Mattia Antonio Baiano

National Scientific and Technical Research Council | conicet · CCT Comahue

The osteology of Pilmatueia faundezi Coria, Windholz, Ortega & Currie, 2019, a dicraeosaurid sauropod from the Lower Cretaceous of Patagonia, is reassessed from the perspective of a new specimen (MLL-Pv-010) that provides additional information on the axial skeleton and the pectoral girdle. The specimen MLL-Pv-010 is composed of three articulated a...

La Formación Allen (Campaniano medio-Maastrichtiano inferior; Cretácico Superior), con diversos afloramientos en el sector centro-oeste de Argentina, registra una interesante abundancia de restos fósiles de vertebrados. En particular, existen excelentes afloramientos en el Área Natural Protegida “Paso Córdoba”, 15 Km al suroeste de General Roca (Rí...

The Lohan Cura Formation (Albian) at the Cerro de los Leones locality (Neuquén Province, Patagonia, Argentina) yielded several fossil materials, especially sauropod specimens. Among these, Agustinia ligabuei includes postcranial elements of a single individual, with widely debated taxonomy and phylogeny. Here, we provide an extended osteological de...

Skorpiovenator bustingorryi is a derived abelisaurid theropod represented by a fairly complete skeleton from the Late Cretaceous sedimentary beds of north-western Patagonia. Although some features were described in the original paper, mainly related to the skull, the appendicular anatomy remains undescribed. The aim of the present contribution is t...

Non-avian theropod dinosaurs were pivotal components of Mesozoic ecosystems, spanning a wide array of trophic niches that lead to the diversification of tooth shape and dental morphologies (Torices et al., 2018; Hendrickx et al., 2019). In Europe, the Upper Cretaceous theropod fossil record mainly consists of isolated teeth and fragmentary bone rem...

Abelisaurids are medium–large-sized theropod dinosaurs that were predominant in the carnivorous fauna during the Late Cretaceous of Gondwana. These predators are abundant in the Cretaceous fossil strata of Patagonia, which yield the best record for this group. In the Late Cretaceous, abelisaurids appear in almost all regions of Gondwana and in all...

En esta contribución se dan a conocer las primeras edades U-Pb en circones detríticos de una muestra de los depósitos sinorogénicos del Cretácico Superior (Formación Anacleto) aflorantes en el extremo oriental de la cuenca Neuquina, en Paso Córdoba, Río Negro, Argentina. La edad máxima depositacional obtenida es de 78,6 ± 1,7 Ma (Campaniano medio)....

In the central Neuquén Basin, the Huincul Formation comprises thick successions of Upper Cretaceous fluvial deposits widely exposed at the south and north-west of Huincul High. The vertebrate fossil record from the Huincul Formation is very abundant, especially considering the saurischian dinosaurs, including several theropod (Mapusaurus, Taurovena...

Abelisaurids were dinosaurs that diversified specially in Gondwana during the Cretaceous. They were medium to large sized theropods, with reduced forelimbs, highly modified cervical vertebrae and sometimes had horned skulls. Their fossil record is abundant and well-represented making possible to assess the evolution of craniocervical musculature in...

Although osteohistology has proven to be useful to discern several palaeobiological traits and systematics in non-avian dinosaurs, the bone microstructure of several groups (e.g., abelisaurid theropods) is still poorly documented. Here, we provide a microstructural description of different bones (a cervical epipophysis, three dorsal ribs, three gra...

Osteological knowledge of the sauropod dinosaur Ligabuesaurus leanzai is increased by the description of new postcranial elements assigned to the holotype MCF-PVPH-233. Furthermore, a newly referred specimen, MCF-PVPH-228, is recognized after a detailed revision of the abundant sauropod material collected from the Lohan Cura Formation outcrops in t...

The Late Cretaceous theropod fauna of South America is composed of Abelisauridae, Noasauridae, Spinosauridae, Carcharodontosauridae, Megaraptora, and Coelurosauria. These groups include mostly small (Noasauridae and Coelurosauria) and medium- tolarge-sized taxa (Carcharodontosauridae, Abelisauridae, and Megaraptora). Some of these lineages are pred...

Aerotitan sudamericanus, from the Upper Cretaceous of the Neuquén Basin (Patagonia, Argentina), is known from a partial jaw fragment which has been interpreted as either an azhdarchid upper jaw, azhdarchid lower jaw, or thalassodromine upper jaw (as the sister-group of Alanqa). Here, we compare it in detail to upper and lower jaws of taxa belonging...

