| Elanodactylus | |
|---|---|
Scientific classification | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Order: | †Pterosauria |
| Suborder: | †Pterodactyloidea |
| Family: | †Ctenochasmatidae |
| Genus: | †Elanodactylus Andres & Ji, 2008 |
| Species: | †E. prolatus |
| Binomial name | |
| †Elanodactylus prolatus Andres & Ji, 2008 | |
Elanodactylus (meaning "Kite finger") is agenus ofctenochasmatidpterodactyloidpterosaur from theEarly Cretaceous period (earlyAptian stage) of what is now theYixian Formation ofLiaoning,China.
The genus was named in 2008 by Brian Andres and Ji Qiang. Thetype species isElanodactylus prolatus. Thegeneric name is derived from the Kite genusElanus, in reference to the long wings, and Greekdaktylos, "finger", referring to the wing finger of pterosaurs. Thespecific name means "elongated" inLatin, in reference to the elongated middle cervical vertebrae.
It is known from a partialpostcranial skeleton,holotypeNGMC 99-07-1, preserving the wings, sternum, shoulder girdle, ribs, cervical and dorsal vertebrae. It represents an adult individual. In 2010, a second adult was described, specimen LPM-R00078, also a skeleton lacking the skull.[1]
The wingspan of the holotype was about 2.5 m (8.2 ft), and it is estimated to have weighed 10 kg (22 lb).[2][3]
The first phalanx of the wing finger is shorter than both the second and third phalanges, anautapomorphy.
The neckvertebrae possessexapophyses, a similarity with those ofazhdarchids, long-necked giant pterosaurs most common in theLate Cretaceous. However, other skeletal material fromElanodactylus is otherwise distinct from the skeletons of azhdarchids. Andres and Ji performed aphylogenetic analysis and found thatElanodactylus was a ctenochasmatid. They postulated that ctenochasmatids and azhdarchidsconvergently evolved similar neck vertebrae.[2]
Below is a cladogram following aphylogenetic analysis published by paleontologists Longrich, Martill, and Andres in 2018. They recoveredElanodactylus within the familyCtenochasmatidae.[4]
