Clade | |
Subclade |
Taxon | |
Taxon |
Ceratosauria
|
Nominal Author | Marsh 1884 |
2nd Nominal Author | |
Taxon Status | ACTIVE |
Comments | The taxon Ceratosauria was coined by Marsh (1884) in a paper on dinosaur classification in Nature (31:68-69). It was a redundant taxon, including the single genus Ceratosaurus and family Ceratosauridae, which Marsh coined in another paper published in the same year (American Journal of Science 27:329-341). Gauthier (1986) correctly cited the former paper for authorship of Ceratosauria when he brought the taxon back into common use (also Kuhn 1967). Some subsequent authors, however, have incorrectly cited Marsh’s later paper that same year (e.g. Wilson et al. 2003; Tykoski and Rowe 2004). Rowe (1989) defined Ceratosauria as “taxa more closely related to Ceratosaurus nasicornis”. Birds were implied, but not stated, as an external specifier of a stem-based definition, and so the definition is incomplete. A complete definition must be a statement that includes a definitional type and a minimum number of specifiers (Sereno 1999, 2005). Implied taxa, no matter how reasonable the implication may be, are insufficient. Neither Gauthier (1986) nor Rowe (1989) provided a complete phlogenetic definition for Ceratosauria. The first complete phylogenetic definition for Ceratosauria was provided by Rowe and Gauthier (1990), who provided a node-based definition that listed eight species as internal specifiers. Rowe et al. (1997) and Padian et al. (1999) subsequently referred in error to this initial definition as stem-based. Tykoski and Rowe (2004) further complicated the defitional history of this taxon by attributing a stem-based version of the definition to Rowe (1989), whose definition was incomplete. Holtz and Padian (1995) coined the first complete stem-based definition for Ceratosauria, doing so in an abstract and using Ceratosaurus and birds as specifiers. Sereno (1998) used Coelophysis and Neornithes, and later Padian et al. (1999) used Ceratosaurus and Neornithes. Given the emerging consensus that Ceratosauria as originally conceived by Gauthier (1986) is paraphyletic, use of Coelophysis as a specifier is not recommended. Wilson et al. (2003) adopted Padian et al.’s definition, replacing Ceratosaurus with Ceratosaurus nasicornis. The active definition is a first-order revision replacing Neornithes with Passer domesticus. |
Potential Synonomy |
Active Phylogenetic Definition | |
Active Definition |
The most inclusive clade containing Ceratosaurus nasicornis Marsh 1884 but not Passer domesticus (Linnaeus 1758).
|
Shorthand |
> Ceratosaurus nasicornis but not Passer domesticus. |
Definitional Author |
Sereno 2005 |
Definition Status | checked |
Definition Type | STEM |
Node-Stem Triplet | NO |
Other Triplet Taxa | |
Specifiers | |
Specifier(s) A |
Ceratosaurus nasicornis |
Specifier(s) B | |
Specifier(s) C |
Passer domesticus
|
Qualifiers | |
+Taxon | |
-Taxon | |
Datum | |
Taxonomic Content | |
Publication Year |
Unknown Unknown Unknown 1998 |
Inactive Taxon Status | |
Rejection Criteria | |
Critique | |
Definitional History #1 | |
Earliest Record | The group including Ceratosaurus nasicornis, Dilophosaurus wetherilli, Liliensternus liliensterni, Coelophysis bauri, Syntarsus rhodesiensis, Syntarsus kayentakatae, Segisaurus halli, Sarcosaurus woodi, and all other taxa stemming from their most recent common ancestor. |
Latest Record | Rowe and Gauthier 1990:153 |
Range (My) | |
Range (My) |
Ceratosaurus nasicornis, Dilophosaurus wetherilli, Liliensternus liliensterni, Coelophysis bauri, Syntarsus rhodesiensis, Syntarsus kayentakata |
Range (My) |
Definitional History #2 | |
Earliest Record | All theropods closer to Ceratosaurus than to birds. |
Latest Record | Holtz and Padian 1995:35A |
Range (My) | |
Range (My) |
Ceratosaurus, birds |
Range (My) |
Definitional History #3 | |
Earliest Record | All neotheropods closer to Coelophysis than to Neornithes. |
Latest Record | Sereno 1998:64 |
Range (My) | |
Range (My) |
Coelophysis, Neornithes |
Range (My) |
Definitional History #4 | |
Earliest Record | Neotheropods closer to Ceratosaurus than to Neornithes. |
Latest Record | Padian et al. 1999:70 |
Range (My) | |
Range (My) |
Ceratosaurus, Neornithes |
Range (My) |
Definitional History #5 | |
Earliest Record | The most inclusive clade containing Ceratosaurus nasicornis but not Neornithes. |
Latest Record | Wilson et al. 2003:30 |
Range (My) | |
Range (My) |
Ceratosaurus nasicornis, Neornithes |
Range (My) |
Definitional History #6 | |
Earliest Record | |
Latest Record | |
Range (My) | |
Range (My) | |
Range (My) |
Definitional History #7 | |
Earliest Record | |
Latest Record | |
Range (My) | |
Range (My) | |
Range (My) |
Definitional History #8 | |
Earliest Record | |
Latest Record | |
Range (My) | |
Range (My) | |
Range (My) |
Definitional History #9 | |
Earliest Record | |
Latest Record | |
Range (My) | |
Range (My) | |
Range (My) |
Definitional History #10 | |
Earliest Record | |
Latest Record | |
Range (My) | |
Range (My) | |
Range (My) |