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Rhomaleopakhus (meaning "strong forearm") is a genus of mamenchisaurid sauropod, dinosaur from the Late Jurassic Kalaza Formation of China. The type and only species is Rhomaleopakhus turpanensis.[1]
| Rhomaleopakhus Temporal range: Late Jurassic | |
|---|---|
Scientific classification  | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Clade: | Dinosauria |
| Clade: | Saurischia |
| Clade: | †Sauropodomorpha |
| Clade: | †Sauropoda |
| Family: | †Mamenchisauridae |
| Genus: | †Rhomaleopakhus Upchurch et al., 2021 |
| Species: | †R. turpanensis |
| Binomial name | |
| †Rhomaleopakhus turpanensis Upchurch et al., 2021 | |
The holotype IVPP-V11121-1, was found by a Chinese-Japanese Chunichi Shinibun expedition near Qiketai in Shanshan, Xinjiang province in 1993, along with the holotype of Hudiesaurus,[2] and is a partially complete forelimb consisting of a humerus, ulna, radius, one carpal, and a partially complete manus that was originally assigned to the coeval mamenchisaurid Hudiesaurus.[2] Paul Upchurch in 2004 rejected the identity because of a lack of overlapping material.[3] However, in a 2021 reassessment of the latter genus, the forelimb was separated from its hypodigm and named the holotype of a new genus and species, Rhomaleopakhus turpanensis; the specific name refers to the Turpan Basin where the specimen was collected.[1]
Upchurch et al. note that the robustness of the forelimb, after which the taxon was named, convergently evolved in what are called the "Core Mamenchisaurus-like taxa" (CMTs),[4] titanosaurs, and ceratopsids. They believe this correlates with a more flexed orientation of the forearm, an enhanced role of the forearm in feeding, and a more anterior shift in the center of mass. It is possible that CMTs and titanosaurs specialized in a feeding strategy that involved efficient locomotion between sparsely-located food sources.[1]
Upchurch et al. used Moore et al. (2020)'s[4] phylogenetic analysis to determine the relationships of Rhomaleopakhus. They found it to be a mamenchisaurid sister to Chuanjiesaurus, in a clade that also includes Analong. Their cladogram is shown below:[1]
| Mamenchisauridae |
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