| Torukjara | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Holotype skull | |
Scientific classification | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Order: | †Pterosauria |
| Suborder: | †Pterodactyloidea |
| Family: | †Tapejaridae |
| Subfamily: | †Tapejarinae |
| Tribe: | †Tapejarini |
| Subtribe: | †Caiuajarina |
| Genus: | †Torukjara Pêgas,2024 |
| Species: | †T. bandeirae |
| Binomial name | |
| †Torukjara bandeirae Pêgas, 2024 | |
Torukjara is anextinct genus oftapejarinpterodactyloid pterosaurs from theEarly Cretaceous "Pterosaur Graveyard" (Caiuá Group) of Brazil. The genus contains asingle species,T. bandeirae, known from several specimens. TheTorukjara fossil material was originally assigned toCaiuajara, but several anatomical differences indicate that both similar species coexisted in the ecosystem.
TheTorukjara fossil material was discovered in the Pterosaur Graveyard locality which likely belongs to theRio Paraná Formation (Caiuá Group) ofCruzeiro do Oeste,Paraná State, Brazil. Theholotype specimen (CP.V 8175), discovered in 2014, consists of a partial skeleton including a well-preserved skull.[1] This specimen was first described in 2022 as belonging to the coevalCaiuajara.[2]
In 2024, Rodrigo V. PêgasdescribedTorukjara bandeirae as a new genus and species of tapejarid pterosaurs based on these fossil remains. Thegeneric name,Torukjara, combines a reference to the fictionaltoruk creature of theAvatar media franchise with theTupi word "jara", meaning "lord", a suffix often used for tapejarid genera. Thespecific name,bandeirae, honours Kamila Bandeira, a Brazilian palaeontologist who first studied the possibility that multiple species could be present in the fossil material.[1]
In theirphylogenetic analysis, Pêgas (2024) recoveredTorukjara as atapejarine pterosaur in the family Tapejaridae, as thesister taxon toCaiuajara. The clade containingTorukjara andCaiurajara was named as the newsubtribe Caiuajarina. These results are displayed in thecladogram below:[1]
