Teinurosaurus

elongated tail lizard

• teinu- · Greek · stretched / elongated
• -ro- · Greek · tail (oura)
• -saurus · Greek · lizard

The name combines the Greek words 'teinō' (to stretch or elongate) and 'oura' (tail) with the common suffix 'sauros' (lizard), yielding roughly 'elongated-tail lizard'. It was coined in reference to an elongated caudal (tail) vertebra that formed the basis of the type specimen. The name reflects the distinctive stretched appearance of that single preserved bone.

Named by

Nopcsa

Year named

1928

Period

Late Jurassic

Stage

Kimmeridgian

Found in

Lusitanian Basin, Portugal

Teinurosaurus sauvagei is considered a nomen dubium because it is based on a single, fragmentary caudal vertebra (originally described by Sauvage in 1897–98 as belonging to a theropod) that cannot be confidently assigned to any particular taxon. Nopcsa formally named the genus in 1928. Some workers have tentatively allied it with coelurosaurs or tetanurans, but the material is too incomplete for a reliable classification. It is not a junior synonym of any established genus.