A new specimen of <i>Plesiopterys wildi</i> reveals the diversification of cryptoclidian precursors and possible endemism within European Early Jurassic plesiosaur assemblages
<i>Plesiopterys wildi</i> is an early-diverging plesiosauroid and a sister taxon to <i>Franconiasaurus brevispinus</i> and Cryptoclidia. MH 7 represents a subadult individual, providing an updated character state diagnosis of <i>Plesiopterys wildi</i>, which has hitherto only been known from the osteologically immature holotype SMNS 16812. The presence of multiple regionally distinct plesiosaur genera and species within the European epicontinental marine basins suggests possible paleobiogeographical segregation during the Toarcian.
Authors
- Benjamin P. Kear (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3128-3141)
- Miguel Marx (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3768-8032)
- Sven Sachs (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9104-6749)
- Johan Lindgren (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0116-976X)
- Mats E. Eriksson (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8200-5152)
- Klaus Nilkens
Institutions
- Uppsala University (SE)
- Lund University (SE)
Publication Details
- Journal
- PeerJ
- Published
- 2025-03-31
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.7717/peerj.18960
- Citations
- 4
- Primary Topic
- Paleontology and Evolutionary Biology
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 17.32
Funders
- Svenska Forskningsrådet Formas