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Meroktenos thabanensis

Reptilia

Taxonomy
Melanorosaurus thabanensis was named by Gauffre (1993). It is not extant. Its type specimen is MNHN LES-16. Its type locality is Thabana-Morena (zone A/6), which is in a Norian/Rhaetian terrestrial horizon in the Elliot Formation of Lesotho. It is the type species of Meroktenos.

It was recombined as Meroktenos thabanensis by Peyre de Fabrègues and Allain (2016), Peyre de Fabrègues and Allain (2020), Müller and Garcia (2021), Sciscio et al. (2023), Barrett and Choiniere (2024).

Synonymy list
YearName and author
1993Melanorosaurus thabanensis Gauffre p. 650 figs. 2-3
1997Melanorosaurus thabanensis Heerden and Galton
2004Melanorosaurus thabanensis Galton and Upchurch p. 235
2010Melanorosaurus thabaensi Bandyopadhyay et al. p. 536
2016Meroktenos thabanensis Peyre de Fabrègues and Allain p. 5–6
2020Meroktenos thabanensis Peyre de Fabrègues and Allain p. 27
2021Meroktenos thabanensis Müller and Garcia p. 9
2023Meroktenos thabanensis Sciscio et al. p. 3
2024Meroktenos thabanensis Barrett and Choiniere p. 2

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RankNameAuthor
kingdomAnimalia()
—Bilateria
—EubilateriaAx 1987
—Deuterostomia
phylumChordataHaeckel 1874
subphylumVertebrata
superclassGnathostomata
—Osteichthyes()
subclassSarcopterygii()
subclassDipnotetrapodomorpha(Nelson 2006)
subclassTetrapodomorpha()
—Tetrapoda
—Reptiliomorpha
—Anthracosauria
subclassAmphibiosauriaKuhn 1967
—Cotylosauria()
—Amniota
—Sauropsida
classReptilia
subclassEureptilia()
RankNameAuthor
—Romeriida
—Diapsida()
—Archosauromorpha(Huene 1946)
—Crocopoda
—ArchosauriformesGauthier 1986
—Eucrocopoda
—Archosauria()
informalAvemetatarsalia
—Ornithodira
—Dinosauromorpha
—Dinosauriformes
—Dinosauria()
—Saurischia()
—Eusaurischia
—Sauropodomorpha(Huene 1932)
—Massopoda
—Sauropodiformes
genusMeroktenos
speciesthabanensis()

If no rank is listed, the taxon is considered an unranked clade in modern classifications. Ranks may be repeated or presented in the wrong order because authors working on different parts of the classification may disagree about how to rank taxa.

†Meroktenos thabanensis Gauffre 1993
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Diagnosis
ReferenceDiagnosis
C. Peyre de Fabrègues and R. Allain 2016A basal sauropodomorph with the following unique combination of characters: depth of the iliac blade (from the most dorsal point of the supracetabular crest to the dorsal margin of the ilium) being 60% of the total height of the ilium (all other basal sauropodomorphs from Southern Africa have a ratio <0.5), subtriangular postacetabular process, very stocky femur (robustness index: 2.09, with the exception of Antetonitrus all other basal sauropodomorphs from Southern Africa have an index >2.18) with a straight shaft in anterior and lateral views, shaft significantly wider lateromedially than anteroposteriorly deep (eccentricity: 1.58, except Antetonitrus all the other basal sauropodomorphs from Southern Africa have an index <1.41) and bearing an oblique fourth trochanter.
Measurements
No measurements are available
Composition: phosphaticsubp
Environment: terrestrialsubc
Locomotion: actively mobilec
Created: 2017-04-17 15:16:03
Modified: 2017-04-17 15:16:03
Source: subc = subclass, c = class, subp = subphylum
References: Carroll 1988, Hendy et al. 2009

Age range: base of the Norian to the top of the Rhaetian or 227.30000 to 201.40000 Ma

Collections: one only


Time interval Ma Country or state Original ID and collection number
Norian - Rhaetian227.3 - 201.4Lesotho (Mafeteng) Melanorosauridae indet. (type locality: 59291)