A statistical study ofRhamphorhynchusfrom the Solnhofen Limestone of Germany: Year-classes of a single large species

1995/05/01 by S. Christopher Bennett · 8 citations
Earth and Planetary Sciences · Environmental Science · #Paleontology and Evolutionary Biology #Evolution and Paleontology Studies #Ichthyology and Marine Biology

paper · doi:10.1017/s0022336000034946

openalex publication_date 1995/05/01 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/05/21

Abstract

A statistical and morphological study of the pterosaur Rhamphorhynchus from the Solnhofen Limestone of Germany shows that specimens fall into discrete size-classes that are year-classes resulting from seasonal mortality or preservation of specimens. Taxonomic characters used in the past to separate species of Rhamphorhynchus are all related to size and ontogeny, and all specimens belong to a single species, R. muensteri. Thus, the collections of Rhamphorhynchus provide an unequaled record of the growth and development of a Jurassic rhamphorhynchoid pterosaur. Rhamphorhynchus did not have rapid determinate growth; the growth rate was comparable to that of extant crocodilians, and growth continued over the course of at least three years after individuals began to fly.

Citations

• Scientific results of an inquiry into the ecology and economic status of the Nile Crocodile ( Crocodilus niloticus ) in Uganda and Northern Rhodesia
• Tiny dinosaurs: are they fully grown?
• Sexual dimorphism ofPteranodonand other pterosaurs, with comments on cranial crests

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• A long-billed, possible probe-feeding pterosaur (Pterodactyloidea: ?Azhdarchoidea) from the mid-Cretaceous of Morocco, North Africa
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• Pterosaur [wikipedia]