A new small-bodied azhdarchoid pterosaur from the lower cretaceous of England and its implications for pterosaur anatomy, diversity and phylogeny.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Pterosaurs have been known from the Cretaceous sediments of the Isle of Wight (southern England, United Kingdom) since 1870. We describe the three-dimensional pelvic girdle and associated vertebrae of a small near-adult pterodactyloid from the Atherfield Clay Formation (lower Aptian, Lower Cretaceous). Despite acknowledged variation in the pterosaur pelvis, previous studies have not adequately sampled or incorporated pelvic characters into phylogenetic analyses.

Methodology/principal findings

The new specimen represents the new taxon Vectidraco daisymorrisae gen. et sp. nov., diagnosed by the presence of a concavity posterodorsal to the acetabulum and the form of its postacetabular process on the ilium. Several characters suggest that Vectidraco belongs to Azhdarc

SUBMITTER: Naish D 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3601094 | biostudies-literature | 2013

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature