Genus Lorrainosaurus Sachs, Madzia, Thuy & Kear, 2023
Type species: Lorrainosaurus keileni (Godefroit, 1994)
Diagnosis: Large-bodied thalassophonean pliosaurid autapomorphically distinguished by a transversely broad, ‘wedge-shaped’ splenial contact that extends anteriorly to the level of the fourth mandibular alveolus. Lorrainosaurus keileni also displays a unique character state combination: (1) laterally expanded and posteriorly constricted ‘spatulate’ symphyseal section of the mandible bearing five to six alveoli; (2) lateral trough on the mandible
anterior to the glenoid fossa; (3) a retroarticular process that is shorter than the glenoid fossa; (4) retroarticular process with posteroventrally oriented dorsoventral long axis and slightly posteromedially inflected mediolateral long axis; (5) wide posteromedial seperation of the coracoids; (6) posterolateral edge of the coracoid (cornu) projecting beyond the level of the glenoid fossa (from Sachs et al. 2023).
Distribution: Middle Jurassic, upper Bajocian, Europe (France and possibly Switzerland).
Lorrainosaurus keileni (Godefroit, 1994)
Holotype: MNHNL BU159, comprising four associated teeth, a maxilla fragment, largely complete mandible, a cervical rib, dorsal and gastral rib fragments, a mesopodial element,a phalanx, the left coracoid.
Stratum typicum: Parkinsonia parkinsoni Zone, upper Bajocian, mid-Middle Jurassic.
Locus typicus: temporary road cutting between Montois-la-Montagne and Sainte-Marie-aux-Chênes, Lorraine, northeastern France.
Diagnosis: As for the genus.
Distribution: Lorrainosaurus keileni is known by the holotype from the upper Bajocian Parkinsonia parkinsoni Zone of Lorraine (France) and by a possibly referred specimen from the lower Bajocian Passwang Formation from the Basel-Land canton (Switzerland).
Possible referred specimen: PIMUZ A/III0521, incomplete mandible (Sachs et al. 2019).
Systematic palaeontology (sensu Sachs et al. 2023)
Plesiosauria de Blainville, 1835
Pliosauridae Seeley, 1874
Thalassophonea Benson & Druckenmiller, 2014
Synonyms
Simolestes keileni Godefroit, 1994
Institutional abbreviations
MNHNL, Musée national d’histoire naturelle de Luxembourg, Luxembourg
PIMUZ, Paläontologisches Institut und Museum der Universität Zürich, Zürich, Switzerland
Cited literature
