Fontainechelon
| Fontainechelon Temporal range: Early Eocene (Early Ypresian) | |
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Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Reptilia |
| Order: | Testudines |
| Suborder: | Cryptodira |
| Family: | Testudinidae |
| Genus: | †Fontainechelon Pérez-García et al., 2016 |
Fontainechelon is an extinct genus of testudinid from Saint Papoul, France during the Early Eocene. It is known from a single species, F. cassouleti.[1]
Fontainechelon is the oldest European testudinid, and the most basal of all testudinids.[1][2]
Etymology
[edit]It was named after Jean de La Fontaine, alluding to some of his fables in which the protagonist was a tortoise.
Taxonomy
[edit]Fontainechelon cassouleti was historically considered a species of Achilemys. The genus Achilemys is now restricted to North America.[1] Fontainechelon was found to be the most basal of all testudinids.[1][2]
Description
[edit]The species is known primarily from the holotype, which includes a partial carapace, a complete plastron, the right humerus, and the left femur. There are also several highly fragmentary referred specimens. The holotype had an estimated shell length of 37 cm.[1]
References
[edit]- 1 2 3 4 5 Pérez-García, Adán; Ortega, Francisco; Jiménez Fuentes, Emiliano (July 2016). "Taxonomy, systematics, and diversity of the European oldest testudinids". Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society. 177 (3): 648–675. doi:10.1111/zoj.12381. Retrieved 3 October 2024 – via Oxford Academic.
- 1 2 Chroust, Milan; Szczygielski, Tomasz; Luján, Àngel H. (2025-10-03). "Manouria morla sp. nov., the Ancient One: an Early Miocene large tortoise from the Swamps of Ahníkov, Czechia". Swiss Journal of Palaeontology. 144 (1): 63. doi:10.1186/s13358-025-00400-6. ISSN 1664-2384.
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