Pronunciation:
Meaning: for the Musankwa (river boat)
Author/s: Barrett et al. (2024)
Synonyms: None known
First Discovery: Lake Kariba, Zimbabwe
Discovery Chart Position: #1110
Musankwa sanyatiensis
(?)Etymology
In the Tonga dialect, Musankwa means "boy close to marriage" and is the name of the houseboat that served as home and mobile laboratory to the authors during two field expeditions to Lake Kariba in 2017–2018. The vessel was made available through
the generosity of David and Julie Glynn, and its crew, Coster Katupu, Godfrey Swalika, Simbarashe Mangoroma, and Never Mapira, provided
essential logistic support.The species epithet, sanyatiensis, means "from Sanyati" in Latin, in reference to the Sanyati River, whose original course is now submerged in the Sanyati Basin of Lake Kariba, in which the type locality (Spurwing Island) is situated. ZooBank registry: urn:lsid:zoobank.org:act:A0C7FA6C-0A14-40F1-97 E1-621F99D81AE3.
Discovery
The remains of Musankwa were discovered at he "Spurwing East Palaeosol" site in the Pebbly Arkose Formation (Upper Karoo Group), on the north-eastern shoreline of Spurwing Island, Lake Kariba, Zimbabwe, during 2017–2018.
The holotype (NHMZ 2521) is a partial right leg, consisting of a complete thigh, shin and ankle, and associated indeterminate bone fragments.
