| Protathlitis | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Skeletal diagram of the relatedBaryonyx, showing the known bones ofProtathlitis in red | |
Scientific classification | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Clade: | Dinosauria |
| Clade: | Saurischia |
| Clade: | Theropoda |
| Family: | †Spinosauridae |
| Subfamily: | †Baryonychinae |
| Genus: | †Protathlitis Santos-Cubedoet al.,2023 |
| Type species | |
| †Protathlitis cinctorrensis Santos-Cubedoet al., 2023 | |
Protathlitis (meaning "champion") is a genus ofspinosauriddinosaur from theEarly Cretaceous (Barremian)Arcillas de Morella Formation ofCastellón, Spain. Thetype andonly species isProtathlitis cinctorrensis, known from a partial skeleton. It was abasal member of theBaryonychinae.[1] Its discovery, as well as those of the spinosauridsCamarillasaurus,Iberospinus,Riojavenatrix, and the contemporaryVallibonavenatrix shows that the Iberian Peninsula held a diverse assemblage of spinosaurids during the Early Cretaceous.[2]
Theholotype remains, themaxillary fragment 8ANA-109 andcaudal vertebrae 3ANA83, 4ANA43, 4ANA69, 4ANA76, and 5ANA78, were recovered from the ANA site of the Arcillas de Morella Formation, which was discovered in 1998 and remained unexplored until 2002. A tooth, 4ANA-11, possibly from the left mandible or right maxilla, was also referred.
The remains weredescribed as a new genus and species of spinosaurid in 2023,Protathlitis cinctorrensis. The genus name, "Protathlitis", is Greek for "champion", and is dedicated to the2020–21 UEFA Europa League won byVillareal C.F. and in light of the club's centenary in 2023. The specific name, "cinctorrensis", honorsCinctorres, the town where the remains were discovered.[1]
In 2024, Montealegre, Castillo-Visa & Sellés tentatively assigned specimen IPS919, a nearly complete tooth including a partialroot from the Arcillas de Morella Formation, tocf.Protathlitis.[3]
Santos-Cubedoet al. (2023) performed aphylogenetic analysis, placingProtathlitis as the basalmost member the Baryonychinae. Their results are shown in thecladogram below:[1]
Protathlitis hails from theArcillas de Morella Formation, which has been dated to theBarremianstage of theEarly Cretaceousperiod, between 129.4 and 125 million years ago. It coexisted in this environment with other dinosaurs including theornithischiansIguanodon bernissartensis andMorelladon beltrani, an indeterminatesauropod, and the fellow spinosauridVallibonavenatrix.[4][5][6]
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