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Tanystropheus ✝
| Description | Tanystropheus (Greek τανυ~ “long” + στροφευς “hinged”), was a 6-meter-long (20 ft) reptile that dated from the Middle Triassic period. It is recognizable by its extremely elongated neck, which measured 3 m (9.8 ft) long—longer than its body and tail combined. The neck was composed of 12–13 extremely elongated vertebrae. With its very long but relatively stiff neck, Tanystropheus has been often proposed and reconstructed as an aquatic or semi-aquatic reptile, a theory supported by the fact that the creature is most commonly found in semi-aquatic fossil sites wherein known terrestrial reptile remains are scarce. Fossils have been found in Europe. Complete skeletons of juvenile individuals are most abundant in the Besano Formation of Italy; other fossils have been found in the Middle East and China, dating to 232 million years ago during the middle Triassic period (Ladinian stage). From Wikipedia article at https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tanystropheus, which is released under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share-Alike License 3.0. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Source Data |
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| Rank | genus | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Taxonomy (GBIF) | Life : Animalia : Chordata : Reptilia : Tanystropheidae : Tanystropheus | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Taxonomy (PBDB) | Life : Animalia : Chordata : Reptilia : Eosuchia : Tanystropheidae : Tanystropheus | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Taxonomic Status (GBIF) | accepted | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Classification (PBDB,GBIF) |
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| Scientific Name | Tanystropheus von Meyer, 1852 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Name Published In | Zur Fauna der Vorwelt (2): 42 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Opinions (PBDB) |
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| Status (PBDB) | extinct | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Taxon Size (PBDB) | 10 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| First Recorded Appearance | 247 - 242 Ma Triassic | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Last Recorded Appearance | 209 - 201 Ma Mesozoic | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Environment | terrestrial (based on Diapsida) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Motility | actively mobile (based on Osteichthyes) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Diet | piscivore | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Ecospace Comments | lacks "any adaptation for efficient swimming" and "did not swim but lived along the shoreline... patrolling.. in search for food" in the water | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Taphonomy | phosphatic (based on Vertebrata) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Primary Reference (PBDB) | R. L. Carroll. 1988. Vertebrate Paleontology and Evolution | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Wikipedia | https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tanystropheus |
Fossil Distribution
Subtaxa
| Name | Status | Common Name(s) | Fossil Occurrences | Oldest | Youngest |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pectenosaurus strunzi ✝ species | accepted (GBIF) listed (PBDB) | ||||
| Procerosaurus cruralis ✝ species | accepted (GBIF) listed (PBDB) | 1 | 247 Ma Early/Lower Triassic | 247 Ma Early/Lower Triassic | |
