Diego Pol

Principal Researcher

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Diego Pol 03 6x4

I did my undergraduate studies in Biology at the Universidad de Buenos Aires, with a major in Paleontology. In 1999 I started grad school at the joint program of the American Museum of Natural History and Columbia University (Nueva York, USA), where I got my Ph.D. In 2005 I did a postdoc at the Mathematical Biosciences Institute (Ohio State University) on method for phylogenetic reconstruction for the study of evolutionary relationships of organisms. Since 2006 I am a researcher of CONICET at the Museo Paleontológico Egidio Feruglio.

The main focus of my research is centered on understanding the evolution of archosaur reptiles (dinosaurs, crocodiles) using a phylogenetic approach. In the last few years I have focused my work on the dinosaurs and crocodiles that lived in Patagonia in the Mesozoic. Most of these studies are being conducted on new specimens that were recently found during the field expeditions we organize in collaboration with other colleagues of the MEF and other institutions. The study of new species of reptiles, and their interpretation from an evolutionary perspective is the main component of my recent publications.

My interest for these issues is to understand the origin and evolution of the amazing diversity of reptiles that lived in Patagonia (and other regions of the world) during the Mesozoic, between 230 million years ago and the massive extinction at the end of the Cretaceous (65 million years ago). In this period reptiles were the most abundant vertebrates of terrestrial ecosystems, and they diversified and evolved in multiple lineages that we can discover today studying the fossil record.

Evolution of archosaur reptiles in the Jurassic of Patagonia
Phylogenetic relationships of Cretaceous and Paleogene Crocodyliformes from Gondwana
Phylogeny and evolution of sauropodomorph dinosaurs

