In Depth
As with a lot of European pterosaurs the genus Altmuehlopterus has a long and convoluted history. The fossil specimen was originally named under Ornithocephalus, but this would later be regarded as an obsolete name for Pterodactylus. It was also named as belonging to Diopecephalus, and finally ending up as a second species of Germanodactylus. In the early twenty-first century the fossil was thought to represent a distinct genus and bore the unofficial name Daitingopterus. Germanodactylus rhamphastinus was finally given its own genus in 2017 and given the name Altmuehlopterus.
Altmuehlopterus was a small pterosaur that lived in Europe during the late Jurassic, possibly living around coastline areas.
Further Reading
- The taxonomy and phylogeny of Diopecephalus kochi (Wagner, 1837) and “Germanodactylus rhamphastinus” (Wagner, 1851). - Geological Society, London, Special Publications. 455. - S. U. Vidovic & D. M. Martill - 2017.
