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Stupendemys geographica
Taxonomy
Stupendemys geographicus was named by Wood (1976). Its type specimen is MCNC 244, a partial skeleton (medial portion of the carapace with associated left femur, fragments of the scapulocoracoid and a cervical vertebra), and it is a 3D body fossil. Its type locality is West of Quebrado Tio Gregorio, which is in a Huayquerian fluvial-deltaic siliciclastic in the Urumaco Formation of Venezuela.
It was corrected as Stupendemys geographica by Cadena et al. (2021).
It was corrected as Stupendemys geographica by Cadena et al. (2021).
Synonymy list
| Year | Name and author |
|---|---|
| 1976 | Stupendemys geographicus Wood p. 3 |
| 2010 | Stupendemys geographicus Riff et al. |
| 2010 | Stupendemys geographicus Sanchez-Villagra and Scheyer |
| 2014 | Stupendemys geographicus de la Fuente et al. |
| 2021 | Stupendemys geographica Cadena et al. |
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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.
†Stupendemys geographica Wood 1976
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Diagnosis
| Reference | Diagnosis | |
|---|---|---|
| E. - A. Cadena et al. 2021 | Stupendemys geographica is recognized as a pleurodire based on: 1) sutural articulation of pelvis with shell; 2) loss of medial contact of mesoplastra; 3) well-developed anal notch; 4) fusion of gulars; 5) formed central articulations of cervical vertebrae; and 6) a well-developed processus trochlearis pterygoidei. It is a podocnemidid based on: 1) palatine forming moderate amount of the upper triturating surface and 2) a cervical centrum with saddle-shaped posterior condyle. Stupendemys geographica differs from all other podocnemidids in each of its anatomical elements as follows. Skull: 1) an upper triturating surface formed by the posteromedial portion of premaxillae, medial contact between maxillae, and palatines forming a secondary palate; 2) an extremely inflated snout formed by prefrontals; 3) anteroventrally descending wall of prefrontals onto the narium externa aperture; 4) striated surface of skull roof bones (prefrontals, frontals, and parietals). Lower jaw: 1) a deep triturating surface, forming an oval concavity; 2) labial ridge curved anteriorly ending in an acute tip; 3) lingual ridge is a blunt margin forming an accessory ridge that increases in height and width anteriorly and runs as a narrow ridge at the medial symphysis; 4) high coronoid process; 5) large dorsal opening of fossa Meckelii, which fills the posterior end of the jaw to such an extent that the area articularis mandibularis forms part of the posterior margin, and the fossa opens posterolaterally next to the jaw articulation. Carapace: 1) low-arched carapace decreasing in height along ontogeny; 2) irregular nodular contours on external surface and deep median notch at front; 3) anterior border of nuchal-peripheral bones thickened and moderately (juvenileadult) to strongly (adult) upturned; 4) extremely long peripherals 1 and 2 forming massive anterolateral horns slightly projected ventrally in forms attributed as male; 5) carapace dorsal bone surface smooth to striated or slightly pitted; 6) posterior peripheral bones moderately scalloped along margins; 7) vertebral scute 5 being the longest and widest of the series particularly in adult individuals. Plastron: 1) pectoral-abdominal sulcus very anterior to mesoplastra, reaching almost the hyoplastra lateral notch level in adults. Neck: 1) cervical vertebrae (probably 7 and 8) with neural arches relatively high in relation to anteroposterior lengths of centra; 2) articular facets of postzygapophyses forming acute angle of less than 90 ; 3) cervical 8 neural arch with large horizontal plane, prezygapophyses directed perpendicularly, thin bladelike spine on anterior face of neural arch and no ventral keel on centrum. Humerus: 1) humerus squat, massive; 2) deep bicipital fossa between lateral and medial articular facets on ventral surface; 3) prominent ridge traversing ventral surface of shaft from medial process to distal end, terminating just above lateral condyle; 4) medial condyle broadest at anterior end; 5) medial and lateral condyles facing very ventrally; 6) straight to slightly slender shaft and more triangular in cross section than circular. Femur: 1) femur squat, massive, greatly flattened dorsoventrally particularly in adults; 2) breadth of tibial condyle approximately one-third total length of bone. Scapula: 1) dorsal strongly bowed scapular process with a flattened flange projecting laterally from the main axis. |
Measurements
No measurements are available
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| Source: f = family, c = class, subp = subphylum | |||||
| References: Uetz 2005, Hendy et al. 2009, Carroll 1988 | |||||
Age range: Late/Upper Miocene or 11.60800 to 5.33300 Ma
Collections (9 total)
| Time interval | Ma | Country or state | Original ID and collection number |
|---|---|---|---|
| Laventan | Colombia | Stupendemys geographica (224005 224006) | |
| Late/Upper Miocene | Venezuela (Falcón) | Stupendemys geographicus (99403) | |
| Late/Upper Miocene | Brazil (Acre) | Stupendemys geographicus (136714 217878) | |
| Late/Upper Miocene - Pliocene | Brazil (Acre) | Stupendemys geographicus (217818) | |
| Huayquerian | Venezuela (Falcón) | Stupendemys geographicus (type locality: 99401 99402 99404) |