Reptilia - Testudinata - Baenidae
The name Saxochelys is derived from the combination of the Ancient Greek word chelys meaning turtle and the morpheme sax referring to the Arikara, Hidatsa, and Crow the American Indian peoples indigenous to the region of discovery cognate for turtle (being sax, and sx, and basxe, respectively), having been combined following classical word formation for euphony.
Full reference: T. R. Lyson, J. L. Sayler, and W. G. 2019. A new Baenid turtle, Saxochelys Gilberti, gen. et sp. nov., from the uppermost Cretaceous (Maastrichtian) Hell Creek Formation: Sexual Dimorphism and Spatial Niche Partitioning within the most speciose group of Late Cretaceous turtles. Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology e1662428:1-18
Parent taxon: Baenodda according to T. R. Lyson et al. 2019
Sister taxa: Arvinachelys, Baenini, Eubaeninae, Palatobaeninae, Scabremys
Subtaxa: Saxochelys gilberti
Type: Saxochelys gilberti
Ecology:
Distribution:
• Paleocene of United States (1: North Dakota collection)
• Cretaceous of United States (2: North Dakota, South Dakota)
Total: 3 collections each including a single occurrence
Specimen images are retrieved through the ePANDDA API.
Click image to enlarge. Click to access iDigBio record.