''Wahlisaurus'' is an extinct

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 leptonectid

ichthyosaur Ichthyosaurs (Ancient Greek for "fish lizard" – and ) are large extinct marine reptiles. Ichthyosaurs belong to the order known as Ichthyosauria or Ichthyopterygia ('fish flippers' – a designation introduced by Sir Richard Owen in 1842, altho ...

. 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 ...

was found in the

Scunthorpe Mudstone The Scunthorpe Mudstone is a geologic formation in England. It preserves plesiosaur fossils dating back to the Late Triassic (Rhaetian) to Early Jurassic (Hettangian) period. It predominantly consists of grey mudstone with thin beds of argillaceo ...

Nottinghamshire Nottinghamshire (; abbreviated Notts.) is a landlocked county in the East Midlands region of England, bordering South Yorkshire to the north-west, Lincolnshire to the east, Leicestershire to the south, and Derbyshire to the west. The traditi ...

in 1951 and described in 2016 by Dean Lomax.'''' The

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 ...

is ''Wahlisaurus massare'', and two specimens have been found: the first consisting of a skull and an incomplete skeleton, and the second a single

coracoid A coracoid (from Greek κόραξ, ''koraks'', raven) is a paired bone which is part of the shoulder assembly in all vertebrates except therian mammals (marsupials and placentals). In therian mammals (including humans), a coracoid process is prese ...

Discovery

The first specimen was in the New Walk Museum in Leicester for more than 60 years before it was identified by Dean Lomax as a new species and described in 2016. The second specimen was found in 1996 and identified as ''Wahlisaurus'' in 2018 in the private collection of Simon Carpenter, who donated the specimen to the Bristol Museum and Art Gallery.

Description

''Wahlisaurus'' shares features, such as a slender and long snout, with other leptonectids of that time (e.g. ''

Eurhinosaurus ''Eurhinosaurus'' (Greek for 'well-nosed lizard'- eu meaning 'well or good', rhino meaning 'nose' and sauros meaning 'lizard') is an extinct genus of ichthyosaur from the Early Jurassic (Toarcian), ranging between 183 and 175 million years. Foss ...

'', '' Excalibosaurus'', etc.). The extent of the overbite is less than that of ''

''. Differences can be found in ''Wahlisaurus''` shoulder girdle. Both the coracoid and the contact between the coracoid and the scapula possess a foramen.

Etymology

LEICT G454.1951.5 was named in honour of William Wahl and Professor Judy Massare, both specialists in mesozoic marine reptiles who mentored Lomax.

References

01 Ichthyosauromorph genera Early Jurassic ichthyosaurs Ichthyosaurs of Europe Fossil taxa described in 2016 {{jurassic-reptile-stub