Liaoxipterus

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Liaoxipterus
Temporal range:
Ma
↓
Holotype mandible
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Order: †Pterosauria
Suborder: †Pterodactyloidea
Family: †Istiodactylidae
Genus: †Liaoxipterus
Dong & Lü, 2005
Species:
†L. brachyognathus
Binomial name
†Liaoxipterus brachyognathus
Dong & Lü, 2005

Liaoxipterus is a

Lower Cretaceous Jiufotang Formation of Chaoyang, Liaoning, China. The type species is Liaoxipterus brachyognathus. The genus name is derived from the discovery locality Liaoxi and a Latinised Greek pteron, "wing". The specific name
is derived from Greek brachys, "short" and gnathos, "jaw".

Description

Graphic model of the tongue of Liaoxipterus (bottom) in comparison with that of Haopterus (top)

The genus is based on

hyoid is present.[1]

The jaw of Liaoxipterus had a rounded top filled with small, peg-like teeth. The shape of the teeth, and the anatomy of the hyoid (a bone that anchors the tongue muscles), suggest that it was an insect eater, and may even have had the capability to protrude its tongue in a manner similar to chameleons in order to catch insects.[2]

Classification

Liaoxipterus was originally classified by

junior synonym of Liaoxipterus.[4] However, a 2012 analysis by Mark Witton found that these two istiodactylids were not identical and, more importantly, did not group together in a phylogenetic tree. Witton also noted that they did not actually group together in Lü's study either.[5]

The

taxa (the first three species listed are outgroup or reference taxa):[5]

Pterodactylus antiquus

Pteranodon longiceps

Coloborhynchus spielbergi

Hongshanopterus lacustris

Haopterus gracilis

Istiodactylidae

Nurhachius ignaciobritoi

Longchengpterus zhaoi

Istiodactylus latidens

Istiodactylus sinensis

Liaoxipterus brachyognathus

The cladogram below is a topology recovered by Kellner et al. (2019). In the analyses, they recovered Liaoxipterus as the sister taxon of

Istiodactyliformes.[6]

Istiodactyliformes

See also

References

  1. ^ Dong, Z., and Lü, J. (2005). A New Ctenochasmatid Pterosaur from the Early Cretaceous of Liaoning Province. Acta Geologica Sinica 79(2):164-167.
  2. doi:10.3975/cagsb.2015.03.13
    .
  3. doi:10.11646/zootaxa.1813.1.1
    .
  4. ^ Lü, J., Xu, L. and Ji, Q. (2008), "Restudy of Liaoxipterus (Istiodactylidae: Pterosauria), with comments on the Chinese istiodactylid pterosaurs", In: Hone, D. W. E. and Buffetaut, E. (eds), Flugsaurier: pterosaur papers in honour of Peter Wellnhofer, Zitteliana B28: 229–241
  5. ^
    PMID 22470442
    .
  6. PMID 31784545
    .

External links
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