| Klobiodon Temporal range: 166 Ma Middle Jurassic | |
|---|---|
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| Mark Witton's illustration of Klobiodon rochei | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Sauropsida |
| Order: | †Pterosauria |
| Suborder: | † Rhamphorhynchoidea |
| Family: | †Rhamphorhynchidae |
| Genus: | †Klobiodon |
| Type species | |
| †Klobiodon rochei O'Sullivan and Martill, 2018 | |
Klobiodon is an extinct genus of rhamphorhynchid pterosaur from the Middle Jurassic Taynton Limestone Formation of Oxfordshire, England.
Description[]
Klobiodon rochei was estimated to have a 2 meter wingspan, which meant it was fairly large compared to other rhamphorhynchids and pterosaurs during its time.[1]
Discovery and Naming[]
The holotype, NHMUK PV OR 47991, was unearthed from the Taynton Limestone Formation of Oxfordshire in South East England, after which it was donated by Robert Marsham, to what is now know as the Natural History Museum in London.[2] Now that the holotype was a part of the museum's collection, Sir Richard Owen named the creature Pterodactylus raptor, although it was in an unpublished manuscript, therefore it was never used.[2][3]
In 1888, the holotype was officially assigned to the species Rhamphocephalus depressirostris by Richard Lydekker,[4] though the type species R. prestwichi belongs to a thalattosuchian, and is now considered a nomen dubium.[1] In 2018, Michael O'Sullivan and David M. Martill reassigned R. depressirostris to Dolicorhamphus and NHMUK PV OR 47991 was given its own seperate genus, Klobiodon rochei.[1]
Etymology[]
The generic name of Klobiodon means "little cage tooth". The name is derived from the Greek words klobion("little cage") and odon("tooth"). The specific name of the type species K. rochei honors comic book artist Nick Roche for his paleontologically accurate illustrations of dinosaurs in the late 2000s.[1]
Classification[]
In 2018, K. rochei was classified as a rhamphorhynchid, though the authors did suggest a possible placement in either Rhamphorhynchinae or Scaphognathinae.[1] In a 2021 paper on the phylogenetic systematics of Quetzalcoatlus by Brian Andres, Klobiodon was placed as a sister taxon to Dolicorhamphus and a basal member of the family.[5]
Paleoecology[]
The first dinosaur ever described, Megalosaurus, was also found in the Taynton Limestone Formation.
The Klobiodon holotype hails from the Taynton Limestone, which dates to the Bathonian of the Middle Jurassic. The pterosaur coexisted with the large carnivorous theropod Megalosaurus, as well as several mammaliamorph species including Amphitherium.[6]
References[]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 https://www.app.pan.pl/archive/published/app63/app004902018.pdf
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Waterhouse, G. 1878. Department of Geology. Acquisitions. I. By Donation A. Vertebrata. (3.) Reptilia. In: C.T. Newton (ed.), Account of the Income and Expenditure of the British Museum (Special Trust Funds), for the Financial Year Ended the 31st Day of March 1878: and, Return of the Number of Persons Admitted to Visit the Museum in Each Year From 1872 to 1877, Both Years Inclusive; Together With a Statement of the Progress Made in the Arrangement of the Collections; and an Account of Objects Added to Them in the Year 1877. p. 593–636 (1–44) Great Britain. Parliament. House of Commons. 1878. Accounts and Papers: 1878. Vol. LX. Volume 15. 626 pp. The Queen’s Printer, London.
- ↑ https://ia800407.us.archive.org/0/items/biostor-262944/biostor-262944.pdf
- ↑ Lydekker, R. 1888. Catalogue of the fossil reptilia and amphibia in the British Museum (Natural History) Part I: Containing the Orders Ornithosauria, Crocodilia, Dinosauria, Squamata, Rhynchocephalia, and Proterosauria. 339 pp. Order of the Trustees, London.
- ↑ https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/02724634.2020.1801703
- ↑ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Taynton_Limestone_Formation