Hongshanopterus

Name: Hongshanopterus (Hongshan Wing).
Phonetic: Hong-shan-op-teh-rus.
Named By: Wang et al - 2008.
Classification: Chordata, Reptilia, Chordata, Pterodactyloidea, Pterodactyloidea, Ornithocheiroidea, Istiodactylidae.
Species: H. lacustris (type).
Type: Carnivore.
Size: Wingspan roughly estimated to be about 1.8-1.9 meters across.
Known locations: China, Liaoning Province - Jiufotang Formation.
Time period: Aptian of the Cretaceous.
Fossil representation: Skull and cervical vertebra of a sub adult.

       The teeth of Hongshanopterus extend past the first third of the skull. Not only does this give Hongshanopterus more teeth than other istiodactylids, it is taken as a marker for Hongshanopterus being a basal member of the group.

Further reading
- A primitive istiodactylid pterosaur (Pterodactyloidea) from the Jiufotang Formation (Early Cretaceous), northeast China. - Zootaxa 1813:1-18. - X. Wang, D. A. Campos, Z. Zhou and A. W. A. Kellner - 2008.

Random favourites