Open Paleo

Halticosaurus

Huene, 1908 HAL-tick-oh-SORE-us Nomen dubium

Jumping lizard; from Greek altikos (good at jumping) and sauros (lizard)

227.3–205.7 million years ago Norian, Late Triassic
Late Triassic stages

Halticosaurus is a dubious genus of theropod dinosaur from the late Triassic period (middle Norian stage, around 215.6-208 million years ago). It is known from a single fragmentary fossil specimen of the species H. longotarsus, found in the Middle Stubensandstein formation of what is present-day Germany The only known specimen was poorly preserved and may have been put together from bones of unrelated animals. Further research would be required to determine which of the bones belonged together, and what kind of theropod Halticosaurus was. However, most of the bones have been lost. For these reasons, Halticosaurus is considered to be a nomen dubium.

Under dispute

Halticosaurus longotarsus is a nomen dubium; only fragmentary femora remain referable after other material was reassigned to Liliensternus, Sellosaurus and the loricatan Apatosuchus (Rauhut and Hungerbühler, 2000).

Species

Halticosaurus longotarsus Huene, 1908 Nomen dubium

Type species

From Latin 'longus' meaning 'long' and Greek 'tarsos' meaning 'ankle' or 'tarsus', together meaning 'long ankle', in reference to features of the hindlimb.

Holotype
SMNS 11839 , Staatliches Museum für Naturkunde
Material
Cervical, dorsal, sacral and caudal vertebrae; humerus fragment; ileum fragment; femur; metatarsal; lower jaw fragment
Notes
Huene (1908) gives no number. Galton (1985) and Sues and Schoch (2025) give the holotype as SMNS 11839; Rauhut and Hungerbühler (2000) give the series as SMNS 12353, the number Sues and Schoch give the Apatosuchus holotype, SMNS 12353b.
Horizon
Löwenstein Formation, Norian, Late Triassic , 227.3–205.7 million years ago
Locality
Weisser Steinbruch, Baden-Württemberg, Germany Huene (1908) names the horizon only the Stubensandstein, placing the find on the Stromberghöhe near Pfaffenhofen. The holotype combines bones of more than one individual from the quarry.

References

  1. Galton, P. M. (1985). The poposaurid thecodontian Teratosaurus suevicus v. Meyer, plus referred specimens mostly based on prosauropod dinosaurs, from the Middle Stubensandstein (Upper Triassic) of Nordwürttemberg. Stuttgarter Beiträge zur Naturkunde, Serie B (Geologie und Paläontologie) 116: 1-29.

    Figures the proximal right femur as "part of holotype SMNS 11839".

    galton1985c
  2. Huene, F. V. (1908). Die Dinosaurier der Europäischen Triasformation mit berücksichtigung der Ausseuropäischen vorkommnisse [The dinosaurs of the European Triassic formations with consideration of occurrences outside Europe]. Geologische und Palaeontologische Abhandlungen Suppl. 1(1): 1-419. huene1908a
  3. Rauhut, O. W. M.; Hungerbühler, A. (2000). A review of European Triassic theropods. Gaia 15: 75-88.

    Reviewed European Triassic theropods, treating Halticosaurus longotarsus as a nomen dubium.

    rauhut2000a
  4. Sues, H. D.; Schoch, R. R. (2025). Synopsis of the Triassic reptiles from Germany. Fossil Record 28(2): 411-483. Pensoft Publishers. doi:10.3897/fr.28.164405

    Gives the holotype's horizon as the middle Stubensandstein of the Lowenstein Formation, which the describing paper predates.

    sues2025a