Opalios
| Opalios Temporal range:Late Cretaceous(Cenomanian),
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|---|---|
Scientific classification
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| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Mammalia |
| Order: | Monotremata |
| Superfamily: | Ornithorhynchoidea |
| Family: | †Opalionidae Flanneryet al.,2024 |
| Genus: | †Opalios Flannery et al., 2024 |
| Species: | †O. splendens
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| Binomial name | |
| †Opalios splendens Flannery et al., 2024
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Opalios(meaning "opal" ) is anextinctgenus ofmonotrememammal from theLate Cretaceous(Cenomanian)Griman Creek Formationof Australia. The genus contains asingle species,O. splendens,known from a fragmentary leftdentary.
Discovery and naming
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TheOpaliosholotypespecimen,AMF132596–AM F132599, was discovered in 2001 in sediments of theGriman Creek Formation(Wallangulla Sandstone Member) nearLightning Ridge,New South Wales,Australia. The specimen consists of four broken pieces of the leftdentary.[1]
In 2024, Flannery et al.describedOpalios splendensas a new genus and species of early monotreme based on these fossil remains. They erected the newmonotypicfamilyOpalionidaewithin theOrnithorhynchoidea—thesuperfamilyalso containing modernechidnasandplatypus—to houseOpaliosdue to its similarity to both of these extant lineages. Thegeneric name,Opalios,is aGreekword meaning "opal",referencing the holotype's opalized nature. Thespecific name,splendens,is aLatinword meaning "shining" or "distinguished", in reference to the holotype's striking translucency and size.[1]
Opalioswas nicknamed "echidnapus" (aportmanteauof "echidna" and "platypus" ) in the press following its description due to the specimen's similarities to bothextantmonotreme lineages.[2]
Several other monotremes are known from the Griman Creek Formation, includingDharragarraandParvopalus—which were described in the samepublicationasOpalios—as well asKollikodon,Steropodon,andStirtodon.[1]
References
[edit]- ^abcFlannery, Timothy F.;McCurry, Matthew R.;Rich, Thomas H.;Vickers-Rich, Patricia;Smith, Elizabeth T.; Helgen, Kristofer M. (2024-05-26)."A diverse assemblage of monotremes (Monotremata) from the Cenomanian Lightning Ridge fauna of New South Wales, Australia".Alcheringa: An Australasian Journal of Palaeontology:1–19.doi:10.1080/03115518.2024.2348753.ISSN0311-5518.
- ^de Kruijff, Peter (2024-05-26)."'Echidnapus' fossil of potential echidna and platypus ancestor may point to Australian 'age of monotremes'".ABC News.Archived fromthe originalon 2024-05-27.Retrieved2024-05-27.
