Pronunciation: am-pell-o-nath-us
Meaning: Grapevine jaw
Author/s: Tykoski et al. (2023)
Synonyms: None known
First Discovery: Texas, USA
Discovery Chart Position: #1105
Ampelognathus coheni
(Cohen's Grapevine Jaw)Etymology
Ampelognathus is derived from the Greek "Ampelo" (grapevine), in reference to its discovery in the emergency spillway for Grapevine Lake, and the Greek "gnathus" (jaw).The species epithet, coheni, honours Murray Cohen, the avocational fossil enthusiast who found the specimen. ZooBank registry: urn:lsid:zoobank.org:act:99AACE57-1F1E-4BB7-8B10-5255402E50F1.
Discovery
The remains of Ampelognathus were discovered in the Lewisville Formation (Woodbine Group) along the Grapevine Lake emergency spillway, northern Tarrant County, Texas, by Murray Cohen. The site is on land managed by the United States Army Corps of Engineers (USACE), and is legally accessible only by permission.
The holotype (DMNH 2021-05-02) is an almost complete left lower jaw bone (dentary).
Preparators
Ronald S. Tykoski.
