Megadactylus
MEG-ah-DAK-til-us /ˌmɛɡəˈdæktɪləs/
Synonym of Anchisaurus
big finger
- mega · Greek · big, great
- daktylos · Greek · finger
The name combines Greek words for "great" and "finger". Edward Hitchcock coined it for a sauropodomorph from the Connecticut Valley, apparently referring to the large digits of the hand. The name was already in use for another animal, so it was replaced and is no longer used.
- Named by
- Hitchcock
- Year named
- 1865
- Period
- Early Jurassic
- Found in
- Connecticut Valley, northeastern USA (Portland Formation, Connecticut)
Megadactylus polyzelus Hitchcock 1865 is the original name of the species now known as Anchisaurus polyzelus, an early sauropodomorph. The genus name was preoccupied by an earlier use of Megadactylus, so it was replaced. It is not a name in current use. Exact details of the replacement history (Amphisaurus, then Anchisaurus) should be checked against a primary source.