Marocokatognathus

Marocokatognathus
Temporal range: PalaeoceneEocene boundary,
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Reptilia
Order: Testudines
Suborder: Cryptodira
Family: Cheloniidae
Genus: Marocokatognathus
Lapparent de Broin, Murelaga & Vacant, 2025
Species:
M. jimenezi
Binomial name
Marocokatognathus jimenezi
Lapparent de Broin, Murelaga & Vacant, 2025

Marocokatognathus (lit.'Moroccan lower jaw') is an extinct genus of sea turtle in the family Cheloniidae known from the lower Paleogene Ouled Abdoun Basin of Morocco. The genus contains a single species, Marocokatognathus jimenezi, known from part of a lower jaw. Compared to all other sea turtles, the lower beak of Marocokatognathus is unusually long, with an upward curve. The narrowness of the beak implies it did not consume an abundance of hard-shelled food.[1]

References

  1. ^ Lapparent de Broin, France de; Murelaga, Xabier; Vacant, Renaud (October–December 2025). "A chelonioid turtle with a long, upward curved, lower jaw beak, phosphates of Morocco, Paleocene-Eocene transition". Annales de Paléontologie. 111 (4). 102901. doi:10.1016/j.annpal.2025.102901.