posterior mylohyoidal foramen on the mandible.
As shown, there is no identifiable foramen on the mandible of †Cryptovaranoides. Bottom image of †Cryptovaranoides holotype skull is from Whiteside et al. (2024) Figure 2(b).
Tables
Table 1
Eight features described as synapomorphies for Cryptovaranoides + Squamata by Whiteside et al., 2024, the number for the character frolm Tałanda et al. (2022) versus the actual source for the character as claimed by Whiteside et al. (2024), the actual clade-level synapomorphy for the character from the data they used, and its optimization.
Note: When listed as N/A, this means the character was not reconstructed as a synapomorphy of any clade and was not unambiguous in its transformation from one state to another. Only the first character in the table was found to be a synapomorphy, but was not unambiguous in its transformation from one state to another. Only the first character in the table was found to be a synapomorphy, but not of Cryptovaranoides + Squamata.
| Character | Number in Tałanda et al., 2022 | Study Cited in Whiteside et al., 2024 | Synapomorphy of | Unambiguous Optimization |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cephalic head of (mobile) quadrate with notch for the squamosal, peg-in-notch articulation with rod-shaped squamosal | 123 | de Queiroz and Gauthier, 2020a | Pan-Squamata | 1→0 |
| Vomer and maxilla meet at anterior margin of fenestra exochoanalis (see Figure 6) | 371 | Gauthier et al., 2012 | N/A | N/A |
| Prominent choanal fossa on anterior margin of ventral surface of palatine | 100 | Gauthier et al., 2012 | Lepidosauria | N/A |
| Subdivision of embryonic metotic fissure by the crista tuberalis into vagus (jugular) foramen and recessus scala tympani | 382 | Simões et al., 2018; de Queiroz and Gauthier, 2020a | N/A | N/A |
| No quadrate foramen | 118 | Gauthier et al., 2012 | Lepidosauria | 1→0 |
| Medially positioned posterior mylohyoidal foramen on mandible (see Figure 7) | 163 | Gauthier et al., 2012 | N/A | N/A |
| Fusion of exoccipitals and opisthotics forming an otoccipital | 151 | Gauthier et al., 2012; de Queiroz and Gauthier, 2020a | N/A | N/A |
| Trunk vertebrae lack intercentra | 237 | de Queiroz and Gauthier, 2020a | Pan-Unidentata | 1→0 |
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Cryptovaranoides is not a squamate
eLife 14:RP107021.
https://doi.org/10.7554/eLife.107021.3
