# Jupijkam

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Genus of reptile

Jupijkam Temporal range: Late Triassic Norian–Rhaetian PreꞒ Ꞓ O S D C P T J K Pg N Holotype skull Life Restoration Scientific classification Kingdom: Animalia Phylum: Chordata Class: Reptilia Order: †Phytosauria Family: †Parasuchidae Subfamily: †Mystriosuchinae Genus: †Jupijkam Brownstein, 2023 Type species Jupijkam paleofluvialis Brownstein, 2023

***Jupijkam*** is an extinct genus of [phytosaur](/source/Phytosaur) from the [Late Triassic](/source/Late_Triassic) of [Nova Scotia](/source/Nova_Scotia), [Canada](/source/Canada). The genus is [monotypic](/source/Monotypic), including only the species ***Jupijkam paleofluvialis***. It is based on a partial skull and a few other fragments (including an [osteoderm](/source/Osteoderm)) from the White Water Member of the [Blomidon Formation](/source/Blomidon_Formation). Along with unnamed fossils from the [Fleming Fjord Formation](/source/Fleming_Fjord_Formation) of Greenland, these remains represent the northernmost record of phytosaurs. *Jupijkam* is named after [Jipijka'm](https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Jipijka%27m&action=edit&redlink=1), the great horned serpent of [Mi'kmaq](/source/Mi'kmaq) mythology.[1]

Fossils of *Jupijkam* were previously referred to *[Rutiodon](/source/Rutiodon)*, and most phylogenetic analyses retain *Jupijkam* as a *Rutiodon*-grade phytosaur (i.e., a non-[leptosuchomorph](/source/Leptosuchomorpha) [mystriosuchine](/source/Mystriosuchine)). Most *Rutiodon*-grade phytosaurs were extinct prior to the late Norian, but *Jupijkam* survived up to the latest Norian or early Rhaetian.[1]

## History and naming

*Jupijkam* is known from a singular, only partially preserved skull as well as a complete osteoderm and various bone fragments, all of which had been discovered in 1974. The fossils of the genus stem from the White Water Member of the [Blomidon Formation](/source/Blomidon_Formation) and were excavated in what is now [Nova Scotia](/source/Nova_Scotia), [Canada](/source/Canada). This not only makes *Jupijkam* one of the northernmost phytosaurs, but also one of the youngest, as these rocks date to the Late Triassic ([Norian](/source/Norian) to [Rhaetian](/source/Rhaetian)). After being found near the [Bay of Fundy](/source/Bay_of_Fundy), the material was stabilized with the use of white plaster, which did not alter the shape of the fossil, before being acquired by the [Yale Peabody Museum](/source/Yale_Peabody_Museum). The fossil material wasn't described until 2023, when C. D. Brownstein named the genus and species.

The genus name *Jupijkam* is derived from the [horned serpent](/source/Horned_serpent) of [Mi’kmaq](/source/Mi%E2%80%99kmaq) mythology, which is also known as Jipijka’m, Chepechcalm and Tcipitckaam. The name was chosen as the Mi'kmaq are the original inhabitants of Nova Scotia. The species name derives from Latin words "palaeo" and "fluvialis", meaning "ancient" and "river" respectively, chosen to reflect the animal's likely habitat.

## Description

Comparison between *Jupijkam* (a), *Rutiodon carolinensis* (b), and *Machaeroprosopus lottorum* (c)

*Jupijkam* was a large-bodied phytosaur with an extremely elongated (longirostrine) and gracile snout. Brownstein compares the proportions of this animal to phytosaurs like *[Rutiodon](/source/Rutiodon)* and *[Machaeroprosopus lottorum](/source/Machaeroprosopus_lottorum)* among others, contrasting with the much more robust morphology seen in *[Pravusuchus](/source/Pravusuchus)*, *[Colossosuchus](/source/Colossosuchus)* and other species of *Machaeroprosopus*. Like in other phytosaurs, the rostrum rises abruptly towards the back of the skull, elevating the nostrils high above the jawline just before the eyes. However, little can be said about the precise anatomy of *Jupijkam* beyond the jaws, as the back of the skull is not preserved.

The jaws end in a rosette of teeth formed by the [premaxillae](/source/Premaxillae), with four teeth present in either side. This rosette is only moderately downturned, which makes it similar to most other phytosaurs and differentiates it from *Machaeroprosopus* and *Colossosuchus*. The fourth tooth, like in other parasuchids, is noticeably smaller than the first three and separated by all other subsequent premaxillary teeth by a short, toothless gap ([diastema](/source/Diastema)). Behind this diastema, each premaxilla bears 19 additional teeth, each of which is more widely spaced from the others than typical for longirostrine phytosaurs. On the side of the premaxillae, about 5 mm (0.20 in) above the toothrow, lies a deep groove that contains the neurovascular foramina. This groove is much deeper than in other taxa and runs along nearly the entire length of the rostrum, only ending just behind the beginning of the [antorbital fenestra](/source/Antorbital_fenestra).

