Genus
Valid Extinct

Pessopteryx

Wiman 1910

Pessopteryx is an extinct genus of ichthyosaur from the Early Triassic (Olenekian) of Svalbard, Norway. The genus originally contained four species, P. nisseri, P. arctica, P. pinguis, and P. minor, which were named in 1910 by Carl Wiman. Only P. nisseri is still considered valid; P. arctica and P. pinguis are considered nomina dubia while P. minor was reassigned to the tenuous genus Isfjordosaurus. Omphalosaurus nisseri, Merriamosaurus hulkei, and Rotundopteryx hulkei are all junior synonyms of P. nisseri.

Temporal range
Triassic
Jurassic
Cretaceous
Paleogene
Neogene
252 201 145 66 0 Ma
PBDB occurrences
2
Group
Ichtyosaures
Carnivore nektonic Marine
Classification
Ichthyosauria Unranked clade
Hueneosauria Unranked clade
Merriamosauria Unranked clade
Merriamosauridae Family
Pessopteryx Genus
Fossil sites 2 geolocated sites
Distribution
Top countries
🇸🇯 SJ
2
Geological formations
Vikinghøgda
1
Temporal distribution
Anisian (246.7–241.464 Ma)
1
Olenekian (249.9–246.7 Ma)
1
Species (2)
Omphalosaurus nisseri subjective synonym of Pessopteryx nisseri 248 Ma
Pessopteryx nisseri 248 Ma
Bibliography
Original description
R. Motani. 1999. Phylogeny of the Ichthyopterygia. Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology 19(3):473-496 DOI ↗
Bibliography (2)
M. W. Maisch. 2010. Phylogeny, systematics, and origin of the Ichthyosauria - the state of the art. Palaeodiversity 3:151-214
V. de Buffrenil and J. M. Mazin. 1990. Bone histology of the ichthyosaurs: comparative data and functional interpretation. Paleobiology 16(4):435-447