Crusafontia

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Crusafontia
Temporal range: Barremian
Holotype of C. amoae, now C. cuencana
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Mammalia
Order: Dryolestida
Family: Dryolestidae
Genus: Crusafontia
Henkel & Krebs, 1969
Type species
Crusafontia cuencana
Henkel & Krebs, 1969[1]
Synonyms[2]
  • Crusafontia amoae Cuenca-Bescos et al., 2011

Crusafontia is an extinct genus of mammal from the Cretaceous Camarillas, El Castellar and La Huérguina Formations of Spain.[1][2][3][4] The name of the animal was given in honour of the Spanish paleontologist Miquel Crusafont Pairó.

Crusafontia is estimated to have been around 10 cm (3.9 in)long, though only two teeth (an upper molar right P5) and a mandible have ever been found.[1][3][4] In one study on Mesozoic mammal mandibles, it plots with carnivorous rather than insectivorous or herbivorous species.[5]

In 2011 a second species of Crusafontia was named, C. amoae, based on two upper molar teeth from Galve.[2] However, this was synonymised with the original species in 2021.[6]

References

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  1. ^ a b c Henkel, S. and Krebs, B., 1969. Zwei Säugetier-unterkiefer aus der unteren Kreide von uña (prov. Cuenca, Spanien). Neues Jahrbuch für Geologie und Paläontologie, 1969, pp.449-463.
  2. ^ a b c Cuenca-Bescós, G., Badiola, A., Canudo, J.I., Gasca, J.M. and Moreno-Azanza, M., 2011. New Dryolestidan Mammal from the Hauterivian—Barremian Transition of the Iberian Peninsula. Acta Palaeontologica Polonica, 56(2), pp.257-267.
  3. ^ a b Crusafontia cuencana in the Paleobiology Database
  4. ^ a b Crusafontia amoae in the Paleobiology Database
  5. ^ Morales-García, N. M.; Gill, P. G.; Janis, C. M.; Rayfield, E. J. (2021). "Jaw shape and mechanical advantage are indicative of diet in Mesozoic mammals". Communications Biology. 4 (1): 242. doi:10.1038/s42003-021-01757-3. PMC 7902851. PMID 33623117.
  6. ^ Martin, T., Averianov, A.O., Schultz, J.A., Schwermann, A.H. and Wings, O., 2021. A derived dryolestid mammal indicates possible insular endemism in the Late Jurassic of Germany. The Science of Nature, 108(3), pp.1-12