Contectopalatus

Contectopalatus; Temporal range: Mid Triassic, 247.2–235.0 Ma PreꞒ Ꞓ O S D C P T J K Pg N
	Fossil
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Reptilia
Order:	†Ichthyosauria
Family:	†Mixosauridae
Genus:	†Contectopalatus; Maisch & Matzke, 1998
Species:	†C. atavus
Binomial name
	†Contectopalatus atavus; Quenstedt, 1851 (originally Ichthyosaurus)

Restoration

Contectopalatus was a primitive ichthyosaur, an extinct fish-like marine reptile from the Middle Triassic of Germany amd China.^[2] It was originally named Ichthyosaurus atavus (Quenstedt, 1851/52), and later Mixosaurus atavus (Quenstedt 1852). It was recognised as a valid genus by Maisch and Matzke in 1998, though other authorities argue that it is synonymous with Mixosaurus. It was 5 metres long.

References[]

^ "†Contectopalatus Maisch and Matzke 1998 (ichthyosaur)". Paleobiology Database. Fossilworks. Retrieved 17 December 2021.
^ Liu, J.; Motani, R.; Jiang, D. Y.; Hu, S. X.; Aitchison, J. C.; Rieppel, O.; Benton, M. J.; Zhang, Q. Y.; Zhou, C. Y. (2013). "The first specimen of the Middle Triassic Phalarodon atavus (Ichthyosauria: Mixosauridae) from South China, showing postcranial anatomy and peri‐Tethyan distribution". Palaeontology. 56 (4): 849–866. doi:10.1111/pala.12021.