Triassic

Figure 1. Evolution of macroecological traits in Dinosauria. Large scale event in dinosaur evolution (a); the origin of dinosaurs (star), hyperthermals (volcano), the earliest fossil Avialae (bird), the earliest fossil angiosperm (flower), the Cretaceous/Palaeogene mass extinction (asteroid). Phylogeny of dinosaurs (b) redrawn from Sereno and adapted to the current consensus and upon which an ancestral state reconstruction of temperature niche (mean annual temperature) after Chiarenza et al. is plotted; Mesozoic palaeogeographies (c) for Triassic (T), Jurassic (J) and Cretaceous (K). Silhouette colours symbolize body mass for each of the taxa represented; information on dietary habits are plotted after Barrett and Zanno & Makovicky; numbers represent clades discussed through this study: 1, Ornithischia; 2, Thyreophora; 3, Ornithopoda; 4, Hadrosauroidea; 5, Marginocephalia; 6, Ceratopsia; 7, Saurischia; 8, Sauropodomorpha; 9, Sauropoda; 10, Theropoda; 11, Ceratosauria; 12, Tetanurae; 13, Coelurosauria; 14, Maniraptoriformes; 15, Maniraptora; 16, Deinonychosauria; 17, Avialae; 18, Ornithothoraces. Palaeogeographies modified from original plots via R package ‘mapast’ using plate models by Scotese.

Tawa is an early theropod from the Late Triassic. The genus is named after the Hopi word for the Puebloan sun god. It was a bipedal carnivore, estimated around 2.5 m in length, and weighing about 15 kg. A basal theropod, Tawa shares physical characteristics with coelophysoids and herrerasaurids, and its discovery supports the theory that dinosaurs originated in the southern supercontinent of Gondwanna, before diversifying as Pangea split apart.

Various fossils pertaining to the holotype of the Triassic ichthyosaur Toretocnemus (originally Leptocheirus, also Merriamia) zitteli. This image is derived from plate 23 in Merriam (1903), done by an uncredited artist. The arrangement of the individual figures has been modified from the original (most notably, figures 3 and 4 were swapped to minimize confusion). Original description: Leptocheirus zitteli n. gen. and sp. Figures reproduced natural size from the type specimen. Fig. 1.— Right side of skull. Fig. 2. — Cross-section of posterior portion of the lower jaw, taken above the point marked A on the lateral view of the skull. Fig. 3. — Cross-section of the upper and lower jaws, taken at the break immediately behind the point marked Sp on the lateral view of the skull. Fig. 4. — Lateral view of an anterior caudal centrum. Legend (modified from original): Ar - articular A - angular D - dentary J - jugal L - lacrimal Mx - maxilla Po - postorbital Sa - surangular Se - sclerotic ring Sp - spenial T - cross-section of tooth X - doubtful element

The shoulder girdle of the holotype of the Triassic ichthyosaur Toretocnemus (originally Leptocheirus, also Merriamia) zitteli. This image is derived from plate 21 in Merriam (1903), done by an uncredited artist. The arrangement of the individual figures has been slightly modified from the original. Original description: Leptocheirus zitteli n. gen. and sp. Figures reproduced natural size from the type specimen. Fig. 1.—Clavicles (cl) and probable interelavicle (Ic and Ic')- The interclavicle has been separated into two fragments by a crack in the matrix. Fig. 2.—Inner side of the coracoids and the left scapula.

Forelimb and partial hindlimb of the holotype of the Triassic ichthyosaur Toretocnemus (originally Leptocheirus, also Merriamia) zitteli. This image is derived from plate 22 in Merriam (1903), done by an uncredited artist. Original description: Leptocheirus zitteli n. gen. and sp. Figures reproduced natural size from the type specimen. Fig. 1. — Superior side of left anterior limb. r, radius. Fig. 2. — Posterior limb. t, tibia.

Various fossils pertaining to the holotype of the Triassic ichthyosaur Toretocnemus californicus. This image is derived from plate 24 in Merriam (1903), done by an uncredited artist. The arrangement of the individual figures has been modified from the original. Original description: Toretocnemus californicus n. gen. and sp. Figures reproduced natural size from the type specimen. Fig. 1. — Inferior side of right posterior limb. t, tibia. Fig. 2. — Right anterior limb. r, radius. Fig. 3.— Pelvic arch. Fig. 4. — Middle dorsal vertebrae and a rib from the same region.

