Biology:Contectopalatus

From HandWiki
Short description: Extinct species of reptile

Contectopalatus
Temporal range: Mid Triassic, 247.2–235.0 Ma[1]
Contectopalatus atavus - parte del cranio di fronte all'orbita.jpg
Fossil
Scientific classification edit
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Reptilia
Order: Ichthyosauria
Family: Mixosauridae
Genus: Contectopalatus
Maisch & Matzke, 1998
Species:
C. atavus
Binomial name
Contectopalatus atavus
Quenstedt, 1851 (originally Ichthyosaurus)
Restoration

Contectopalatus was a primitive ichthyosaur, an extinct fish-like marine reptile from the Middle Triassic of Germany and China .[2] It was originally named Ichthyosaurus atavus by Quenstedt in 1852,[3]:67 and later reassigned to Mixosaurus. It was recognised as a separate genus by Maisch and Matzke in 1998, though other researchers have classified it as a species of Phalarodon instead.[2][4][5]

In 2000, Maisch and Matzke noted that Contectopalatus was a large mixosaurid, calculating a skull length of 40 centimetres (1 ft 4 in). Based on jaw fragments, they estimated another specimen they assigned to the species to have been even larger, with a skull length of 70–80 centimetres (2.3–2.6 ft) and a total length of roughly 4.5–5 metres (15–16 ft).[6][7] McGowan and Motani (2003), however, considered these estimates to be based on material to fragmentary for confident estimation and taxonomic assignment, instead considering the species to be a small mixosaurid, like the roughly 1 metre (3.3 ft) long Mixosaurus cornalianus.[3]:67

See also

References

  1. "†Contectopalatus Maisch and Matzke 1998 (ichthyosaur)". Paleobiology Database. Fossilworks. http://www.fossilworks.org/cgi-bin/bridge.pl?a=taxonInfo&taxon_no=36577. 
  2. 2.0 2.1 Liu, J.; Motani, R.; Jiang, D. Y.; Hu, S. X.; Aitchison, J. C.; Rieppel, O.; Benton, M. J.; Zhang, Q. Y. et al. (2013). "The first specimen of the Middle Triassic Phalarodon atavus (Ichthyosauria: Mixosauridae) from South China, showing postcranial anatomy and peri-Tethyan distribution". Palaeontology 56 (4): 849–866. doi:10.1111/pala.12021. Bibcode2013Palgy..56..849L. 
  3. 3.0 3.1 McGowan, C.; Motani, R. (2003). Handbook of Paleoherpetology Part 8: Ichthyopterygia. Munich: Verlag Dr. Friedrich Pfeil. ISBN 3899370074. http://beeld.teylersmuseum.nl/Digital_Library/Emags/Saur_028/page_1.html. 
  4. Jiang, D.Y.; Schmitz, L.; Hao, W.C.; Sun, Y.L. (2006). "A new mixosaurid Ichthyosaur from the Middle Triassic of China". Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology 26 (1): 60–69. doi:10.1671/0272-4634(2006)26[60:ANMIFT2.0.CO;2]. http://mygeologypage.ucdavis.edu/motani/pdf/JiangEA2005.pdf. Retrieved 2023-06-05. 
  5. Økland, I.H.; Delsett, L.L.; Roberts, A.J.; Hurum, J.H. (2018). "A Phalarodon fraasi (Ichthyosauria: Mixosauridae) from the Middle Triassic of Svalbard". Norwegian Journal of Geology 98 (2): 267–288. doi:10.17850/njg98-2-06. 
  6. Maisch, M.W.; Matzke, A.T. (2000). "The mixosaurid ichthyosaur Contectopalatus from the Middle Triassic of the German Basin". Lethaia 33 (2): 71–74. doi:10.1080/00241160050150186. Bibcode2000Letha..33...71M. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/230128086. 
  7. Maisch, M.W.; Matzke, A.T. (2001). "The cranial osteology of the Middle Triassic ichthyosaur Contectopalatus from Germany". Palaeontology 44 (6): 1127–1156. doi:10.1111/1475-4983.00218. Bibcode2001Palgy..44.1127M. 

Wikidata ☰ Q16743635 entry