| Tanystropheus biharicus ✝ species | listed (PBDB) | 1 | 247 Ma Early/Lower Triassic | 247 Ma Early/Lower Triassic | |
| Tanystropheus conspicuus ✝ species | accepted (GBIF) listed (PBDB) | 2 | 247 Ma Early/Lower Triassic | 242 Ma Middle Triassic | |
| Tanystropheus fossai ✝ species | listed (PBDB) | 1 | 228 Ma Late/Upper Triassic | 228 Ma Late/Upper Triassic | |
| Tanystropheus haasi ✝ species | accepted (GBIF) listed (PBDB) | 1 | 247 Ma Early/Lower Triassic | 247 Ma Early/Lower Triassic | |
| Tanystropheus longobardicus ✝ species | listed (PBDB) | 3 | 247 Ma Early/Lower Triassic | 242 Ma Middle Triassic | |
| Tanystropheus meridensis ✝ species | listed (PBDB) | 1 | 242 Ma Middle Triassic | 242 Ma Middle Triassic | |
| Tribelesodon longobardicus ✝ species | accepted (GBIF) listed (PBDB) | 1 | 247 Ma Early/Lower Triassic | 247 Ma Early/Lower Triassic |
Obsolete Names
| Name | Source | Taxon Rank | Taxonomy |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tanystrophaeus von Meyer, 1852 | GBIF | genus | Animalia : Chordata : Reptilia : Tanystropheidae : Tanystrophaeus |
| Nothosaurus blezingeri Fraas, 1896 | GBIF | species | Animalia : Chordata : Reptilia : Tanystropheidae : Nothosaurus blezingeri |
| Tanystrophaeus Cope, 1888 | GBIF | genus | Animalia : Chordata : Reptilia : Tanystropheidae : Tanystrophaeus |
| Nothosaurus bletzingeri Fraas, 1896 | GBIF | species | Animalia : Chordata : Reptilia : Tanystropheidae : Nothosaurus bletzingeri |
Synonymy List
| Year | Name and Author |
|---|---|
| 1852 | Macroscelosaurus Münster |
| 1852 | Tanystropheus von Meyer |
| 1861 | Tanystrophaeus Owen p. 238 |
| 1886 | Tribelesodon Bassani p. 25 |
| 1887 | Tanystrophaeus Cope p. 221 |
| 1890 | Tanystropheus Zittel p. 733 |
| 1890 | Tribelesodon Zittel p. 799ff |
| 1896 | Nothosaurus blezingeri Fraas p. 11 |
| 1898 | Nothosaurus bletzingeri Spangenberg p. 407 |
| 1902 | Chelyzoon Huene |
| 1902 | Tanystrophaeus Huene |
| 1902 | Chelyzoon Huene p. 50 |
| 1902 | Chelyzoon latum Huene p. 50 |
| 1902 | Chelyzoon blezingeri Huene p. 51 |
| 1902 | Procerosaurus Huene p. 64 |
| 1902 | Pectenosaurus Huene p. 65 |
| 1908 | Tanystrophaeus posthumus Huene |
| 1909 | Tanystropheus Huene p. 13 |
| 1911 | Tanystropheus von Zittel p. 281 |
| 1913 | Thecodontosaurus posthumus Fraas p. 1100 |
| 1914 | Thecodontosaurus posthumus Fraas p. 130 |
| 1914 | Thecodontosaurus posthumus Hennig p. 418 |
| 1914 | Tanystrophaeus Huene p. 11 |
| Year | Name and Author |
|---|---|
| 1914 | Procerosaurus Huene p. 12 |
| 1914 | Tanystrophaeus posthumus Huene p. 12 |
| 1914 | Tanystrophaeus Huene p. 33 |
| 1914 | Tanystropheus Huene p. 154 |
| 1920 | Procerosaurus Huene p. 162 |
| 1920 | Tanystrophaeus Huene p. 162 |
| 1928 | Procerosaurus Nopcsa p. 183 |
| 1928 | Tanystropheus Nopcsa p. 183 |
| 1928 | Tribelesodon Nopcsa p. 187 |
| 1966 | Tanystropheus Kuhn p. 43 |
| 1971 | Chelyzoon Kuhn p. 10 |
| 1971 | Chelyzoon blezingeri Kuhn p. 10 |
| 1971 | Chelyzoon latum Kuhn p. 10 |
| 1971 | Tanystropheus Kuhn p. 11 |
| 1971 | Nothosaurus blezingeri Kuhn p. 18 |
| 1980 | Tanystropheus Chatterjee p. 198 |
| 1985 | Tanystropheus Benton p. 154 |
| 1986 | Tanystropheus Chatterjee |
| 1988 | Tanystropheus Carroll |
| 2005 | Tanystropheus Renesto p. 378 |
| 2011 | Tanystropheus Sennikov |
| 2016 | Tanystropheus Ezcurra |
References
Data courtesy of: PBDB: The Paleobiology Database, Creative Commons CC-BY licenced. , GBIF: the Global Biodiversity Information Facility, various licences, iDigBio, various licences, and EOL: The Encyclopedia of Life (Open Data Public Domain). Because fossils are made of minerals too!
