Acta Palaeontologica Polonica

A new Late Triassic sauropodomorph dinosaur from the Mid-Zambezi Basin, Zimbabwe

Paul M. Barrett, Kimberley E.J. Chapelle, Lara Sciscio, Timothy J. Broderick, Michel Zondo, Darlington Munyikwa, and Jonah N. Choiniere

Acta Palaeontologica Polonica 69 (2), 2024: 227-241 doi:https://doi.org/10.4202/app.01100.2023

An articulated partial hind limb collected from the Pebbly Arkose Formation (Norian, Upper Triassic) of the Upper Karoo Group of Zimbabwe is described as a new taxon of sauropodomorph dinosaur. Musankwa sanyatiensis gen. et sp. nov. was discovered on the shoreline of Lake Kariba, on Spurwing Island in the Mid-Zambezi Basin. The holotype consists of a right femur, tibia, and astragalus, and can be distinguished from all other Late Triassic massopodan sauropodomorphs on the basis of numerous features, which form a unique character combination. Phylogenetic analysis recovers the new taxon as the earliest-branching lineage within Massopoda. Musankwa is only the fourth dinosaur to be named from the Karoo-aged basins of Zimbabwe and further demonstrates the high potential of this region for discoveries of new early dinosaur material.

Key words: Sauropodomorpha, Massopoda, Pebbly Arkose Formation, Norian, Lake Kariba.

Paul M. Barrett [p.barrett@nhm.ac.uk; ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0412-3000], Fossil Reptiles, Amphibians and Birds Section, Natural History Museum, Cromwell Road, London SW7 5DB, UK and Evolutionary Studies Institute, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, Private Bag 3 Wits 2050, South Africa. Kimberley E.J. Chapelle [kimi.chapelle@gmail.com; ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9991-0439], Department of Anatomical Sciences, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, New York 11794, USA; Evolutionary Studies Institute, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, Private Bag 3 Wits 2050, South Africa. Lara Sciscio [lara.sciscio@jurassica.ch; ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4178-2881], Jurassica Museum, Rte de Fontenais 21, 2900, Porrentruy, Switzerland; Department of Geosciences, University Fribourg, Chemin du Musée 6, 1700, Fribourg, Switzerland. Timothy J. Broderick [makari.tim@gmail.com; ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1891-783X], Makari, 19 Jenkinson Road, Chisipite, Harare, Zimbabwe. Michel Zondo [michelzondo@gmail.com; ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7918-7028], Natural History Museum of Zimbabwe, Park Road, Bulawayo, Zimbabwe; Evolutionary Studies Institute, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, Private Bag 3 Wits 2050, South Africa. Darlington Munyikwa [dtonmunyikwa@gmail.com], National Museums and Monuments of Zimbabwe, 107 Rotten Row, Harare, Zimbabwe. Jonah N. Choiniere [jonah.choiniere@wits.ac.za; ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1008-0687], Evolutionary Studies Institute, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, Private Bag 3 Wits 2050, South Africa.


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