Tendaguripterus
Encyclopedia
Tendaguripterus was a genus
of dsungaripteroid
pterodactyloid pterosaur
from the Kimmeridgian
-Tithonian
-age Upper Jurassic Middle Saurian Beds of Tendaguru, Mtwara Region
, Tanzania
.
During the German paleontological expeditions to German East Africa
between 1909 and 1913, some pterosaur fossil material was collected that was recognised as such by Hans Reck in 1931. In 1999 David Unwin and Wolf-Dieter Heinrich named a new genus for it. The type species
is Tendaguripterus recki. The genus name is derived from Tendaguru and a Latinised Greek pteron, "wing". The specific name honours Reck.
The genus is based on holotype
MB.R.1290, a partial mandible
with teeth (the symphyseal region
, where the two lower jaws meet and fuse into one element). The top of the back of the symphysis is very concave. The teeth in the posterior
section of the jaw fragment point strongly backwards. They are also the longest. The teeth are set relatively far apart in alveoli with a slightly thickened ridge. Overall, this would have been a small pterosaur; the skull length is estimated at twenty centimeters (7.9 inches), and the wingspan
at around 100 cm (39.4 in). This specimen is the first report of pterosaur cranial material from Tendaguru. First described as a member of the Germanodactylidae
, it was later regarded as a more general dsungaripteroid (of uncertain affinities), meaning it may have fed on crab
s and other shellfish
. This was mainly motivated by the somewhat raised margins of the tooth sockets. In 2007 Alexander Kellner
stated that the resemblance to either Germanodactylus
or Dsungaripterus
was superficial and that it was not even certain it was a member of the Pterodactyloidea
instead of a more basal pterosaur. He accordingly referred it to a newly named but undefined clade
, the Tendaguripteridae, of which it is the only member.
Genus
In biology, a genus is a low-level taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms, which is an example of definition by genus and differentia...
of dsungaripteroid
Dsungaripteroidea
Dsungaripteroidea is a group of pterosaurs within the suborder Pterodactyloidea.-Classification:Listing of families and genera after Unwin 2006 unless otherwise noted.* Superfamily Dsungaripteroidea** Herbstosaurus** Kepodactylus...
pterodactyloid pterosaur
Pterosaur
Pterosaurs were flying reptiles of the clade or order Pterosauria. They existed from the late Triassic to the end of the Cretaceous Period . Pterosaurs are the earliest vertebrates known to have evolved powered flight...
from the Kimmeridgian
Kimmeridgian
In the geologic timescale, the Kimmeridgian is an age or stage in the Late or Upper Jurassic epoch or series. It spans the time between 155.7 ± 4 Ma and 150.8 ± 4 Ma . The Kimmeridgian follows the Oxfordian and precedes the Tithonian....
-Tithonian
Tithonian
In the geologic timescale the Tithonian is the latest age of the Late Jurassic epoch or the uppermost stage of the Upper Jurassic series. It spans the time between 150.8 ± 4 Ma and 145.5 ± 4 Ma...
-age Upper Jurassic Middle Saurian Beds of Tendaguru, Mtwara Region
Mtwara Region
Mtwara is a southern region of Tanzania which has been underdeveloped for a long time: development is constrained by the lack of highway and energy infrastructures. The Dar es Salaam-Kibiti-Lindi-Mtwara road has been improved by the completion of the Mkapa bridge over the Rufiji River...
, Tanzania
Tanzania
The United Republic of Tanzania is a country in East Africa bordered by Kenya and Uganda to the north, Rwanda, Burundi, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo to the west, and Zambia, Malawi, and Mozambique to the south. The country's eastern borders lie on the Indian Ocean.Tanzania is a state...
.
During the German paleontological expeditions to German East Africa
German East Africa
German East Africa was a German colony in East Africa, which included what are now :Burundi, :Rwanda and Tanganyika . Its area was , nearly three times the size of Germany today....
between 1909 and 1913, some pterosaur fossil material was collected that was recognised as such by Hans Reck in 1931. In 1999 David Unwin and Wolf-Dieter Heinrich named a new genus for it. The type species
Type species
In biological nomenclature, a type species is both a concept and a practical system which is used in the classification and nomenclature of animals and plants. The value of a "type species" lies in the fact that it makes clear what is meant by a particular genus name. A type species is the species...
is Tendaguripterus recki. The genus name is derived from Tendaguru and a Latinised Greek pteron, "wing". The specific name honours Reck.
