Kemkemia
Encyclopedia
Kemkemia is a genus
of theropod dinosaur
living in the Cretaceous
, described from a single fossil in 1999 recovered from Morocco
by an Italian team searching for fossil invertebrates.
The type species
, Kemkemia auditorei, was named and described in 2009
by Italian paleontologists Andrea Cau and Simone Maganuco and is based on
a single distal caudal vertebra, MSNM V6408. This vertebra measures 60.48 mm in length and 33.81 mm in height. The genus name refers to the Kem Kem Beds
and the specific name honours Italian paleontological illustrator Marco Auditore. The fossil dates from the Cenomanian
.
The describers, because of the general morphology
of the vertebra, especially the strongly developed neural spine, consider it likely that Kemkemia belongs to the Neoceratosauria, but in view of the limited remains have cautiously assigned it to a more general Neotheropoda incertae sedis
. Comparable distal tail vertebrae have been found in Maastrichtian
layers of India
, probably belonging to the neoceratosaurian group of the Abelisauroidea.
Kemkemia was a predator with a body length of about four to five metres and, given that the vertebra is not very robust, possibly lightly built. The species length could be extrapolated because the specimen is that of an adult. It is the only known medium-sized theropod from the Kem Kem Beds
that have produced the fossils of very large predatory species: Spinosaurus
, Carcharodontosaurus
and Deltadromeus
.
Genus
In biology, a genus is a low-level taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms, which is an example of definition by genus and differentia...
of theropod dinosaur
Dinosaur
Dinosaurs are a diverse group of animals of the clade and superorder Dinosauria. They were the dominant terrestrial vertebrates for over 160 million years, from the late Triassic period until the end of the Cretaceous , when the Cretaceous–Paleogene extinction event led to the extinction of...
living in the Cretaceous
Cretaceous
The Cretaceous , derived from the Latin "creta" , usually abbreviated K for its German translation Kreide , is a geologic period and system from circa to million years ago. In the geologic timescale, the Cretaceous follows the Jurassic period and is followed by the Paleogene period of the...
, described from a single fossil in 1999 recovered from Morocco
Morocco
Morocco , officially the Kingdom of Morocco , is a country located in North Africa. It has a population of more than 32 million and an area of 710,850 km², and also primarily administers the disputed region of the Western Sahara...
by an Italian team searching for fossil invertebrates.
The type species
Type species
In biological nomenclature, a type species is both a concept and a practical system which is used in the classification and nomenclature of animals and plants. The value of a "type species" lies in the fact that it makes clear what is meant by a particular genus name. A type species is the species...
, Kemkemia auditorei, was named and described in 2009
2009 in paleontology
-Anomalocaridids:-Arachnids:-Insects:-Cephalopods:Three new species of extinct Octopoda discovered in 2009. The species - Keuppia hyperbolaris, Keuppia levante, and Styletoctopus annae - lived about 95 million years ago, and bear a strong resemblance to modern octopuses, suggesting that the...
by Italian paleontologists Andrea Cau and Simone Maganuco and is based on
Holotype
A holotype is a single physical example of an organism, known to have been used when the species was formally described. It is either the single such physical example or one of several such, but explicitly designated as the holotype...
a single distal caudal vertebra, MSNM V6408. This vertebra measures 60.48 mm in length and 33.81 mm in height. The genus name refers to the Kem Kem Beds
Kem Kem Beds
The Kem Kem Beds is a geological formation in Morocco and Algeria whose strata date back to the Late Cretaceous...
and the specific name honours Italian paleontological illustrator Marco Auditore. The fossil dates from the Cenomanian
Cenomanian
The Cenomanian is, in the ICS' geological timescale the oldest or earliest age of the Late Cretaceous epoch or the lowest stage of the Upper Cretaceous series. An age is a unit of geochronology: it is a unit of time; the stage is a unit in the stratigraphic column deposited during the corresponding...
.
The describers, because of the general morphology
Morphology (biology)
In biology, morphology is a branch of bioscience dealing with the study of the form and structure of organisms and their specific structural features....
of the vertebra, especially the strongly developed neural spine, consider it likely that Kemkemia belongs to the Neoceratosauria, but in view of the limited remains have cautiously assigned it to a more general Neotheropoda incertae sedis
Incertae sedis
, is a term used to define a taxonomic group where its broader relationships are unknown or undefined. Uncertainty at specific taxonomic levels is attributed by , , and similar terms.-Examples:*The fossil plant Paradinandra suecica could not be assigned to any...
. Comparable distal tail vertebrae have been found in Maastrichtian
Maastrichtian
The Maastrichtian is, in the ICS' geologic timescale, the latest age or upper stage of the Late Cretaceous epoch or Upper Cretaceous series, the Cretaceous period or system, and of the Mesozoic era or erathem. It spanned from 70.6 ± 0.6 Ma to 65.5 ± 0.3 Ma...
layers of India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
, probably belonging to the neoceratosaurian group of the Abelisauroidea.
Kemkemia was a predator with a body length of about four to five metres and, given that the vertebra is not very robust, possibly lightly built. The species length could be extrapolated because the specimen is that of an adult. It is the only known medium-sized theropod from the Kem Kem Beds
Kem Kem Beds
The Kem Kem Beds is a geological formation in Morocco and Algeria whose strata date back to the Late Cretaceous...
that have produced the fossils of very large predatory species: Spinosaurus
Spinosaurus
Spinosaurus is a genus of theropod dinosaur which lived in what is now North Africa, from the lower Albian to lower Cenomanian stages of the Cretaceous period, about 112 to 97 million years ago. This genus was first known from Egyptian remains discovered in 1912 and described by German...
, Carcharodontosaurus
Carcharodontosaurus
Carcharodontosaurus was a gigantic carnivorous carcharodontosaurid dinosaur that lived around 100 to 93 million years ago, during the late Albian to early Cenomanian stages of the mid-Cretaceous Period...
and Deltadromeus
Deltadromeus
Deltadromeus is a genus of large basal ceratosaurian theropod dinosaur from Northern Africa. It had long, unusually slender hind limbs for its size, suggesting that it was a swift runner. The skull is not known. Two fossil specimens of a single species Deltadromeus (meaning "delta runner") is a...
.