Mexichelys
Encyclopedia
Mexichelys is an extinct monotypic
genus of sea turtle
which lived in Mexico
during the Cretaceous
. The only species is Mexichelys coahuilaensis. Mexichelys was erected in 2010 as a replacement name for Euclastes
coahuilaensis, a species named in 2009.
Cladogram
based on Lynch and Parham (2003) and Parham and Pyenson (2010):
Monotypic
In biology, a monotypic taxon is a taxonomic group with only one biological type. The term's usage differs slightly between botany and zoology. The term monotypic has a separate use in conservation biology, monotypic habitat, regarding species habitat conversion eliminating biodiversity and...
genus of sea turtle
Sea turtle
Sea turtles are marine reptiles that inhabit all of the world's oceans except the Arctic.-Distribution:...
which lived in Mexico
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
during the Cretaceous
Cretaceous
The Cretaceous , derived from the Latin "creta" , usually abbreviated K for its German translation Kreide , is a geologic period and system from circa to million years ago. In the geologic timescale, the Cretaceous follows the Jurassic period and is followed by the Paleogene period of the...
. The only species is Mexichelys coahuilaensis. Mexichelys was erected in 2010 as a replacement name for Euclastes
Euclastes
Euclastes is an extinct genus of sea turtle. It was first named by Edward Drinker Cope in 1867, and contains three species. One species, E. hutchisoni, was named in 2003 but has since been reassigned to the genus Pacifichelys.-Description:...
coahuilaensis, a species named in 2009.
Cladogram
Cladogram
A cladogram is a diagram used in cladistics which shows ancestral relations between organisms, to represent the evolutionary tree of life. Although traditionally such cladograms were generated largely on the basis of morphological characters, DNA and RNA sequencing data and computational...
based on Lynch and Parham (2003) and Parham and Pyenson (2010):
External links
- Mexichelys in the Paleobiology DatabasePaleobiology Database' is an online resource for information on the distribution and classification of fossil animals, plants, and microorganisms.-History:The Paleobiology Database was founded in 2000. It has been funded by the National Science Foundation and the Australian Research Council...