Lagerpetidae
Extinct family of reptiles / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Lagerpetidae (/ˌlædʒərˈpɛtɪdiː/; originally Lagerpetonidae) is a family of basal avemetatarsalians. Though traditionally considered the earliest-diverging dinosauromorphs (reptiles closer to dinosaurs than to pterosaurs), fossils described in 2020 suggest that lagerpetids may instead be pterosauromorphs (closer to pterosaurs).[2][3] Lagerpetid fossils are known from the Triassic of Argentina, Arizona, Brazil, Madagascar, New Mexico, and Texas.[4][5][6][7][2] They were typically small, although some lagerpetids, like Dromomeron gigas and a specimen from the Santa Rosa Formation attributed to Dromomeron sp., were able to get quite large (femoral length 150–220 mm (5.9–8.7 in)).[8][9] Lagerpetid fossils are rare; the most common finds are bones of the hindlimbs, which possessed a number of unique features.[10]
Lagerpetidae | |
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Speculative life restoration of Dromomeron gregorii in a bipedal stance | |
Scientific classification | |
Domain: | Eukaryota |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Chordata |
Clade: | Avemetatarsalia |
Clade: | Ornithodira |
Clade: | †Pterosauromorpha |
Family: | †Lagerpetidae Arcucci, 1986 |
Genera | |