''Aeolodon'' is an

extinct Extinction is the termination of a kind of organism or of a group of kinds (taxon), usually a species. The moment of extinction is generally considered to be the death of the last individual of the species, although the capacity to breed and ...

genus Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus com ...

of teleosaurid crocodyliform

reptile Reptiles, as most commonly defined are the animals in the class Reptilia ( ), a paraphyletic grouping comprising all sauropsids except birds. Living reptiles comprise turtles, crocodilians, squamates (lizards and snakes) and rhynchocephalians ( ...

from the

Late Jurassic The Late Jurassic is the third epoch of the Jurassic Period, and it spans the geologic time from 163.5 ± 1.0 to 145.0 ± 0.8 million years ago (Ma), which is preserved in Upper Jurassic strata.Owen 1987. In European lithostratigraphy, the name ...

(

Tithonian In the geological timescale, the Tithonian is the latest age of the Late Jurassic Epoch and the uppermost stage of the Upper Jurassic Series. It spans the time between 152.1 ± 4 Ma and 145.0 ± 4 Ma (million years ago). It is preceded by the K ...

) of

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

and

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

that was initially named as a species of ''

Crocodylus ''Crocodylus'' is a genus of true crocodiles in the family Crocodylidae. Taxonomy The generic name, ''Crocodylus'', was proposed by Josephus Nicolaus Laurenti in 1768. ''Crocodylus'' contains 13–14 extant (living) species and 5 extinct species ...

'' in 1814. Although previously synonymized with ''

Steneosaurus ''Steneosaurus'' (from el, στενός , 'narrow' and el, σαῦρος , 'lizard') is a dubious genus of teleosaurid crocodyliform from the Middle or Late Jurassic ( Callovian or early Oxfordian) of France. The genus has been used as a w ...

'', recent cladistic analysis considers it distantly related to the ''Steneosaurus''

type species In zoological nomenclature, a type species (''species typica'') is the species name with which the name of a genus or subgenus is considered to be permanently taxonomically associated, i.e., the species that contains the biological type specimen ...

and the type species is ''A. priscus'', named in 1830 and described in 2020. Aeolodon

The

holotype A holotype is a single physical example (or illustration) of an organism, known to have been used when the species (or lower-ranked taxon) was formally described. It is either the single such physical example (or illustration) or one of several ...

of ''Aeolodon priscus'' was found in the

Mörnsheim Formation The Mörnsheim Formation is a geologic formation in Germany, near Daiting and Mörnsheim, Bavaria. It preserves fossils dating back to the Jurassic period. It overlies the older Altmühltal Formation in its northwestern extent, and the Painten ...

of Daiting, Bavaria, Germany, in the same quarry that produced the ''

Geosaurus giganteus ''Geosaurus'' is an extinct genus of marine crocodyliform within the family Metriorhynchidae, that lived during the Late Jurassic and the Early Cretaceous. ''Geosaurus'' was a carnivore that spent much, if not all, its life out at sea. No ''Geo ...

'' holotype and the assigned specimen was discovered in the

Canjuers Canjuers is a calcareous plateau and a military camp in Provence located in southeastern France. It’s the largest military camp in Continental Europe. Geography Situated in the ''département'' of the Var in the Prealps of Castellane, on the sou ...

conservation

Lagerstätte A Lagerstätte (, from ''Lager'' 'storage, lair' '' Stätte'' 'place'; plural ''Lagerstätten'') is a sedimentary deposit that exhibits extraordinary fossils with exceptional preservation—sometimes including preserved soft tissues. These for ...

of Var, France.

References

Prehistoric pseudosuchian genera Prehistoric marine crocodylomorphs Solnhofen fauna Fossil taxa described in 1825 Early Jurassic reptiles of Europe Middle Jurassic reptiles of Europe Middle Jurassic crocodylomorphs Thalattosuchians {{paleo-archosaur-stub

See also

References