Contact: Margaret Allen
mallen@mail.smu.edu
214-768-7664
Southern Methodist University

New Genus and Species of Flying Reptile Aetodactylus halli

Caption: A 95 million-year-old fossilized jaw discovered in Texas has been identified as a new genus and species of flying reptile, Aetodactylus halli, says paleontologist Timothy S. Myers, who identified and named Aetodactylus halli. The rare pterosaur -- literally winged lizard -- is also one of the youngest members of the pterosaur family Ornithocheiridae in the world. It’s only the second ornithocheirid ever documented in North America, says Myers, a postdoctoral fellow at Southern Methodist University, Dallas.

Credit: Illustration by Karen Carr

Usage Restrictions: Please credit the illustrator, Karen Carr

Related news release: Rare 95-million-year-old flying reptile Aetodactylus halli is new pterosaur genus, species