Moropopus elongatus Abbassi, Alinasiri & Lucas, 2017

Abbassi, Nasrollah, Salehi Tinooni, Mohammad, Ghorbani Dehnavi, Mahdi, Shakeri, Safoora & Eshaghi, Ali, 2024, Oligocene vertebrate footprints from the Lower Red Formation, Central Iran, Fossil Record 27 (2), pp. 265-287 : 265-287

Ichnospecies Moropopus elongatus Abbassi, Alinasiri & Lucas, 2017

Fig. 7 D – K

Materials.

One footprint sampled ( IFMI -685 ) and two footprints of a trackway studied in the field .

Emended diagnosis.

Tridactyl footprints with elongated digit imprints. Digit imprints are proximally narrower and distally ellipsoidal and inflated. Digit tips are completely curved without claw imprints. Metatarsus imprints include two metatarsal pads with a complete rounded back.

Description.

Tridactyl footprints preserved as convex hyporeliefs in lower bedding plane of the fine-grained sandstones. Sampled footprint (Fig. 7 D – F , IFMI - 685) includes circular digit imprints, lateral digits are fat with one digit pad, and middle digit ( III) is incomplete. All digits connected by narrower imprint to metatarsal / metapodial imprint. The metatarsal / metapodial imprint is oval with three proximal lobes. The unsampled two footprints belong to one trackway, preserved as convex hyporelief in a lower bedding plane of thick-bedded, dark brown sandstone. This bedding plane has abundant mud crack casts that interact with the footprints. These footprints comprise one to two fat circular digital pads, which connect by narrower imprints to metatarsal / metapodial imprints. The tips of the digits are round. The proximal parts of the metatarsal / metapodial imprints are round.

Discussion.

Moropopus was established as monotypy from the Late Eocene of Iran ( Abbassi et al. 2017), and by discovery of new Moropopus from Oligocene of Central Iran, with new morphological features, we prefer to establish a new ichnospecies for Moropopus and emended the diagnosis of Moropopus elongatus .

Figures

Figure 7. A – C. Lophiopus isp. preserved as convex hyporelief with its photogrammetry photo and outline sketch, sampled (IFMI - 684); D – F. Moropopus elongatus preserved as convex hyporelief, including photogrammetric false-color depth map, sampled (IFMI - 685); Moropopus elongatus in lower bedding plane of large slab full of mud crack casts (G); H – I. Close up view of behind footprints with outline sketch; J – K. Front footprint with outline sketch.