| Muzquizopteryx | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Fossil skeleton | |
Scientific classification | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Order: | †Pterosauria |
| Suborder: | †Pterodactyloidea |
| Clade: | †Aponyctosauria |
| Family: | †Nyctosauridae |
| Genus: | †Muzquizopteryx Freyet al., 2006 |
| Type species | |
| †Muzquizopteryx coahuilensis Freyet al., 2006 | |
Muzquizopteryx is agenus ofnyctosauridpterodactyloidpterosaur from theLate Cretaceous period (earlyConiacian stage) of what is nowCoahuila,Mexico.
In the 1990s, José Martínez Vásquez, a worker at the chalk quarry ofEl Rosario, uncovered a skeleton of a pterosaur. This he handed to a quarry official, who had it bricked in on the face of an office wall as a decorative piece. After its unique scientific value had been recognized in 2002, the specimen was acquired by theUniversidad Nacional Autónoma de México. Subsequently, it was studied by a combined team of theUniversity of Karlsruhe and theDesert Museum and scientifically reported in 2004.[1]
In 2006, thetype speciesMuzquizopteryx coahuilensis was named and described byEberhard Frey,Marie-Céline Buchy,Wolfgang Stinnesbeck,Arturo González-González andAlfredo di Stefano. The generic name is derived from theMúzquiz district and a Greek πτέρυξ,pteryx, "wing". Thespecific name is derived from the state of Coahuila.[2]
Muzquizopteryx is based onholotypeUNAM IGM 8621, found in the El Rosario layers, earlyConiacian-aged rocks.[3] It consists of a nearly complete, articulated skeleton that includes soft tissue remains, among them long fossilised tendons along both sides of both lower arms. The specimen represents an adult individual.[2]
In 2012, a second specimen was reported, MUDE CPC-494, again uncovered by a quarry worker, perhaps at the same site, and sold to a private collector. It was later acquired by theMuseo del Desierto Saltillo. It consists of the right upper wing of a subadult individual, with about 81% of the length of the holotype. As its provenance probably consists of slightly older layers from the lateTuronian and the remains are limited, it was referred to as cf.Muzquizopteryx sp.[4]
Muzquizopteryx was relatively small for a pterodactyloid pterosaur, with a wingspan of around 2 meters (6.6 ft). It had an elongated head with a convex upper profile, ending at the back of the head in a backward pointing short rounded crest. The jaws were toothless. The arms were very robust with thehumerus featuring a large hatchet-shaped deltopectoral crest, indicating a strong wing musculature. Thepteroid bone was long and pointed towards the neck, supporting a flight membrane.[2]
Muzquizopteryx was by its describers assigned to theNyctosauridae. It would then be the oldest known member of the group and the smallest known; indeed the smallest adult Late Cretaceous pterosaur discovered until 2006.[2] AsNyctosaurus is sometimes included with thePteranodontidae,Muzquizopteryx too might be considered a member of that group under some classifications.
Below is acladogram showing the results of aphylogenetic analysis first presented by Andres and colleagues in 2014, and updated with additional data by Longrich and colleagues in 2018. They foundMuzquizopteryx within the family Nyctosauridae.[5][6]
