Kuehneosaurus

Taxobox
name = "Kuehneosaurus"
fossil_range = Late Triassic
regnum= Animalia
phylum = Chordata
classis = Sauropsida
infraclass = Lepidosauromorpha
ordo = Eolacertilia
familia = Kuehneosauridae
genus = "Kuehneosaurus"
genus_authority = Robinson, 1962
subdivision_ranks = Species
subdivision =
* "K. latus" Robinson, 1962 (type)

"Kuehneosaurus" is an extinct genus of Late Triassic reptile from Britain. Measuring 72 centimetres long (2.3 feet), it had "wings" formed from ribs which jutted out from its body by as much as 14.3 cm, connected by a membrane which allowed it to slow its descent when jumping from trees. It is a member of a family of gliding reptiles, the Kuehneosauridae, within the larger group Lepidosauromorpha, which also contains modern lizards and tuatara.Evans, S.C. (2003). "At the feet of the dinosaurs: the early history and radiation of lizards." "Biological Reviews", 78: 513–551.]

Unlike it's longer "winged" relative "Kuehneosuchus" (which may be a species of the same genus or represent a different sexual morph), aerodynamic studies have shown that "Kuehneosaurus" was probably not a glider, but instead used its elongated ribs to parachute from the trees. A study by Steins "et al." in 2008 found that its parachuting speed, descending at a 45 degree angle, would be between 10 and 12 metres per second. Pitch was controlled by lappets (wattle-like flaps of skin) on the hyoid apparatus, as in the modern gliding lizard "Draco".Steins, K., Palmer, C., Gill, P.G., and Benton, M.J. (2008). "The aerodynamics of the British Late Triassic Kuehneosauridae." "Palaeontology", 51(4): 967-981. DOI: 10.1111/j.1475-4983.2008.00783.x]

References