Archosaurian reptiles with Gondwanan affinities in the Upper Cretaceous of Europe

Abstract

ABSTRACTThe Late Cretaceous (mainly Campanian and Maastrichtian) non‐marine vertebrate faunas of Europe contain archosaurian reptiles which belong to groups otherwise known mainly or only from the southern ('Gondwanan') continents. They include titanosaurid sauropods, abelisaurid theropods, and trematochampsid crocodilians. The occurrence of these forms together with others of ‘Asiamerican’ affinities gives the Late Cretaceous vertebrate faunas of Europe a peculiar composition, which makes them clearly different from the well‐known faunas from western North America and Central Asia. The Gondwanan dinosaurs and crocodilians from Europe provide evidence of faunal interchange across the Tethys Sea during the Cretaceous, possibly via the Alboran plate, or the Apulian plate, which may have functioned as ‘stepping‐stones', especially during periods of low sea level.