| Jianchangnathus Temporal range: Middle Jurassic, 160 Ma |
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| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Reptilia |
| Order: | †Pterosauria |
| Family: | †Rhamphorhynchidae |
| Subfamily: | †Scaphognathinae |
| Genus: | †Jianchangnathus Cheng et al., 2012 |
| Species: | †J. robustus |
| Binomial name | |
| Jianchangnathus robustus Cheng et al, 2012 |
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Jianchangnathus is an extinct genus of basal pterosaur from the Middle Jurassic Tiaojishan Formation of northeastern China.[1]
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Jianchangnathus was first described and named by Cheng Xin, Wang Xiaolin, Jiang Shunxing and Alexander W.A. Kellner in 2012 and the type species is Jianchangnathus robustus. The generic name combines a reference to Jianchang County with a Greek γνάθος, gnathos, "jaw". The specific name means "robust" in Latin.[1]
Jianchangnathus is known from a single fossil skeleton, holotype IVPP V16866, recovered near Linglongta, in Jianchang County.
Autapomorphies of Jiangchangnathus include: a convex top margin of the lower jaw; a large front branch of the jugal; and the first three pairs of teeth of the lower jaws pointing strongly forwards. Its describers found it to share several features with Scaphognathus, including a high front end of the lower jaws, a pear-shaped lower temporal fenestra with the broad end below and teeth in the maxilla of the upper jaw that have a space equal to that of three toothsockets between them.[1]
Jianchangnathus was assigned by the describers to the Scaphognathidae.[1]