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Italosiren bellunensis

Mammalia - Sirenia - Dugongidae

Taxonomy
Halitherium bellunense was named by de Zigno (1875). Its type specimen is MGP unnumbered specimen, a partial skull, and it is a 3D body fossil. Its type locality is Belluno, which is in an Aquitanian marine sandstone in the Libano Formation of Italy. It is the type species of Italosiren.

It was recombined as Metaxytherium bellunense by Trouessart (1898); it was recombined as Metaxitherium bellunense by Trouessart (1904); it was considered a nomen dubium by Domning (1996); it was recombined as Italosiren bellunensis by Voss et al. (2017).

Synonymy list
YearName and author
1875Halitherium bellunense de Zigno p. 438
1885Halitherium bellunense Woodward p. 425
1898Metaxytherium bellunense Trouessart p. 1005
1904Metaxitherium bellunense Trouessart p. 750
2017Italosiren bellunensis Voss et al. p. 166

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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
subclassSynapsida
Therapsida()
infraorderCynodontia()
RankNameAuthor
Mammaliamorpha
Mammaliaformes
classMammalia
Theriamorpha(Rowe 1993)
Theriiformes()
Trechnotheria
Cladotheria
Zatheria
subclassTribosphenida()
subclassTheria
Eutheria()
Placentalia
AfrotheriaStanhope et al. 1998
Tethytheria
orderSirenia()
familyDugongidae
subfamilyDugonginae
genusItalosiren
speciesbellunensis()

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.

Italosiren bellunensis de Zigno 1875
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Diagnosis
ReferenceDiagnosis
M. Voss et al. 2017Dugongine sirenian having the following unique combination of synapomorphies: nasal process of premaxilla broadened and bulbous at posterior end, having more or less vertical joint surface in contact with frontal (shared with Dioplotherium, Xenosiren, and Rytiodus heali); zygomatic-orbital bridge of maxilla shortened and thickened posteriorly, but not transformed into vertical wall (shared with Dugong and Nanosiren); ventral extremity of jugal lies ventral to orbit (shared with all dugongines ex- cept for Xenosiren, Crenatosiren, and Nanosiren); processus retroversus of squamosal moderately inflected (shared with Crenatosiren, Callistosiren, Rytiodus, Kutchisiren, Dioplotherium allisoni, and Bharatisiren indica); supraoccipital wider ventrally than dorsally (shared with Nanosiren, Dugong, Kutchisiren, and Bharatisiren kachchhen- sis). Differs from various other Dugonginae in retaining the following unique combination of plesiomorphies: frontal roof flat without knoblike bosses medial to temporal crests (character combination shared with Bharatisiren indica); squamosals do not reach temporal crests (shared with Corystosiren and Dioplotherium cf. allisoni from Brazil); ventral rim of orbit not overhanging (shared with Corystosiren and Callistosiren); first upper incisor (I1) present with I1 crown having enamel on all sides (shared with Crenatosiren, Nanosiren sanchezi, and Dioplotherium man- igaulti). Differs further from the similar genus Rytiodus in lacking a distinct intertemporal constriction of the cranial roof, an overhanging orbital rim of the jugal, large and blade-like tusks, and differs at least from R. heali in having a supraoccipital that is only slightly wider than high.