Wellnhoferia

Wellnhofer's (animal)

• Wellnhofer · German (personal name) · surname of Peter Wellnhofer, German palaeontologist
• -ia · Latin · Latin suffix forming a genus name

Wellnhoferia honours the German palaeontologist Peter Wellnhofer, a leading authority on Archaeopteryx and on pterosaurs. Elzanowski gave the genus his name in 2001 for a fossil bird that resembles Archaeopteryx, based on a specimen now known as the Thermopolis-like "Munich" specimen's relative, the fragmentary skeleton from Solnhofen limestone. The name is a Latinised form of his surname.

Named by

Elzanowski

Year named

2001

Period

Late Jurassic

Stage

Tithonian

Found in

Solnhofen Archipelago limestones, Bavaria, Germany

The type species is Wellnhoferia grandis. It is a feathered, early-bird relative of Archaeopteryx. Its validity is disputed: some researchers treat it as a distinct genus, and others place it in Archaeopteryx as Archaeopteryx grandis. I am not fully certain of its current standing. The etymology wording above on the specimen is simplified. The name honours Wellnhofer.