Dino card No. 0629 of 2,015

Eudimorphodon

Say it: yoo-dye-MOR-foh-don

Name means: “true two-formed tooth”1

Ate: FishFlying reptilesLate TriassicNot technically a dinosaur

Eudimorphodon was a small flying reptile that lived during the Late Triassic, about 219 to 215 million years ago. It was one of the oldest pterosaurs ever found, with a wingspan about as long as a meter stick. Its name means 'true two-formed tooth' because it had two different kinds of teeth in its mouth.1

Fun fact: pterosaurs flew over the dinosaurs, but they were their cousins, not dinosaurs themselves.

Lived

227 to 201 million years ago2

Late Triassic

Fossils found in

Italy, France, Luxembourg, and Switzerland2

Food

Fish1 2

Length

1 m1

Wingspan

1 m1

Weight

up to 10 kg1

Artist's life restoration of Eudimorphodon — How Eudimorphodon may have looked, by Nobu Tamura email:[email protected] http://spinops.blogspot.com/ http://paleoexhibit.blogspot.com/. CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons. Scientists still argue about colours and details.

When did it live?

Triassic

Jurassic

Cretaceous

252 million years ago20114566, the asteroid

How big was it?

cool stuff

Fun facts

Eudimorphodon had 110 teeth packed into a jaw only 6 centimeters (2.4 inches) long. That is more teeth than most pterosaurs.1

Its teeth had multiple points, or cusps, with most having five cusps. This is very unusual for a pterosaur.1

When Eudimorphodon closed its mouth, the top and bottom teeth touched each other. This is the strongest tooth-to-tooth contact known in any pterosaur.1

Young Eudimorphodon had fewer teeth than adults and may have eaten insects instead of fish.1

The first Eudimorphodon fossil was discovered in 1973 by Mario Pandolfi in Cene, Italy. It was a nearly complete skeleton.1

Eudimorphodon lived during the Late Triassic, about 219 to 215 million years ago, making it one of the oldest known pterosaurs.1

For dino experts

Scientific name: Eudimorphodon
Named by: Zambelli 19732
Group: Flying reptiles
Family / clade: Campylognathoididae2
Classification: Pterosauria2
Age of the rocks: 227 to 201 million years (Norian to Rhaetian)2
Rock formations: Dolomia di Forni, Klettgau, Zorzino Limestone2
Countries: Italy, Switzerland, Luxembourg, France2
Fossil records: 13 in the Paleobiology Database2
Discovery: Eudimorphodon was discovered in 1973 by Mario Pandolfi in Cene, Italy. It was named the same year by Rocco Zambelli, who called the type species Eudimorphodon ranzii after Professor Silvio Ranzi.1 2
Still debated: Scientists are not sure where pterosaurs like Eudimorphodon fit in the reptile family tree. Some think they are close to dinosaurs, while others suggest different relatives.1

Where the facts come from

Eudimorphodon (en.wikipedia.org)
Eudimorphodon in The Paleobiology Database (CC BY 4.0): age, places, rock formations, classification.

Every fact on this page has a number that points to its source. If we got something wrong, sorry, we are dino fans, not a science journal. Tell us at [email protected] and we will fix it.