The genus is based on holotype
Holotype
A holotype is a single physical example of an organism, known to have been used when the species was formally described. It is either the single such physical example or one of several such, but explicitly designated as the holotype...
MB.R.1290, a partial mandible
Mandible
The mandible pronunciation or inferior maxillary bone forms the lower jaw and holds the lower teeth in place...
with teeth (the symphyseal region
Symphysis menti
The external surface of the mandible is marked in the median line by a faint ridge, indicating the symphysis menti, mandibular symphysis, or line of junction of the two pieces of which the bone is composed at an early period of life....
, where the two lower jaws meet and fuse into one element). The top of the back of the symphysis is very concave. The teeth in the posterior
Anatomical terms of location
Standard anatomical terms of location are designations employed in science that deal with the anatomy of animals to avoid ambiguities that might otherwise arise. They are not language-specific, and thus require no translation...
section of the jaw fragment point strongly backwards. They are also the longest. The teeth are set relatively far apart in alveoli with a slightly thickened ridge. Overall, this would have been a small pterosaur; the skull length is estimated at twenty centimeters (7.9 inches), and the wingspan
Wingspan
The wingspan of an airplane or a bird, is the distance from one wingtip to the other wingtip. For example, the Boeing 777 has a wingspan of about ; and a Wandering Albatross caught in 1965 had a wingspan of , the official record for a living bird.The term wingspan, more technically extent, is...
at around 100 cm (39.4 in). This specimen is the first report of pterosaur cranial material from Tendaguru. First described as a member of the Germanodactylidae
Germanodactylidae
Germanodactylidae is a group of pterosaurs within the suborder Pterodactyloidea. While its exact placement and content are controversial, recent studies have suggested it contains three genera: Germanodactylus, Normannognathus and Tendaguripterus...
, it was later regarded as a more general dsungaripteroid (of uncertain affinities), meaning it may have fed on crab
Crab
True crabs are decapod crustaceans of the infraorder Brachyura, which typically have a very short projecting "tail" , or where the reduced abdomen is entirely hidden under the thorax...
s and other shellfish
Shellfish
Shellfish is a culinary and fisheries term for exoskeleton-bearing aquatic invertebrates used as food, including various species of molluscs, crustaceans, and echinoderms. Although most kinds of shellfish are harvested from saltwater environments, some kinds are found only in freshwater...
. This was mainly motivated by the somewhat raised margins of the tooth sockets. In 2007 Alexander Kellner
Alexander Kellner
Alexander Wilhelm Armin Kellner is a Liechtensteinian/Brazilian paleontologist, a leading expert in the field of the study of pterosaurs....
stated that the resemblance to either Germanodactylus
Germanodactylus
Germanodactylus is a genus of dsungaripteroid pterodactyloid pterosaur from Late Jurassic-age rocks of Germany, including the Solnhofen limestone. Its specimens were long thought to pertain to Pterodactylus. Its head crest is a distinctive feature.-Description:Germanodactylus is described as...
or Dsungaripterus
Dsungaripterus
Dsungaripterus was a genus of pterosaur, with an average wingspan of . It lived during the Early Cretaceous, in China, where the first fossil was found in the Junggar Basin.-Discovery and species:...
was superficial and that it was not even certain it was a member of the Pterodactyloidea
Pterodactyloidea
Pterodactyloidea forms one of the two suborders of pterosaurs , and contains the most derived members of this group of flying reptiles...
instead of a more basal pterosaur. He accordingly referred it to a newly named but undefined clade
Clade
A clade is a group consisting of a species and all its descendants. In the terms of biological systematics, a clade is a single "branch" on the "tree of life". The idea that such a "natural group" of organisms should be grouped together and given a taxonomic name is central to biological...
, the Tendaguripteridae, of which it is the only member.
External links
- Tendaguripterus in The Pterosauria