Axestemys splendidus Hay 1908 (softshell turtle)

Reptilia - Testudines - Trionychidae

Alternative combinations: Aspideretes splendidus, Aspideretoides splendidus, Axestemys splendida, Eugenechelys splendidus

Synonyms: Aspideretes granifer Hay 1909, Aspideretes planus Parks 1933

Full reference: O. P. Hay. 1908. The fossil turtles of North America. Carnegie Institution of Washington Publication 75:1-568

Belongs to Axestemys according to N. S. Vitek and W. G. Joyce 2015

See also Chkhikvadze 2000, Danilov and Vitek 2013, Gardner et al. 1995, Hay 1908, Hay 1909, Hay 1930, Parks 1933 and Vitek 2012

Sister taxa: Axestemys byssina, Axestemys byssinus, Axestemys cerevisia, Axestemys erquelinnensis, Axestemys infernalis, Axestemys montinsana, Axestemys quinni, Axestemys vittata, Rafetus (Axestemys) exquisitus, Rafetus (Axestemys) nelsoni

Type specimens:

  • Axestemys splendidus: AMNH 3952, a partial shell (a large, but somewhat imperfect, carapace)
  • Aspideretes granifer: USNM V 5736, a partial skeleton. Its type locality is Cow Island (USNM 5736), which is in a Campanian/Campanian terrestrial horizon in the Judith River Formation of Montana.
  • Aspideretes planus: ROM 815, a carapace. Its type locality is 3 miles southeast of Steveville, which is in a Campanian terrestrial horizon in Canada.

Ecology: aquatic piscivore-carnivore

Distribution:

• Cretaceous of Canada (4: Alberta collections), United States (5: Montana, South Dakota)

Total: 9 collections each including a single occurrence

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Specimen images are retrieved through the ePANDDA API.


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