Skybalonyx

Sky-bah-lon-iks.
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Benjamin Gutierrez

Vertebrate Paleontologist

Benjamin Gutierrez is a leading expert on dinosaurs, particularly the mighty theropods. His fieldwork in South America has uncovered new species and provided insights into dinosaur social structures.

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Name

Skybalonyx ‭(‬dung claw‭).

Phonetic

Sky-bah-lon-iks.

Named By

X.‭ ‬A.‭ ‬Jenkins,‭ ‬A.‭ ‬C.‭ ‬Pritchard,‭ ‬A.‭ ‬D.‭ ‬Marsh,‭ ‬B.‭ ‬T.‭ ‬Kligman,‭ ‬C.‭ ‬A.‭ ‬Sidor‭ & ‬K.‭ ‬E.‭ ‬Reed‭ ‬-‭ ‬2020.

Classification

Chordata,‭ ‬Reptilia,‭ ‬Drepanosauromorpha,‭ ‬Elyurosauria,‭ ‬Drepanosauridae.

Diet

Insectivore‭?

Species

S.‭ ‬skapter‭

Size

Unavailable.

Known locations

USA,‭ ‬Arizona‭ ‬-‭ ‬Chinle Formation.

Time Period

Late Triassic.

Fossil representation

Partial remains.

In Depth

       Skybalonyx is a genus of drepanosaur that lived in North America during the late Triassic.‭ ‬Drepanosaurs are sometimes referred to as‭ ‘‬monkey lizards‭’ ‬for their commonly perceived lifestyle of climbing amongst trees with their enlarged ungual claws gripping branches.‭ ‬However the describers of Skybalonyx have a different interpretation for‭ ‬this genus,‭ ‬instead suggesting that the ungual claw of Skybalonyx is actually more suited for digging.

Further Reading

-‭ ‬Using manual ungual morphology to predict substrate use in the Drepanosauromorpha and the description of a new species.‭ ‬-‭ ‬Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology.‭ ‬Online edition.‭ ‬-‭ ‬X.‭ ‬A.‭ ‬Jenkins,‭ ‬A.‭ ‬C.‭ ‬Pritchard,‭ ‬A.‭ ‬D.‭ ‬Marsh,‭ ‬B.‭ ‬T.‭ ‬Kligman,‭ ‬C.‭ ‬A.‭ ‬Sidor‭ & ‬K.‭ ‬E.‭ ‬Reed‭ ‬-‭ ‬2020.

SPECIES SPOTLIGHT