''Manchurochelys'' is an extinct

genus Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms as well as viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus comes above species and below family. In binomial nom ...

turtle Turtles are an order of reptiles known as Testudines, characterized by a special shell developed mainly from their ribs. Modern turtles are divided into two major groups, the Pleurodira (side necked turtles) and Cryptodira (hidden necked t ...

in the order

Paracryptodira __NOTOC__ Paracryptodira is an extinct group of reptiles in the clade Testudinata (which contains modern turtles and their extinct relatives), known from the Jurassic to Paleogene of North America and Europe. Initially treated as a suborder sist ...

. It existed during the early

Cretaceous The Cretaceous ( ) is a geological period that lasted from about 145 to 66 million years ago (Mya). It is the third and final period of the Mesozoic Era, as well as the longest. At around 79 million years, it is the longest geological period of ...

of what is now northeast China. It has been found in the Jianshangou Bed of West Liaoning's

Yixian Formation The Yixian Formation (; formerly transcribed as Yihsien Formation) is a geological formation in Jinzhou, Liaoning, People's Republic of China, that spans the late Barremian and early Aptian stages of the Early Cretaceous. It is known for its exq ...

. However, it is a rarely found fossil. ''Manchurochelys'' was first named by Endo and Shikama in 1942, and contains the single species, ''M. manchoukuoensis'' (sometimes misspelled ''M. manchouensis''). A second species, ''M. liaoxensis'', was named in 1995 but was later shown to be a species of '' Ordosemys''.Tong, H., Ji, S. and Ji, Q. (2004).
''Ordosemys'' (Testudines, Cryptodira) from the Yixian Formation of Liaoning Province, northeastern China: new specimens and systematic revision.
American Museum Novitates, 3438: 1-20. ''Manchurochelys'' was a relative of the modern-day

snapping turtle The Chelydridae is a family of turtles that has seven extinct and two extant genera. The extant genera are the snapping turtles, ''Chelydra'' and '' Macrochelys''. Both are endemic to the Western Hemisphere. The extinct genera are '' Acherontem ...

. It has been occasionally placed in the family

Sinemydidae Sinemydidae is an extinct family of turtles from Cretaceous to Paleocene deposits in Asia and North America. Their exact position is engimatic, they have alternatively been considered stem-group cryptodires, but also "crownward stem-turtles" alo ...

, although it is said to more likely belong in the family Macrobaenidae.Fossil Turtle Newsletter.
Retrieved on 2008-08-26.

References

External links

''Manchurochelys''
at the

Paleobiology Database The Paleobiology Database is an online resource for information on the distribution and classification of fossil animals, plants, and microorganisms. History The Paleobiology Database (PBDB) originated in the NCEAS-funded Phanerozoic Marine Pale ...

Paleo File.com's Alphabetical list, M. section.
Early Cretaceous reptiles of Asia Cryptodira Yixian fauna Prehistoric turtle genera Extinct turtles {{cretaceous-reptile-stub

References

Further reading

External links