In the Neuquén Basin, the Portezuelo Formation (Turonian-Coniacian, Upper Cretaceous) is represented by extended fluvial outcrops that are well-known for yielding an abundant and diversified vertebrate fossil record. However, most of the sauropod fossil record is represented by incomplete specimens, and only two taxa are formally described for the...

The complete and well-preserved osteological fossil record of the craniocervical region in some large theropod dinosaurs has made it possible to assess different feeding styles. We have reconstructed the cranio-cervical myology and range of motion of the abelisaurid Carnotaurus sastrei from virtual vertebrae scanned via photogrammetry. The results...

The discovery of theropod shed teeth associated with sauropod remains is relatively common in Cretaceous deposits of Patagonia. However, only a handful of studies have thoroughly explored the phylogenetic affinities of the theropod dental material. Here, we describe and identify twelve theropod shed teeth associated with a partially complete skelet...

Abelisauridae is a theropod clade with a wide distribution in the Late Cretaceous of Gondwana. Some of the best preserved abelisaurid specimens were recovered from Patagonia (Argentina) such as Skorpiovenator, Ilokelesia, Carnotaurus and Aucasaurus. Here we describe a dorsal part of a neural spine; a middle caudal vertebra; a distal part of a left...

The main Cenomanian ichnological localities from Neuquén Province are situated around Ezequiel Ramos Mexía Lake. Here, we report a new ichnological locality in Aguada Pichana, 40 km NW from Añelo city. Aguada Pichana represents an important paleontological area with outcrops of the Candeleros Formation (Cenomanian, Upper Cretaceous, Neuquén Group)....

Xenotarsosaurus bonapartei was the third abelisaurid theropod dinosaur to be named from Argentina. The holotype comprises two partial anterior dorsal vertebrae and a complete right hind limb from the Upper Cretaceous (lower Cenomanian–upper Turonian) Bajo Barreal Formation, central Patagonia, Argentina. The materials display morphological features...

Dicraeosauridae is a family of small body-sized sauropod dinosaurs that diversified from the Middle Jurassic to the Lower Cretaceous, whose distinctive feature is a long dorsally projected, bifid neural spines in most of the presacral vertebrae. The dicraeosaurid fossil record is limited to few taxa, therefore each new finding, however fragmentary,...

A new ceratosaurian theropod dinosaur, Huinculsaurus montesi gen. et sp. nov., is described here. This taxon is based on the last three dorsal vertebrae and the first and second sacral vertebrae found in association at Aguada Grande, Neuquén Province, Argentina. Although fragmentary, Huinculsaurus shows a unique mix of features which differentiates...

The abelisaurid Skorpiovenator bustingorryi Canale et al., 2009, is known by an almost complete skeleton, recovered from the lowest section of the Huincul Formation (Cenomanian, Upper Cretaceous) near El Chocón town, Province of Neuquén. Although both tibiae of the holotype were recovered, their proximal ends are incomplete, preventing the observat...

A new carcharodontosaurid taxon, Lajasvenator ascheriae gen. et sp. nov. is described. The new taxon is based on two specimens: MLL-PV-Pv-005 is a partial skeleton represented by a portion of the snout, partially articulated presacral vertebral series, four articulated caudal vertebra and fragments of the pelvic girdle; MLL-PV-Pv-007 includes the a...

Abelisaurid theropods were the most diverse and abundant medium-sized to large-bodied carnivorous dinosaurs in many Gondwanan and European paleoecosystems during the Late Cretaceous, frequently occupying the apex predator niche in these environments. Although several derived abelisaurids (e.g., the Patagonian brachyrostrans Ekrixinatosaurus novasi,...

Noasauridae is a family of abelisauroid theropods that has a scarce record in South America, which, up to now, was only represented by small-sized forms from the Hauterivian (Lower Cretaceous) Ligabueino andesi Bonaparte; the Santonian (Upper Cretaceous) Velocisaurus unicus Bonaparte; and the Campanian-Maastrichtian (Upper Cretaceous) Noasaurus lea...

Alvarezsaurid forelimbs are markedly short and have a robust digit I ending in a stout ungual phalanx. Recently, two new basal alvarezsaurids, Bannykus and Xiyunykus Xu et al., were published, yielding evidence on the evolution of this part of the skeleton in this group of coelurosaurian theropod dinosaurs. The inclusion of Bannykus and Xiyunykus (...

Alvarezsauridae is a group of small-sized coelurosaurian theropods, known from Upper Cretaceous deposits of North America, Asia and South America. Although many new alvarezsaurid species have been recently discovered, and the knowledge of their anatomy has largely improved over the last decade, the phylogenetic relationships of Alvarezsauridae are...

