Name:
Elanodactylus
(Kite finger).
Phonetic: E-lan-oh-dak-tyl-us.
Named By: Brian Andres & Ji Qiang - 2008.
Classification: Chordata, Reptilia, Pterosauria,
Pterodactyloidea, Ctenochasmatoidea, Ctenochasmatidae.
Species: E. prolatus (type).
Type: Filter feeder.
Size: Estimated 2.5 meter wingspan for holotype
individual.
Known locations: China, Liaoning Province - Yixian
Formation.
Time period: Aptian of the Cretaceous.
Fossil representation: Partial post cranial remains.
The
name Elanodactylus 'kite finger' is actually in
reference to a type of
bird of prey called a kite, the specific genus in relation to the name
being Elanus. This is because like a kite, Elanodactylus
had especially
long wings that would have made it stand out from other pterosaurs.
Although
Elanodactylus has been classed within the
ctenochasmatidae, it displays
elongated neck vertebrae that are more often associated with the
azhdarchid pterosaurs. Many cite this as a case of convergent evolution
in pterosaurs and if Elanodactylus was a filter
feeder like other
ctenochasmatid pterosaurs, then it could have been a very useful
adaptation. Filter feeders have to access potentially dangerous areas
like mud banks in order to feed, and by having a longer neck,
Elanodactylus could search a larger area for food
from a safer and more
stable position.
Further reading
- A new pterosaur from the Liaoning Province of China, the phylogeny of
the Pterodactyloidea, and convergence in their cervical vertebrae. -
Palaeontology 51(2):453-469. - B. Andres & Q. Ji - 2008.
- New material of Elanodactylus prolatus Andres & Ji, 2008
(Pterosauria: Pterodactyloidea) from the Early Cretaceous Yixian
Formation of western Liaoning, China”, Neues Jahrbuch f�r Geologie und
Pal�ontologie, Abhandlungen, 255: 277-286. - Chang-Fu Zhou - 2010.