Cardiocorax

Name: Cardiocorax ‭(‬Heart coracoid‭)‬.
Phonetic: Kar-de-o-kor-ax.
Named By: R.‭ ‬Araújo,‭ ‬M.‭ ‬J.‭ ‬Polcyn,‭ ‬A.‭ ‬S.‭ ‬Schulp,‭ ‬O.‭ ‬Mateus,‭ ‬L.‭ ‬L.‭ ‬Jacobs,‭ ‬A.‭ ‬O.‭ ‬Olímpio Gonçalves‭ & ‬M.-L.‭ ‬Morais‭ ‬-‭ ‬2015.
Classification: Chordata,‭ ‬Reptilia,‭ ‬Sauropterygia,‭ ‬Plesiosauria,‭ ‬Elasmosauridae.
Species: C.‭ ‬mukulu‭ (‬type‭)‬.
Diet: Piscivore‭?
Size: Uncertain due to lack of remains.
Known locations: Angola‭ ‬-‭ ‬Mocuio Formation.
Time period: Maastrichtian of the Cretaceous.
Fossil representation: Partial remains of two individuals,‭ ‬mostly of the pelvic girdle,‭ ‬limbs and some vertebrae.

       Cardiocorax is a genus of elasmosaurid plesiosaur that lived during the latest stage of the Cretaceous.‭ ‬The fenestra‭ (‬opening‭) ‬between the coracoid bones is heart-shaped,‭ ‬and is the inspiration for the name which means‭ ‘‬heart coracoid‭’‬.

Further reading
-‭ ‬A new elasmosaurid from the early Maastrichtian of Angola and the implications of girdle morphology on swimming style in plesiosaurs.‭ ‬-‭ ‬Netherlands Journal of Geosciences‭ ‬-‭ ‬Geologie en Mijnbouw‭ ‬94‭(‬1‭)‬:109-120.‭ ‬-‭ ‬R.‭ ‬Araújo,‭ ‬M.‭ ‬J.‭ ‬Polcyn,‭ ‬A.‭ ‬S.‭ ‬Schulp,‭ ‬O.‭ ‬Mateus,‭ ‬L.‭ ‬L.‭ ‬Jacobs,‭ ‬A.‭ ‬O.‭ ‬Olímpio Gonçalves‭ & ‬M.-L.‭ ‬Morais‭ ‬-‭ ‬2015.
- The cranial anatomy and relationships of Cardiocorax mukulu (Plesiosauria: Elasmosauridae) from Bentiaba, Angola. - PLOS ONE. 16 (8): e0255773. - Miguel P. Marx, Octávio Mateus, Michael J. Polcyn, Anne S. Schulp, A. Olímpio Gonçalves & Louis L. Jacobs - 2021.



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