Eoraptor lunensis Sereno, Forster, Rogers and Monetta, 1993

Rauhut, Oliver W. M., 2003, The interrelationships and evolution of basal theropod dinosaurs, Special papers in palaeontology 69, pp. 1-213 : 13

Eoraptor lunensis Sereno, Forster, Rogers and Monetta, 1993

Age. Camian.

Occurrence. Ischigualasto Formation, San Juan, Argentina.

Diagnosis. Strongly heterodont dentition, with leaf-shaped anterior maxillary tooth crowns; ventral process of the postorbital flexed sharply anteriorly in its lower part.

Remarks. Eoraptor ( Text-fig. 4d ) is one of the oldest and most primitive dinosaurs known to date, but preliminary cladistic analyses indicate that it is a member of the Theropoda (Sereno et al. 1993) , although this is not yet generally accepted ( Holtz 1995a; Holtz and Padian 1995; Langer 2001). The taxon is represented by two almost complete skeletons (Sereno et al. 1993; Sereno, pers. comm. 1997), and a detailed description of its anatomy is presently under way by P. Sereno.

Figures

text-fig. 4. Skull reconstructions of representatives of riassic OTUs in left lateral view, a, Euparkeria capensis, Early Triassic (Scythian-Anisian), Beaufort Group, South Africa; redrawn from Ewer (1965). B, basal ornithischian Lesothosaurus diagnostics, Early Jurassic (Hettangian-Sinemurian), Elliot Formation, Lesotho; redrawn from Sereno (1991b). c, prosauropod sauropodomorph Plateosaurus sp., Late riassic (Norian), Knollenmergel, Germany; based on MB R. 1937. D, Eoraptor lunensis, Late Triassic (Camian), Ischigualasto Formation, Argentina; based on PVSJ 512. E, Herrerasaurus ischigualastensis, Late Triassic (Camian), Ischigualasto Formation, Argentina; redrawn from Sereno and Novas (1993). F, Coelophysis bauri, Late riassic (Norian), Chinle Formation, south-western USA; modified from Paul (1993). G, Lilienstemus lilienstemi, Late riassic (Norian), Knollenmergel, Germany; based on MB R. 2175, unpreserved elements shaded. H, Shuvosaurus inexpectatus, Late riassic (Norian), Dockum Group, Texas, USA; based on TU P 9280. Abbreviations: a, angular; aof, antorbital fenestra; d, dentary; emf, external mandibular fenestra; en, external nares; eo, exoccipital; f, frontal; itf, infratemporal fenestra; j, jugal; 1, lacrimal; m, maxilla; n, nasal; o, orbit; oc, occipital condyle; op, opisthotic; pa, parietal; pd, predentary; pm, premaxilla; pm-mf, premaxillary-maxillary fenestra; po, postorbital; pof, postfrontal; q, quadrate; qf, quadrate foramen; qj, quadratojugal; sa, surangular; saf, surangular foramen; snf, subnarial foramen; sob, supraorbital; soc, supraoccipital; sp, splenial; sq, squamosal; stf, supratemporal fenestra. Scale bars represent 10 mm (a-b) and 50 mm (c-H).