Desmatochelys

Desmatochelys
Temporal range: Cretaceous, 120–83.5 Ma [1]
Holotype skull of Desmatochelys lowi from two angles
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Reptilia
Order: Testudines
Suborder: Cryptodira
Family: †Protostegidae
Genus: †Desmatochelys
Williston, 1894
Type species
†Desmatochelys lowi
Williston, 1894
Other species
  • †D. padillai Cadena and Parham, 2015

Desmatochelys (from Greek δεσμός desmos 'link' + χέλῡς khelus ‘tortoise’) is an extinct genus of sea turtles belonging to the family Protostegidae.[2][3] This genus contains two known species, D. lowii and D. padillai. D. lowii was first discovered in 1895, followed by D. padillai in 2015. Having been estimated at over 120 million years old, D. padillai is currently the oldest known species of sea turtle.[4]

Desmatochelys lived during the Cretaceous, and had a wide geographic range, primarily along the Western Interior Seaway.[5]

  1. ^ Edwin A. Cadena and James F. Parham (2015). "Oldest known marine turtle? A new protostegid from the Lower Cretaceous of Colombia". PaleoBios. 32 (1): 1–42.
  2. ^ Karl, H. V., & Tichy, G. (2010). Maorichelys wiffeni n. gen. n. sp., una nueva tortuga marina del Eoceno de Nueva Zelanda (Testudines: Dermochelyidae).
  3. ^ "Introduction to Testudines". UCMP Berkeley. Retrieved 25 April 2015.
  4. ^ Cadena, Edwin A.; Parham, James F. (2015-09-07). "Oldest known marine turtle? A new protostegid from the Lower Cretaceous of Colombia". PaleoBios. 32 (1). doi:10.5070/P9321028615. ISSN 0031-0298.
  5. ^ López-Conde, Oliver A.; Sterli, Juliana; Alvarado-Ortega, Jesús; Chavarría-Arellano, María L.; Porras-Múzquiz, Héctor (2019-10-01). "The first record of Desmatochelys cf. D. lowii from the Late Cretaceous (Campanian) of Coahuila, Mexico". Journal of South American Earth Sciences. 94: 102204. Bibcode:2019JSAES..9402204L. doi:10.1016/j.jsames.2019.05.020. ISSN 0895-9811. S2CID 182226555.