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''Hatzegopteryx'' ("Hațeg basin wing") is a genus of azhdarchid pterosaur, known from incomplete remains found in Hunedoara County, Transylvania, Romania. The skull fragments, left humerus, and other fossilized remains indicate it was among the largest pterosaurs. The skeleton of ''Hatzegopteryx'' has been considered identical to the known remains of ''Quetzalcoatlus northropi''. ''Q. northropi'' has not yet been properly described, and if it is not a ''nomen dubium'', ''Hatzegopteryx'' is possibly its junior synonym.〔Witton, M.P., Martill, D.M. and Loveridge, R.F. (2010). "Clipping the Wings of Giant Pterosaurs: Comments on Wingspan Estimations and Diversity." ''Acta Geoscientica Sinica'', 31 Supp.1: 79-81〕 ==Naming and fossils== The genus was named in 2002 by French paleontologist Eric Buffetaut, and Romanian paleontologists Dan Grigorescu and Zoltan Csiki. It is known from only the type species, ''Hatzegopteryx thambema''. The generic name is derived from the ''Hatzeg'' (or Hațeg) basin of Transylvania, the so-called Hațeg Island, where the bones were found, and from Greek ''pteryx'', or 'wing'. The specific name ''thambema'' is derived from the Greek for 'monster', in reference to its huge size.〔 ''Hatzegopteryx'' hails from the upper part of the Middle Densus Ciula Formation of Valioara, northwestern Hateg Basin, Transylvania, western Romania, which has been dated to the late Maastrichtian stage of the late Cretaceous Period, around 66 million years ago.〔(【引用サイトリンク】url=http://www.palaeocritti.com/by-group/pterosauria/hatzegopteryx )〕 The holotype, FGGUB R 1083A, consists of the back part of the skull and the damaged proximal part of a left humerus.〔 A 38.5 centimeter long middle section of a femur found nearby, FGGUB R1625, may also have belonged to ''Hatzegopteryx''.〔 FGGUB R1625 belonged to an individual with a five to six metres wingspan. The later reported fragments represent medium-sized animals.〔Vremir, M., Kellner, A.W.A., Naish, D., Dyke, G.J., 2013, "A New Azhdarchid Pterosaur from the Late Cretaceous of the Transylvanian Basin, Romania: Implications for Azhdarchid Diversity and Distribution", ''PLoS ONE'' 8(1): e54268. doi:10.1371〕 In 2011, additional finds were reported: the front of a mandibula, the possibly third phalanx of the wing finger, an unfused scapulocoracoid, a scapula, cervical vertebrae and a piece of a humerus.〔Vremir, M., Dyke, G., Csiki, Z., 2011, "Late Cretaceous pterosaurian diversity in the Transylvanian and Hateg basins (Romania): new results", ''The 8th Romanian Symposium on Palaeontology, Bucharest''. Abstract vol: 131–132〕 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Hatzegopteryx」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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