Leinkupal
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Leinkupal Temporal range: Early Cretaceous, 136.4 Ma |
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| Cervical and dorsal vertebrae | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Reptilia |
| Clade: | Dinosauria |
| Order: | Saurischia |
| Suborder: | †Sauropodomorpha |
| Clade: | †Neosauropoda |
| Family: | †Diplodocidae |
| Subfamily: | †Diplodocinae |
| Genus: |
†Leinkupal Gallina et al., 2014 |
| Type species | |
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†Leinkupal laticauda Gallina et al., 2014 |
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| Synonyms | |
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Leikupal Gallina et al., 2014 (lapsus calami) |
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Leikupal Gallina et al., 2014 (lapsus calami)
Leinkupal is a genius of diplodocine sauropod known from the Early Cretaceous (late Berriasian to Valanginian stage) of the Bajada Colorada Formation, southeastern Neuquén Province of Argentina. It contains a single species, Leinkupal laticauda.
In 2010 and 2012, at Picún Leufu in Neuquén Province, remains were uncovered of several types of sauropods. One of these was a diplodocoid new to science.
In 2014, the type species Leinkupal laticauda was named and described by Pablo Gallina, Sebastián Apesteguía, Alejandro Haluza and Juan Canale. The generic name combines the Mapudungun lein, "vanishing", and kupal, "family", in reference to Leinkupal being the last, or youngest, known species of the Diplodocidae. The specific name is derived from Latin, latus, "wide", and cauda, "tail", in reference to the broad caudal vertebrae.
The holotype, MMCH-Pv 63-1, was found in a layer of the Bajada Colorado Formation dating from the Berriasian–Valanginian. It consists of a front tail vertebra. As paratypes were assigned: MMCH-Pv 63-2/3: two front tail vertebrae; MMCH-Pv 63-4: a hind tail vertebra, MMCH-Pv 63-5: a front dorsal vertebra, MMCH-Pv 63-6: a front tail vertebra; and MMCH-Pv 63-7/8: two vertebrae of the middle tail. Additional possible material has been discovered but was not referred as its identity was uncertain.
Leinkupal was a relatively small sauropod, with an estimated body length of nine metres. Several unique derived traits, or autapomorphies, could be established. The front tail vertebrae have extremely well-developed transverse processes, as long as the width of the vertebral body, expanded sideways and to below, and possessing robust reinforcing ridges on their top and bottom surfaces. The front tail vertebrae have very robust ridges running between the vertebral body and the front joint processes, the prezygapophyses. The front tail vertebrae have rear joint processes, postzygapophyses, with two paired pneumatic openings at their inner bases, opposite from the joint facets.
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