Tupuxuara

Tupuxuara

Tupuxuara is a genus of thalassodromid pterosaur that lived during the Albian age of the Early Cretaceous, about 112 million years ago. Its remains were found in what is now the Romualdo Formation of the Santana Group in Brazil. Tupuxuara was named in 1988 by paleontologists Alexander Kellner and Diógenes de Almeida Campos. The name Tupuxuara means "familiar spirit" referring to a familiar spirit in the mythology of the Tupi people in Brazil. Two species have been named, T. longicristatus, the type species, and T. leonardii. An additional species has been named in 2009, T. deliradamus. However, the validity of this species has been put into question and it may not even belong to Tupuxuara. Tupuxuara was quite large in size. It had a big crest at the back portion of its head, stemming from the snout