Illustration of some anterior caudal vertebrae of the Californian ichthyosaur Torteocnemus californicus (specimen UCMP 8100), from Merriam's 1908 monograph on American Triassic ichthyosaurs. This illustration appeared as figure 4 of plate 14; it has been modified to remove the stamp placed on top of it. While Merriam credits two illustrators as having produced artwork for this publication, it is not clear which of them created this image.

Life restoration of the Triassic ichthyosaur Qianichthyosaurus xingyiensis. References Motani, Ryosuke; Jiang, Da-yong; Tintori, Andrea; Ji, Cheng; Huang, Jian-dong (2017). "Pre- versus post-mass extinction divergence of Mesozoic marine reptiles dictated by time-scale dependence of evolutionary rates". Proceedings of the Royal Society B 284 (1854): 20170241. DOI:10.1098/rspb.2017.0241.

Figure description from paper: "Figure 23: Early and Middle Triassic ichthyopterygian heads possessing longirostry. Simplified outlines of four different Early and Middle Triassic ichthyopterygian heads possessing a long and slender rostrum. Specimens are at the same scale. (A) Utatsusaurus hataii (UHR 30691, Motani, Minoura & Ando, 1998); (B) Grippia longirostris (PMU R445, Motani, 2000); (C) Mixosaurus cornalianus (BES SC 1000, Renesto et al., 2020); (D) Besanosaurus leptorhynchus (PIMUZ T 4847, this paper); (E) Cymbospondylus buchseri (PIMUZ T 4351, Sander, 1989). Scale bar represents 10 cm." References: Bindellini, G.; Wolniewicz, A.S.; Miedema, F.; Scheyer, T.M.; Dal Sasso, C. (2021). "Cranial anatomy of Besanosaurus leptorhynchus Dal Sasso & Pinna, 1996 (Reptilia: Ichthyosauria) from the Middle Triassic Besano Formation of Monte San Giorgio, Italy/Switzerland: Taxonomic and palaeobiological implications". PeerJ 9: e11179. DOI:10.7717/peerj.11179.

Besanosaurus leptorhynchus referred specimen PIMUZ T 4376, preserved on the same slab as a specimen of the smaller Mixosaurus. Scale bar represents 50 cm (1.6 ft). Figure 3C of Bindellini et al. (2021). References: Bindellini, G.; Wolniewicz, A.S.; Miedema, F.; Scheyer, T.M.; Dal Sasso, C. (2021). "Cranial anatomy of Besanosaurus leptorhynchus Dal Sasso & Pinna, 1996 (Reptilia: Ichthyosauria) from the Middle Triassic Besano Formation of Monte San Giorgio, Italy/Switzerland: Taxonomic and palaeobiological implications". PeerJ 9: e11179. DOI:10.7717/peerj.11179.

Modified version of figure 23 of Bindellini et al. (2021) showing just the ichthyosaurs from the Besano Formation: Besanosaurus leptorhynchus (A), Mixosaurus cornalianus (B), and Cymbospondylus buchseri (C). The original figure was uploaded unmodified here: File:Early to Middle Triassic Longirostrine Ichthyopterygians.png References: Bindellini, G.; Wolniewicz, A.S.; Miedema, F.; Scheyer, T.M.; Dal Sasso, C. (2021). "Cranial anatomy of Besanosaurus leptorhynchus Dal Sasso & Pinna, 1996 (Reptilia: Ichthyosauria) from the Middle Triassic Besano Formation of Monte San Giorgio, Italy/Switzerland: Taxonomic and palaeobiological implications". PeerJ 9: e11179. DOI:10.7717/peerj.11179.

Utatsusaurus hataii, an Early Triassic Ichthyosaur from Japan, pencil drawing

Augustasaurus hagdorni, a pistosaur from the Middle Triassic of nevada. Digital.

Augustasaurus hagdorni, a pistosaur from the Middle Triassic of nevada. Digital.

Nothosaurus mirabilis, a Nothosaur from the Triassic of Europe, North Africa and Russia, pencil drawing

Nothosaurus mirabilis, a Nothosaur from the Triassic of Europe, North Africa and Russia, pencil drawing