Placochelys
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| Placochelys | |
|---|---|
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| Restored Placochelys placodonta skull at the Museum für Naturkunde, Berlin | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Reptilia |
| Superorder: | †Sauropterygia |
| Order: | †Placodontia |
| Family: | †Placochelyidae |
| Genus: | †Placochelys Jaekel, 1902 |
Placochelys (from Greek: plax, plakos, "plate" and Greek: chelys, "tortoise")[1] is an extinct genus of placodont reptiles erected by Otto Jaekel in 1902.
Species
This genus includes only one species:
- Placochelys placodonta Jaekel, 1902 (from Upper Ladinian of Hungary)
Description
Placochelys looked remarkably similar to a sea turtle, and grew to about 90 centimetres (3.0 ft) in length. It had a flat turtle-like carapace covered with knobbly plates, and a compact triangular skull. Its beaked skull had powerful muscles. It had only two pairs of palatal teeth, a large posterior pair, and a small rostral pair. The specialized broad teeth on the palate, were most likely used for crushing shellfish and hard-shelled prey. Its limbs were paddle-shaped for swimming, although, unlike modern sea turtles, they still had discernable toes, and it also had a short tail.[3]
Gallery
Life restoration of Placochelys
Placochelys placodonta fossil skull, lateral view
Placochelys placodonta skull seen from below
Placochelys tooth from Adnet, Austria
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