Name:
Domeykodactylus
(Domeyko finger).
Phonetic: Do-mey-ko-dak-ty-lus.
Named By: David Martill, Eberhard Frey, Guillermo
Chong Diaz & Charles Michael Bell - 2000.
Classification: Chordata, Reptilia, Pterosauria,
Pterodactyloidea, Dsungaripteridae.
Species: D. ceciliae (type).
Type: Thought to eat shellfish.
Size: Skull about 30 centimetres long. Wingspan
esitmated to be about 1 meter long.
Known locations: Chile, Antofagasta.
Time period: Early Cretaceous.
Fossil representation: Single specimen.
When
discovered, Domeykodactylus was mistaken for the
filter feeding
pterosaur Pterodaustro
because the remains of its head crest were
thought to be specialised teeth for straining water. In actuality
Domeykodactylus had teeth in raised sockets, and
although not
preserved, they would probably have been relatively small. This
adaptation has seen Domeykodactylus placed within
the group of
pterosaurs that are noted for potentially having shellfish diets.
The
name Domeykodactylus is derived from Cordillera
Domeyko, a mountain
range of the Andes. 'dactylus' is of course Greek for finger, in
reference to the fact that the outer edge of a pterosaur wing is
supported by an elongated finger. Another way of translating this is
'finger from Cordillera Domeyko'.
Further reading
- Reinterpretation of a Chilean pterosaur and the occurrence of
Dsungeripteridae in South America. - Geological Magazine. 137 (1):
19–25.. - D. M. Martill, E. Frey, G. C. Diaz & C. M. Bell -
2000.