The taxonomy and systematics ofParapsicephalus purdoni(Reptilia: Pterosauria) from the Lower Jurassic Whitby Mudstone Formation, Whitby, U.K

2017/02/13 by Michael O’Sullivan, David M. Martill · 3 citations
Earth and Planetary Sciences · Environmental Science · #Paleontology and Evolutionary Biology #Ichthyology and Marine Biology #Evolution and Paleontology Studies

paper · doi:10.1080/08912963.2017.1281919

openalex publication_date 2017/02/13 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2025/11/06

Abstract

The Lower Jurassic (Toarcian) pterosaur Parapsicephalus purdoni Newton, 1888 from the Whitby Mudstone Formation of North Yorkshire is known from a three-dimensionally preserved skull with a three-dimensional endocast of the brain. Since Newton’s original description, its taxonomic status has been contentious. Several cladistic studies have placed it within either Dimorphodontidae or Rhamphorhynchidae. Some investigators have suggested that it is a junior synonym of the Toarcian pterosaur Dorygnathus from the Posidonia Shale of south-western Germany. The holotype skull (GSM 3166) is redescribed and its taxonomic status re-evaluated. Several apomorphies suggest it belongs in the Rhamphorhynchidae while autapomorphies of the palate and jugal distinguish Parapsicephalus from Dorygnathus, supporting the continued separation of the two genera.

Citations

• Neuroanatomy of flying reptiles and implications for flight, posture and behaviour
• The Earliest Pterodactyloid and the Origin of the Group

Cited by

• Caelestiventus hanseni gen. et sp. nov. extends the desert-dwelling pterosaur record back 65 million years
• Morphology and taxonomy of Quetzalcoatlus Lawson 1975 (Pterodactyloidea: Azhdarchoidea)
• Whitby Mudstone [wikipedia]