Reptilia - Testudines - Testudinidae

Derivation of name. Alato- from the genitive of the Ancient Greek word ka, that means salt, referring to the extensive salt deposits that were formed during the Messinian Salinity Crisis in the Mediterranean Sea. The beginning of the entire generic name, with the prefix Al-, provides an African (Arabic) influence to the name, in reference to the African affinities of this taxon. The suffix -chelon, is a latinized version of the Ancient Greek word vekmg, which means turtle, with a change of ending; it thus takes a neuter gender.

LSID. urn:lsid:zoobank.org:act:0A5B8658-72C7-412F-B1CA-8EEA3498CF1C

Full reference: A. Pérez-García, E. Vlachos, and X. Murelaga. 2020. A large testudinid with African affinities in the post-Messinian (lower Pliocene) record of southeastern Spain. Palaeontology 1-16

Parent taxon: Geochelona according to A. Pérez-García et al. 2020

Sister taxa: none

Subtaxa: Alatochelon myrteum

view classification

Type: Alatochelon myrteum

Ecology: ground dwelling herbivore-herbivore

Distribution: found only at Puerto de la Cadena (Pliocene of Spain)

Show more details

Specimen images are retrieved through the ePANDDA API.