The rostrum as a whole lacks extensive ornamentation or ridges except for the occasional foramina. This lack of ornamentation also extends to the septomaxillae, which aren't strongly arched either. A pair of thick bones located before and towards the sides of the [nares](/source/Nares) which seem to match the paranasals seen in several species of *Machaeroprosopus*. Such bones are not known from all phytosaurs and their relationship to the skull bones of other archosaurs remains unclear. Unlike in *Machaeroprosopus*, the potential paranasals of *Jupijkam* are directed much more towards the side of the skull rather than upwards. The [nasal bones](/source/Nasal_bone) are not inflated.

## Phylogeny

Given the contentious state of phytosaur [phylogenetics](/source/Phylogenetics), two different data sets were utilized in the description of *Jupijkam*. Said datasets were modified versions of Jones & Butler (2018) and Datta and Ray (2023). Following Jones and Butler, *Jupijkam* was recovered as a parasuchid phytosaur in a large [polytomy](/source/Polytomy) alongside *Colossosuchus*, *[Angistorhinus](/source/Angistorhinus)*, the clade formed by *[Volcanosuchus](/source/Volcanosuchus)* and *[Rutiodon](/source/Rutiodon)* as well as [Leptosuchomorpha](/source/Leptosuchomorpha). Utilizing the Datta and Ray dataset, *Jupijkam* was found to fall into the aforementioned clade formed by *Rutiodon* and *Volcanosuchus*. This means that both [parsimony analysis](/source/Parsimony_analysis) found *Jupijkam* as a mystriosuchine outside of Leptosuchomorpha.

Diandongosuchus Parasuchidae Arganarhinus Wannia Parasuchus Paleorhinus Mystriosuchinae Colossosuchus Jupijkam paleofluvialis Angistorhinus Rutiodon Volcanosuchus Leptosuchomorpha Diandongosuchus Parasuchidae Wannia Parasuchus bransoni Ebrachosuchus Parasuchus hislopi Parasuchus angustifrons Mystriosuchinae Brachysuchus Angistorhinus Colossosuchus ISIR276 Indian phytosaur sp. 1 ISIR276 Indian phytosaur sp. 2 Rutiodon Volcanosuchus Jupijkam paleofluvialis Leptosuchomorpha

[Bayesian analysis](/source/Bayesian_analysis) meanwhile found very different results for both datasets. Utilizing Bayesian tip-dating analysis of the Jones and Butler dataset, *Jupijkam* was recovered as a sister taxon to *[Mystriosuchus](/source/Mystriosuchus)*, whereas Bayesian tip-dating analysis of the Datta and Ray dataset was more in line with the previous parsimony analysis, finding it to group with *Rutiodon*, except now to the exclusion of *Volcanosuchus*.

Diandongosuchus Paleorhinus Ebrachosuchus Wannia Parasuchus Arganarhinus Angistorhinus Rutiodon Volcanosuchus Colossosuchus "Machaeroprosopus" zunii Smilosuchus Leptosuchus Pravusuchus "Smilosuchus" lithodendrorum Coburgosuchus Nicrosaurus Jupijkam paleofluvialis Mystriosuchus Protome Machaeroprosopus (including Redondasaurus) Diandongosuchus Ebrachosuchus Parasuchus angustifrons Parasuchus hislopi Parasuchus bransoni Wannia Colossosuchus ISIR276 Indian phytosaur sp. 1 ISIR271 Indian phytosaur sp. 2 Volcanosuchus Angistorhinus Brachysuchus Jupijkam paleofluvialis Rutiodon Leptosuchomorpha

While all these analysis produce different results, it has been noted that in no analysis does it clade with the other known Late Triassic phytosaurs. This would suggest that *Jupijkam* represents a lineage that independently survived until the Norian-Rhaetian boundary.

## References

1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-B23_1-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-B23_1-1) Brownstein, C.D. (2023). ["A late-surviving phytosaur from the northern Atlantic rift reveals climate constraints on Triassic reptile biogeography"](https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10351158). *BMC Ecol Evol*. **23** (33): 33. [doi](/source/Doi_(identifier)):[10.1186/s12862-023-02136-8](https://doi.org/10.1186%2Fs12862-023-02136-8). [PMC](/source/PMC_(identifier)) [10351158](https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10351158). [PMID](/source/PMID_(identifier)) [37460985](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/37460985).

v t e Phytosauria Kingdom: Animalia Phylum: Chordata Class: Sauropsida Clade: Archosauromorpha Clade: Crurotarsi Sauropsida see Sauropsida Archosauromorpha see Archosauromorpha Phytosauria see below↓ Phytosauria Phytosauria Calamosuchus Diandongosuchus Heteropelta? Parasuchidae Arganarhinus Ebrachosuchus Paleorhinus Parasuchus Wannia Mystriosuchinae / Phytosauridae Angistorhinus Brachysuchus Colossosuchus Jupijkam Protome Rutiodon Volcanosuchus Leptosuchomorpha Leptosuchus Pravusuchus Smilosuchus Mystriosuchini Angistorhinopsis Machaeroprosopus Mystriosuchus Nicrosaurus Redondasaurus Nomina dubia Belodon Centemodon Clepsysaurus? Coburgosuchus Compsosaurus Francosuchus Heterodontosuchus Mesorhinosuchus Omosaurus? Palaeoctonus? Phytosaurus Rileyasuchus Suchoprion Termatosaurus? Category

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Jupijkam](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jupijkam) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jupijkam?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.