A new wing skeleton of <i>Forfexopterus</i> (Pterosauria: Ctenochasmatidae) from the Early Cretaceous Jehol Biota reveals a developmental variation

Abstract

In the Jehol Biota, the filter-feeding ctenochasmatid pterosaurs flourished with a high biodiversity. Here, we report a new wing skeleton of the ctenochasmatid Forfexopterus from the Early Cretaceous Jiufotang Formation in Jianchang, western Liaoning, China. The specimen exhibits the sole autapomorphy, the first wing phalanx shorter than the second and longer than the third. Interestingly, it exhibits a skeletal maturity with co-ossified elements, but it is only about 75 % the size of the immature holotype. This discrepancy reveals developmental variation of Forfexopterus, but its relationship with sexual dimorphism needs to be certain by more available material.