| Shenzhoupterus Temporal range: Early Cretaceous, 120 Ma |
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|---|---|
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Reptilia |
| Order: | †Pterosauria |
| Suborder: | †Pterodactyloidea |
| Family: | †Chaoyangopteridae |
| Genus: | †Shenzhoupterus Lü et al., 2008 |
| Species: | †S. chaoyangensis |
| Binomial name | |
| Shenzhoupterus chaoyangensis Lü et al., 2008 |
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Shenzhoupterus is a genus of chaoyangopterid azhdarchoid pterodactyloid pterosaur from the Lower Cretaceous Jiufotang Formation of Liaoning, China.
The genus was named in 2008 by Lü Junchang, David Unwin, Xu Li and Zhang Xingliao. The type species is Shenzoupterus chaoyangensis. The genus name is derived from Shenzhou, an old name for China, "the divine land", and a Latinised Greek pteron, "wing". The specific name refers to Chaoyang.
The genus is based on holotype HGM 41HIII-305A (Henan Geological Museum at Zhengzhou), the articulated skull and skeleton of a single individual, with a wingspan of 1.4 meters (4.6 ft). Shenzhoupterus lacked teeth, and had a crest on its skull that arched over the eyes and terminated in a small point toward the back of the head. The nasoantorbital fenestra (an opening incorporating the holes for the nostrils and the antorbital fenestrae) was large and extended over the eyes and braincase. Lü and colleagues, who described and named Shenzhoupterus in 2008, performed a phylogenetic analysis and found that their new genus formed a distinct clade of azhdarchoids with Chaoyangopterus, Eoazhdarcho, Eopteranodon , and Jidapterus, which they named Chaoyangopteryidae. The type species is S. chaoyangensis.[1]