Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology ( IF 1.4 ) Pub Date : 2021-07-09 , DOI: 10.1080/02724634.2021.1927748 Therese Flink 1, 2 , Susanne Cote 3 , James B. Rossie 4 , Job M. Kibii 5 , Lars Werdelin 2
ABSTRACT
We report on a nearly complete cranium of Ekweeconfractus amorui gen. et sp. nov. (Hyaenodonta, Teratodontinae), from the early Miocene of Moruorot, Kenya. The cranium is dorsoventrally compressed, but sufficiently intact to allow for digital reconstruction of the neurocranium, resulting in a digital endocast that gives us a first glimpse into teratodontine brain morphology. The virtual endocast is one of the most well preserved of any hyaenodont known to date, with many of the cranial nerves and blood vessels identifiable. Endocasts are known from only a handful of hyaenodont species and little work has been done on hyaenodont brains in recent decades. To better understand the evolution of the brain in these animals, we place the endocast of E. amorui gen. et sp. nov., as well as several other previously described endocasts, in the latest phylogenetic framework. This analysis suggests that the expansion of the neocortex occurred convergently in several clades of Hyaenodonta. Our study provides a basis for future research on brain evolution in Hyaenodonta.
中文翻译:
Ekweeconfractus amorui gen 的神经颅骨。等 sp. 十一月 (鬣齿兽,哺乳动物)和一些鬣齿兽食肉动物的大脑进化
摘要
我们报告了几乎完整的Ekweeconfractus amorui gen头盖骨。等 sp. 十一月 (Hyaenodonta,Teratodontinae),来自肯尼亚莫罗罗特早中新世。颅骨在背腹侧被压缩,但足够完整,可以对神经颅骨进行数字重建,从而产生数字内铸件,让我们第一次看到畸齿瘤的大脑形态。虚拟内铸是迄今为止已知的所有鬣齿兽中保存最完好的一种,其中许多颅神经和血管可识别。Endocasts 仅从少数鬣狗物种中获知,并且近几十年来对鬣狗大脑的研究很少。为了更好地了解这些动物大脑的进化,我们放置了E. amorui 的内模将军 等 sp. 11 月,以及在最新的系统发育框架中的其他几个先前描述的内模型。这一分析表明,新皮层的扩张在鬣齿兽的几个进化枝中集中发生。我们的研究为未来对鬣齿兽大脑进化的研究提供了基础。