Melkamter (IPA: [melkamter]) (meaning "winged lizard") is an extinct genus of monofenestratan pterosaurs from the Early Jurassic Cañadón Asfalto Formation of Argentina. The genus contains a single species, M. pateko, known from a partial skull and fragmentary postcranium. Melkamter represents the oldest known monofenestratan pterosaur in the fossil record.[1]
| Melkamter Temporal range: Early Jurassic,
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| Holotype specimen | |
Scientific classification 
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| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Order: | †Pterosauria |
| Clade: | †Pterodactylomorpha |
| Clade: | †Monofenestrata |
| Genus: | †Melkamter Fernandes, Pol & Rauhut, 2024 |
| Species: | †M. pateko
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| Binomial name | |
| †Melkamter pateko Fernandes, Pol & Rauhut, 2024
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Discovery and naming
editThe Melkamter holotype specimen, MPEF-PV 11530, was discovered in sediments of the Cañadón Asfalto Formation (Queso Rallado locality) near the Cerro Cóndor village of Chubut Province, Argentina. The specimen consists of a partial cranium preserved on a slab and counterslab, two teeth, four dorsal vertebrae, a wing metacarpal, and other unidentified bone fragments.[1]
The fossil material was first reported at an academic conference in 2024 before its formal description.[2]
In 2024, Fernandes, Pol & Rauhut described Melkamter pateko as a new genus and species of early monofenestratan pterosaurs based on these fossil remains. The generic name, Melkamter (IPA: [melkamter]), is derived from Tehuelche words mel, meaning "wing" and kamter, meaning "big lizard", referencing the etymology of clade Pterosauria (meaning "winged lizard" in Greek). The specific name, pateko (IPA: [pateko]), combines the Tehuelche words pate, meaning "rasped" and ko, meaning "set of bones", referencing the type locality (Queso Rallado, meaning "grated cheese") and the broken preservation of the holotype.[1]
Melkamter is the fifth Jurassic pterosaur to be named from South America, following Herbstosaurus in 1975, Wenupteryx in 2013, the coeval Allkaruen in 2016, and Tacuadactylus in 2021.[1]
Description
editThe preserved skull of Melkamter is 131.3 millimetres (5.17 in) long.[1]
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References
edit- ^ a b c d e Fernandes, Alexandra E.; Pol, Diego; Rauhut, Oliver W. M. (2024-12-11). "The oldest monofenestratan pterosaur from the Queso Rallado locality (Cañadón Asfalto Formation, Toarcian) of Chubut Province, Patagonia, Argentina". Royal Society Open Science. 11 (12). doi:10.1098/rsos.241238. ISSN 2054-5703. PMC 11631458.
- ^ Fernandes, A. E.; Pol, D.; Rauhut, O.W.M. (2024). A monofenestratan pterosaur from the late Early Jurassic of the Chubut province of Patagonia, Argentina (PDF). 21st EAVP Conference.