Correction for Longrich et al., Mass extinction of lizards and snakes at the Cretaceous–Paleogene boundary

EVOLUTION; EARTH, ATMOSPHERIC, AND PLANETARY SCIENCES Correction for “Mass extinction of lizards and snakes at the Cretaceous–Paleogene boundary,” by Nicholas R. Longrich, Bhart-Anjan S. Bhullar, and Jacques A. Gauthier, which appeared in issue 52, December 26, 2012, of Proc Natl Acad Sci USA (109:21396–21401; first published December 10, 2012; 10.1073/pnas.1211526110).

The authors note the following: “The genus name Lamiasaurus, which we proposed for a new lizard from the Late Cretaceous of Wyoming, is preoccupied by Lamiasaurus Watson 1914 (1), a tapinocephalid therapsid from the Permian of Africa. We therefore propose the name Lamiasaura for the Wyoming lizard; its type species is Lamiasaura ferox, also proposed in our paper. Furthermore, holotypes were figured for this and other newly proposed species but not explicitly identified in the text. We designate types and provide diagnoses as follows. Cemeterius monstrosus, holotype: United States National Museum 25870. Diagnosis: large stem varanoid characterized by a deep, massive jaw, teeth short, unserrated, robust, and labiolingually expanded. Cerberophis robustus, holotype: University of California Museum of Paleontology 130696. Diagnosis: medium-sized (∼2 m) alethinophidian, trunk vertebrae with broad, flat ventral surface, hypertrophied synapophyses, large, massive prezygapophyses with rudimentary prezygapophyseal processes and anterior ridges; neural arch with dorsolateral ridges, moderately tall neural spine. Lamiasaura ferox, holotype: University of Wyoming 25116A, left dentary with four teeth. Diagnosis: dentary straight, tapered in lateral view; teeth widely spaced, crowns weakly recurved, crowns with bottleneck constriction between the base and apex, low mesial and distal cusps, and ridged lingual surface. Lonchisaurus trichurus, holotype: American Museum of Natural History 15446. Diagnosis: dentary long, low, and weakly bowed in lateral view; tooth crowns robust, weakly recurved, with weakly pointed crowns; tooth bases wider labially than lingually, tooth replacement reduced, coronoid overlaps dentary laterally. Obamadon gracilis, holotype: University of California Museum of Paleontology 128873. Diagnosis: small polyglyphanodontian characterized by the following combination of characters: dentary slender, symphysis weakly developed, tooth implantation subpleurodont, teeth lack basal expansion, tooth crowns with a tall central cusp separated from accessory cusps by deep lingual grooves. Pariguana lancensis, holotype: American Museum of Natural History 22208. Diagnosis: small iguanid; teeth tall, slender, with tapering crowns and weak accessory cusps; coronoid extended onto lateral surface of jaw below last tooth, Meckelian groove constricted suddenly ahead of anterior inferior alveolar foramen. Socognathus brachyodon, holotype: Yale Peabody Museum (Princeton University Collection) 16724. Diagnosis: Socognathus with posterior teeth having strongly swollen, weakly tricuspid crowns.”

“This correction formally validates the taxa proposed in our 2012 paper; thus, those taxa should be attributed to this note and accordingly dated as March 19, 2013.”

“We thank Christian Kammerer and Christopher Taylor for bringing these two issues to our attention.”