Microtuban

Microtuban; Temporal range: Ma PreꞒ Ꞓ O S D C P T J K Pg N ↓
	Life restoration
Scientific classification
Domain:	Eukaryota
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Order:	†Pterosauria
Suborder:	†Pterodactyloidea
Clade:	† Azhdarchomorpha
Genus:	†Microtuban; Elgin & Frey, 2011
Species:	†M. altivolans
Binomial name
	†Microtuban altivolans; Elgin & Frey 2011

Microtuban is an

azhdarchoid pterosaur known from the Late Cretaceous of northern Lebanon.^[1]

Discovery

Microtuban is known only from a partially preserved

Hâqel. Regardless, it is only the second pterosaur fossil found in Lebanon and a rare example of a pterosaur from the African continental plate, to which the area in Cretaceous times belonged. In this period the site was located hundreds of miles from the mainland coastline.^[1]

The specimen consists of the last cervical and first dorsal vertebrae, a shoulder girdle, the left wing and fragments of the hindlimbs. It represents an immature individual. Many bones are broken but the whole is still articulated. This was explained as being caused by a collision or a bite by a predator, just before or after death, after which the carcass quickly sank to the sea bottom.[1]

Microtuban was named by Ross A. Elgin and Eberhard Frey in 2011 and the type species is Microtuban altivolans. The generic name is derived from Greek μικρός, mikros, "little", and Arabic ثعبان, tuban, "dragon" or basilisk, also referring to Thuban, the ancient Polar Star in the constellation Draco. The specific name is derived from Latin altus, "high", and volare, "to fly".^[1]

Description

As the specimen is that of a not yet fully grown animal, it is difficult to estimate the adult size. The wingspan of the holotype can be deduced from the length of the wing elements. The upper arm, damaged in the fossil, measured about nine centimetres, the lower about seven. The fourth

metacarpal is 122 millimetres long. The four phalanges of the, fourth, wing-finger measure 135, 114.5, 63.5 and 3.5 millimetres respectively.^[1]

The authors indicated two unique derived traits, or

autapomorphies: the second phalanx of the wing-finger is long, with 85% of the length of the first phalanx; the fourth phalanx is extremely reduced measuring but 1.1% of wing-finger length.^[1]

Possible juvenile traits included the lack of a notarium, being a fusion of the front dorsal vertebrae, and an unfused scapula and coracoid.^[1]