| Prosantosaurus | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Holotype specimen (PIMUZ A/III 1274) | |
Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Reptilia |
| Superorder: | †Sauropterygia |
| Suborder: | †Pachypleurosauria |
| Genus: | †Prosantosaurus Kleinet al., 2022 |
| Species: | †P. scheffoldi |
| Binomial name | |
| †Prosantosaurus scheffoldi Kleinet al., 2022 | |
Prosantosaurus is amonotypicgenus ofpachypleurosauriansauropterygian containing the single speciesProsantosaurus scheffoldi discovered inCanton Grison of Switzerland. The genus is named after the Prosanto Formation near theDucan mountains, where the skeletons were found, and the species for Beat Scheffold, a scientific illustrator fromZurich who contributed prominently to the research of theTriassic marine reptiles.[1]
Six skeletons of the species have been discovered withinlime andmarlstone sediments of the Upper Prosanto Formation in the Ducanfurgga southeast ofDavos, Canton Grisons,[1] at about 2700 m above sea level.[2] They have been dated to the very earlyLadinian of theTriassic period.[1] Today, the Ducan mountains are located about 100 km (62 mi) northeast of MountSan Giorgio, aUNESCO world heritage site where other pachypleurosauria were found.[1] In the past, the two locations have been up to 200 km (120 mi) apart from each other.[1] The skeletons are accessible in thepalaeontological institute of theUniversity of Zurich.[1]
Prosantosaurus scheffoldi were 50 cm (20 in) long lizard-likevertebrates inhabiting the coastal areas of theTethys Ocean in theMesozoic era.[3] The Tethys Ocean covered large parts of the present-day Switzerland.[2] Their teeth are less pointed and also broader at their basis from comparable pachypleurosaurs.[1] If its teeth broke off, they regrew.[2] The regrowing teeth were observed for the first time on a European pachypleurosaurus, the other discovery having occurred on a pachypleuosaurus in China.[2]Prosantosaurus werecarnivores and it is assumed they fed on small fishes andcrustaceans which it swallowed whole after hunting them down.[2] Other bones that differ from other known pachypleurosaurus are those at thecalvaria and therostrum.[3] Research comparing the new species to other European pachypleurosaurs such asAnarosaurus orNeusticosaurus has been conducted by a team of palaeontologists at the University of Zurich.[1]
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