POL, D., OTERO, A. & BARRETT, P. B. in press. Basal Sauropodomorpha. In:The Dinosauria, 3^rd Edition. Weishampel, D., Carrano, M., Makovicky P., Barrett PM. (eds.). Cambridge University Press. 50 pp, 9 figs.
D'EMIC, M. D., O’CONNOR, P. M., SOMBATHY, R. S., CERDA, I., PASCUCCI, T. R., VARRICCHIO, POL, D., CORIA, R. A. & CURRY ROGERS, K. A. 2023. Developmental strategies underlying gigantism and miniaturization in non-avialan theropod dinosaurs. Science379: 811–814.
BECERRA, M. G., POL, D., PORRO, L. B., PAULINA-CARABAJAL, A., & RAUHUT, O. W. 2023. Craniomandibular osteology of Manidens condorensis (Ornithischia: Heterodontosauridae) from the upper Lower Jurassic of Argentina. Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology 42: e2181087.
NORELL, M. A., WIEMANN, J., MENÉNDEZ, I., FABBRI, M., YU, C., MARSICANO, C. A., POL, D. & ZELENITSKY, D. K. 2022. Reply to: Triassic sauropodomorph eggshell might not be soft. Nature610: E11-E14.
NIETO, M. N., DEGRANGE, F. J., SELLERS, K. C., POL, D., & HOLLIDAY, C. M. 2022. Biomechanical performance of the cranio‐mandibular complex of the small notosuchian Araripesuchus gomesii (Notosuchia, Uruguaysuchidae). The Anatomical Record305: 2695–2707.
CERDA, I. A., POL, D., OTERO, A., & CHINSAMY, A. 2022. Palaeobiology of the early sauropodomorph Mussaurus patagonicus inferred from its long bone histology. Palaeontology65: e12614.
BAIANO, M. A., POL, D., BELLARDINI, F., WINDHOLZ, G. J., CERDA, I. A., GARRIDO, A. C., & CORIA, R. A. 2022. Elemgasem nubilus: a new brachyrostran abelisaurid (Theropoda, Ceratosauria) from the Portezuelo Formation (Upper Cretaceous) of Patagonia, Argentina. Papers in Palaeontology8: e1462.
BRAVO, G. G., POL, D., ARMELLA, M. A., GÓMEZ, K. 2022. The choanal anatomy of the Sebecus icaeorhinus Simpson, 1937 and the variation of the palatine shape in notosuchians (Crocodyliformes, Mesoeucrocodylia). Journal of Paleontology 1– doi: 10.1017/jpa.2022.48
SELLERS, K. C., NIETO, M. N., DEGRANGE, F. J., POL, D., CLARK, J. M., MIDDLETON, K. M., HOLLIDAY, C. M.2022. The effects of skull flattening on suchian jaw muscle evolution. The Anatomical Record: 132. doi: 10.1002/ar.24912
NAVARRO, T., CERDA, I., BARRIOS, F., POL, D. 2022. Dental histology and attachment tissues in Notosuchus terrestris (Crocodyliformes, Notosuchia): palaeobiological implications. Lethaia55: 1–
STERLI, J., POL, D., CARBALLIDO, J. L., PUERTA, P., & VLACHOS, E. 2022. Paleoherpetología en el Museo Paleontológico Egidio Feruglio (Trelew, Chubut). Publicación Electrónica de la Asociación Paleontológica Argentina22: 359–
POL, D., GOMEZ, K., HOLWERDA, F. M., RAUHUT, O. W., CARBALLIDO, J. L. 2022. Sauropods from the Early Jurassic of South America and the Radiation of Eusauropoda. In:South American Sauropodomorph Dinosaurs. Otero, A., Carballido, J.L., Pol, D. (eds.). Springer, Cham. pp. 131–
FABBRI, M., NAVALON, G., BENSON, R.B., POL, D., O'CONNOR, J., BHULLAR, B.A.S., ERICKSON, G., NORELL, M.A., ORKNEY, A., LAMANNA, M.C. ZOUHRI, S. 2022. Sinking a giant: quantitative macroevolutionary comparative methods debunk qualitative assumptions. Preprint at bioRxiv. doi: 10.1101/2022.05.05.490811
BONA, P., FERNANDEZ BLANCO, M. V., EZCURRA, M. D., VON BACZKO, M. B., DESOJO, J. B., POL, D. 2022. On the homology of crocodylian post‐dentary bones and their macroevolution throughout Pseudosuchia. The Anatomical Record 1–22. doi: 10.1002/ar.24873
FABBRI, M., NAVALÓN, G., BENSON, R.B., POL, D., O’CONNOR, J., BHULLAR, B.A.S., ERICKSON, G.M., NORELL, M.A., ORKNEY, A., LAMANNA, M.C. AND ZOUHRI, S. 2022. Subaqueous foraging among carnivorous dinosaurs. Nature603: 852–
OTERO, A., , D. 2021. Ontogenetic changes in the postcranial skeleton of Mussaurus patagonicus (Dinosauria, Sauropodomorpha) and their impact on the phylogenetic relationships of early sauropodomorphs. Journal of Systematic Palaeontology19: 1467–1516.
GOMEZ, K., CARBALLIDO, J.L., POL, D. The axial skeleton of Bagualia alba (Dinosauria: Eusauropoda) from the Early Jurassic of Patagonia. Palaeontologia Electronica 24: a37. doi: 10.26879/1176
APALDETTI, C., POL, D., EZCURRA, M., MARTINEZ, R.N. 2021. Sauropodomorph evolution across the Triassic–Jurassic boundary: body size, locomotion, and their influence on morphological disparity. Scientific Reports 11: 22534. doi: 1038/s41598-021-01120-w
POL, D., CARBALLIDO, J.L., ROUGIER, G.W., RAUHUT, O.W.M., STERLI, J., GOMEZ, K. 2021. Vertebrados tetrápodos Mesozoicos de la Cuenca Cañadón Asfalto. In:Relatorio XXI Congreso Geológico Argentino: 780–805.
STERLI, J., PARRAS, A., ALBINO, A., BECERRA, M., CARBALLIDO, J.L., GOUIRIC-CAVALLI, S., MUZZOPAPPA, P., ORIOZABALA, C., PANZERI, K.M., PEREZ MORENO, A., POL, D., ROUGIER, G.W., SALGADO, L. Vertebrados continentales de la Formación La Colonia (Campaniano–Maastrichtiano). In:Relatorio XXI Congreso Geológico Argentino: 834–865.
POL, D., MANCUSO, A. C., SMITH, R. M., MARSICANO, C. A., RAMEZANI, J., CERDA, I. A., FERNANDEZ, V. 2021. Earliest evidence of herd-living and age segregation amongst dinosaurs. Scientific reports11: doi: 10.1038/s41598-021-99176-1
BRAVO, G. G., POL, D., GARCÍA-LÓPEZ, D. A. 2021. A new sebecid mesoeucrocodylian from the Paleocene of northwestern Argentina. Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology:
FELICE, R. N., POL, D., GOSWAMI, A. 2021. Complex macroevolutionary dynamics underly the evolution of the crocodyliform skull. Proceedings of the Royal Society B288:
YÁÑEZ, I., POL, D., LEARDI, J., ALCOBER, O. A., MARTÍNEZ, R. N. 2021. An enigmatic new archosauriform from the Carnian-Norian, Upper Triassic, Ischigualasto Formation of northwestern Argentina. Acta Palaeontologia Polonica66: 509–533.
HOLWERDA, F. M., RAUHUT, O. W., POL, D. 2021. Osteological revision of the holotype of the Middle Jurassic sauropod dinosaur Patagosaurus fariasi Bonaparte, 1979 (Sauropoda: Cetiosauridae). Geodiversitas43: 575–
RAUHUT, O. W., POL, D. 2021. New theropod remains from the Late Jurassic Cañadón Calcáreo formation of Chubut, Argentina. Journal of South American Earth Sciences
NIETO, M. N., DEGRANGE, F. J., SELLERS, K. C., POL, D.,HOLLIDAY, C. M. 2021. Biomechanical performance of the cranio‐mandibular complex of the small notosuchian Araripesuchus gomesii (Notosuchia, Uruguaysuchidae). The Anatomical Record doi: 10.1002/ar.24697.
POL, D., OTERO, A., APALDETTI, C., MARTÍNEZ, R. N. 2021. Triassic sauropodomorph dinosaurs from South America: The origin and diversification of dinosaur dominated herbivorous faunas. Journal of South American Earth Sciences107:
DEGRANGE, F. J., POL, D., PUERTA, P., WILF, P. 2021. Unexpected larger distribution of paleogene stem-rollers (AVES, CORACII): new evidence from the Eocene of Patagonia, Argentina. Scientific reports11: 1363. doi: 1038/s41598-020-80479-8
BECERRA, M., POL, D., WHITLOCK, J.A., PORRO, L.B. 2021. Tooth replacement in Manidens condorensis : baseline study to address the replacement pattern in dentitions of early ornithischians. Special Papers in Palaeontology 7: 1167–1193.
RAUHUT, O. W., CARBALLIDO, J. L., POL, D. 2020. First osteological record of a stegosaur (Dinosauria, Ornithischia) from the Upper Jurassic of South America. Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology40:
FABBRI, M., TSCHOPP, E., MCPHEE, B., NESBITT, S., POL, D., LANGER, M. 2020. Sauropodomorpha F. R. von Huene 1932, converted clade name. in: Phylonyms: a Companion to the PhyloCode. De Queiroz, K., Cantino, P. D., Gauthier, J. A. (Eds.). CRC Press. 1225–1234.

Diego Pol

Principal Researcher

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