Superfamily of monotreme mammals
Ornithorhynchoidea is a superfamily of mammals containing the only living monotremes , the platypus and the echidnas , as well as their closest fossil relatives, to the exclusion of more primitive fossil monotremes of uncertain affinity.[ 1]
The clade was defined in 2024 following the discovery of some fossil monotremes from the Late Cretaceous (Cenomanian )-aged Griman Creek Formation of Lightning Ridge Australia, which appeared to be more closely related to extant monotremes than to co-occurring early monotremes such as Steropodon and Kollikodon .[ 1] [ 2]
Taxonomy
Opalios , the only described member of the extinct family Opalionidae, is considered the most basal ornithorhynchoid due to its unique combination of ancestral and derived traits.[ 1]
The presence of the probable stem -ornithorhynchids Dharragarra and Patagorhynchus in the Late Cretaceous implies that the divergence between the platypus and echidnas may have occurred during this time.[ 1] However, genetic estimates tend to prefer a Cenozoic divergence between these two extant groups.[ 3] [ 4]
Although most members of this group—extinct and extant—are known from Australia, at least two ornithorhynchid-like forms reached southern South America during the Maastrichtian (Patagorhynchus ) and early Paleocene (Monotrematum ).[ 5] [ 6]
The following genera are known:
Superfamily Ornithorhynchoidea Flannery et al., 2024
They can be distinguished from other fossil monotremes by their twisted-shaped dentaries , with the lingual surfaces being dorsoventrally flattened (aside from in echidnas).[ 1]
References
^ a b c d e Flannery, 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 . 48 (2): 319–337. Bibcode :2024Alch...48..319F . doi :10.1080/03115518.2024.2348753 . ISSN 0311-5518 .
^ de Kruijff, Peter (2024-05-26). " 'Echidnapus' fossil of potential echidna and platypus ancestor may point to Australian 'age of monotremes' " . ABC News . Archived from the original on 2024-05-27. Retrieved 2024-05-27 .
^ Phillips MJ, Bennett TH, Lee MS (October 2009). "Molecules, morphology, and ecology indicate a recent, amphibious ancestry for echidnas" . Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America . 106 (40): 17089–94. Bibcode :2009PNAS..10617089P . doi :10.1073/pnas.0904649106 . PMC 2761324 . PMID 19805098 .
^ Zhou, Yang; Shearwin-Whyatt, Linda; Li, Jing; Song, Zhenzhen; Hayakawa, Takashi; Stevens, David; Fenelon, Jane C.; Peel, Emma; Cheng, Yuanyuan; Pajpach, Filip; Bradley, Natasha; Suzuki, Hikoyu; Nikaido, Masato; Damas, Joana; Daish, Tasman (2021-04-06). "Platypus and echidna genomes reveal mammalian biology and evolution". Nature . 592 (7856): 756–762. Bibcode :2021Natur.592..756Z . doi :10.1038/s41586-020-03039-0 . hdl :2440/130050 . ISSN 1476-4687 . PMID 33408411 .
^ Flannery, Timothy F. ; Rich, Thomas H. ; Vickers-Rich, Patricia ; Ziegler, Tim; Veatch, E. Grace; Helgen, Kristofer M. (2022-01-02). "A review of monotreme (Monotremata) evolution" . Alcheringa: An Australasian Journal of Palaeontology . 46 (1): 3–20. Bibcode :2022Alch...46....3F . doi :10.1080/03115518.2022.2025900 . ISSN 0311-5518 .
^ Chimento, Nicolás R.; Agnolín, Federico L.; Manabe, Makoto; Tsuihiji, Takanobu; Rich, Thomas H.; Vickers-Rich, Patricia; Novas, Fernando E. (2023-02-16). "First monotreme from the Late Cretaceous of South America" . Communications Biology . 6 (1): 146. doi :10.1038/s42003-023-04498-7 . ISSN 2399-3642 . PMC 9935847 . PMID 36797304 .