Australochelys
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Australochelys Temporal range: Early Jurassic, 190–183 Ma |
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| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Reptilia |
| Order: | Testudines |
| Clade: | Rhaptochelydia |
| Family: | †Australochelyidae |
| Genus: |
†Australochelys Gaffney & Kitching, 1994 |
| Type species | |
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Australochelys africanus Gaffney & Kitching, 1994 |
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Australochelys was a genus of rhaptochelydian turtle. It is known from one species, A. africanus, that came from the Elliot Formation of South Africa. The holotype of Australochelys consists of only a skull and a fragment of the carapace, which shows both primitive and derived features. Like Proganochelys, Australochelys has large orbits and a ventral basioccipital tubercle, but like derived turtles such as casichelydians, a group containing Cryptodira and Pleurodira, it possesses a sutured basipterygoidal attachment, and a middle ear region partially enclosed laterally. These characteristics show that Australochelys is more closely related to casichelydians that to Proganochelys, and together with the former, it makes up Rhaptochelydia. The skull of Australochelys shows that an advanced hearing mechanism of turtles evolved before the appearance of modern turtles.
Australochelys africanus was named in 1994 by Eugene S. Gaffney and James W. Kitching. The generic name comes from the Greek australos, meaning "south" and chelys, "turtle". The specific name is derived from the Greek africanus, meaning "from Africa".
The holotype of Australochelys includes a skull and a fragment of the carapace. The skull shares features with both the primitive turtle Proganochelys and Casichelydia, a group of derived turtles. The skull shows an advanced hearing mechanism, a feature thought to have evolved with modern turtles.
Many features were found among Australochelys that function to distinguish it from other turtles. Below are the characteristics found by Gaffney and Kitching in 1995 that are unique among all turtles:
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