Data matrix for phylogenetic analysis of fossil insectivorans in: Cranial and postcranial morphology of the insectivoran-grade mammals Hsiangolestes and Naranius (Mammalia, Eutheria) with analyses of their phylogenetic relationships

Early Cenozoic “insectivorans” possess some of the most primitive
morphologies among eutherian mammals. Studies of these archaic mammals
offer insights into the early diversifications of basal eutherians.
Despite such importance, early fossil “insectivorans” from Asia are poorly
known due to a scarcity of fossil remains, which often consist only of
fragmentary jaws and teeth. Discoveries of remarkably well-preserved
fossil “insectivorans”, including complete skulls and articulated
postcranial skeletons, from the early Eocene Hengyang Basin in
south-central Hunan Province, China, offer a rare opportunity to
thoroughly study two taxa belonging to different families. Fine-grained
red beds from Hengyang Basin preserve extraordinary fossils with
morphological structures rarely seen elsewhere. Thin sections of a skull
of Hsiangolestes youngi Zheng and Huang, 1984, for example, reveal the
extremely delicate nasal and maxillary turbinates, which, as far as we are
aware, are the first known from fossils of this age. We thus take this
opportunity to document in detail the cranial and dental morphology, as
well as postcranial skeletons, of the Hengyang “insectivorans.” In this
monograph, we describe several complete skulls and serial sections of a
skull, as well as many partial skulls, mandibles, and postcranial
skeletons of Hsiangolestes youngi, an Asian early Eocene
insectivoran-grade mammal. We also report a new species of Naranius
Russell and Dashzeveg 1986—N. hengdongensis—an Asian early Eocene
cimolestid and describe its well-preserved skulls and mandibles.
Hsiangolestes is endemic to Asia. It is currently known only from the
earliest Eocene Lingcha Formation, Hengyang Basin, Hunan Province, China.
Naranius closely resembles Cimolestes Marsh, 1889, the type genus of the
family Cimolestidae. It is mainly distributed in Asia and known from the
earliest Eocene deposits in the Bumban Member of the Naran Bulak
Formation, Nemegt Basin, of Mongolia, and the Lingcha Formation, Hengyang
Basin, Hunan Province, China. The only record of Naranius reported outside
of Asia is N. americanus from the early Wasatchian Red Hot Local Fauna,
Mississippi, United States. Using PAUP and TNT search algorithms, we place
these Hengyang taxa within phylogenetic context of other fossil
“insectivorans” from the Mesozoic and early Cenozoic of Asia together with
some well-known Holarctic taxa. A phylogenetic analysis of 290 cranial and
dental characters from 36 fossil and modern insectivoran-grade taxa is
presented, focusing on new materials of Hsiangolestes youngi and Naranius
hengdongensis. Based on the results of our phylogenetic analyses, we
propose that (1) Hsiangolestes, Prosarcodon, Sarcodon, and Sinosinopa,
form a monophyletic group, for which we propose the family name
Sarcodontidae; (2) the family Cimolestidae should be restricted to
Naranius and Cimolestes, which are sister taxa; (3) the systematic
position of Naranius americanus is uncertain; and (4) the family
Micropternodontidae should be restricted to Micropternodus and its allies
in North America.