The Megaraptora is an intriguing taxon of medium-sized theropod dinosaurs with disputed phylogenetic relationships. Depending on the chosen characters to be scored, megaraptorans can be understood either as the sister group of Carcharodontosauridae, or the sibling taxon of Tyrannosauroidea. Despite this unresolved phylogenetic scenario, the number...

From the pioneering work of Currie and collaborators at the beginning of the 90's, a large number of qualitative and quantitative parameters began to be established and systematized, with the aim of achieving a more precise classification of isolated theropod teeth. Due to exposure of these materials to taphonomic processes, the missing data are re...

The small coelurosaur theropod Patagonykus puertai (PVPH-37), recovered in Portezuelo Formation (Turonian-Coniacian, Upper Cretaceous), from Neuquén province, Argentina, was originally published as represented by postcranial elements of a single individual. A recent review of the holotype specimen has revealed the presence of several cranial remain...

Available information about dental morphology of dicraeosaurid sauropods is scarce worldwide, only known from the Upper Jurassic Dicraeosaurus Janensch, 1914 and Suuwassea Harris and Dodson, 2004; and isolated teeth from the Lower Cretaceous putatively referred to Amargasaurus Salgado and Bonaparte, 1991. Here we report three teeth collected associ...

Purpose: New sauropod remains (MCF-PVPH-889, MCF-PVPH-899, and MCF-PVPH-900) collected from the Plottier Fm (Coniacian–Santonian) in the south-west of the Neuquén Basin, are here reported. The materials proceed from a fluvial outcrop composed by siltstone and fine sandstone, whose fossil record is known for large-sized sauropod taxa. Methods: Due t...

Despite that paleohistology has proved to be useful to discern several paloebiological traits in non-avian dinosaurs, the bone microstructure of several groups (e.g., abelisaurid theropods) is still poorly documented. Here, we provide a microstructural description of the femur and tibia of the type specimen abelisaurid Quilmesaurus curriei (MPCA-Pv...

Field works on terrestrial sediments of the Mulichinco Formation at Pilmatué locality, 9 km north from Las Lajas, Neuquén, permitted the collection of dinosaur remains from different taxa, of which the dicraeosaurid sauropods seem to be the most abundantly represented form. The materials correspond to postcranial elements, representing different se...

The terrestrial facies of the Mulichinco Formation have yielded a unique association of dinosaur taxa that includes or-nithopods, dicraeosaurid and diplodocid sauropods, and carcharodontosaurid theropods. The carcharodontosaurids are represented by an incomplete, partially articulated medium-sized individual (MLL-007) recently communicated as the o...

Megaraptora es un clado de dinosaurios terópodos cretácicos, cuyas relaciones filogenéticas dentro de los Tetanurae son bas-tante discutidas, y cuyos registros provienen de Australia, Japón y principalmente de América del Sur; con al menos cuatro especies diferentes. El objetivo de este trabajo es brindar una descripción en detalle de la dentición...

A new association of continental vertebrate remains found in the lower section of the Mulichinco Formation (Valanginian), 10 km north of Las Lajas, are focus of taphonomic studies. The facies associations correspond to the deposit of fluvial channel, with lateral migration bars and scarce development of floodplains. The fossils are found in a tabul...

En el año 2006, Agnolín y colaboradores presentaron una serie de restos fragmentarios pertenecientes a un nuevo alvarez-sáurido proveniente de la localidad Salitral Ojo de Agua (provincia de Río Negro), el cual fue asignado seis años después, a una nueva especie: Bonapartenykus ultimus Agnolín, Powell, Novas y Kundrát (MPCA 1290). Este espécimen no...

Skeletal remains corresponding to an adult specimen of an allosauroid theropod (MLLPv-007) were collected in the sandstones of the Mulichinco Formation (Valanginian, Lower Cretaceous of the Neuquén Basin). The specimen includes the tip of the snout, some postdentary bones, vertebrae (cervicals, dorsals, sacrals and caudals), ribs, and fragments of...

Luxuriant, bushy antlers, bizarre crests, and huge, twisting horns and tusks are conventionally understood as products of sexual selection. This view stems from both direct observation and from the empirical finding that the size of these structures grows faster than body size (i.e., ornament size shows positive allometry).We contend that the famil...

Luxuriant, bushy antlers, bizarre crests, and huge, twisting horns and tusks are conventionally understood as products of sexual selection. This view stems from both direct observation and from the empirical finding that the size of these structures grows faster than body size (i.e., ornament size shows positive allometry).We contend that the famil...