# Haopterus

> Mediated Wiki article. Canonical URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Haopterus
> Markdown URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Haopterus.md
> Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Haopterus
> Source revision: 1320098317
> License: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/)

Genus of pteranodontoid pterosaur from the Early Cretaceous

Haopterus Temporal range: Early Cretaceous, 124.6 Ma PreꞒ Ꞓ O S D C P T J K Pg N Holotype fossil specimen, Paleozoological Museum of China Scientific classification Kingdom: Animalia Phylum: Chordata Class: Reptilia Order: †Pterosauria Suborder: †Pterodactyloidea Clade: †Lanceodontia Clade: †Istiodactyliformes Clade: †Mimodactylidae Genus: †Haopterus Wang & Lü, 2001 Type species †Haopterus gracilis Wang & Lü, 2001

***Haopterus*** is a [genus](/source/Genus) of [pterodactyloid](/source/Pterodactyloidea) [pterosaur](/source/Pterosaur) from the [Barremian](/source/Barremian)-[Aptian](/source/Aptian)-age [Lower Cretaceous](/source/Lower_Cretaceous) [Yixian Formation](/source/Yixian_Formation) of [Liaoning](/source/Liaoning), [China](/source/China). Its fossil remains dated back 124.6 million years ago.

## Discovery and naming

It was in 2001 named by [Wang Xiaolin](https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Wang_Xiaolin&action=edit&redlink=1) and [Lü Junchang](/source/L%C3%BC_Junchang). The [type species](/source/Type_species) is *Haopterus gracilis*. The genus name honors Professor [Hao Yichun](/source/Hao_Yichun) and combines her name with a Latinized Greek *pteron*, "wing". The [specific name](/source/Specific_name_(zoology)), "slender-built" in [Latin](/source/Latin), refers to the condition of the [metatarsals](/source/Metatarsals).

The genus is based on [holotype](/source/Holotype) [IVPP V11726](/source/Institute_of_Vertebrate_Paleontology_and_Paleoanthropology), a crushed fossil found in 1998 at the [Sihetun](https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Sihetun&action=edit&redlink=1)-locality. The layer it was discovered in was [argon-dated](/source/Potassium-argon_dating) at an age of 124.6 million years. It was the first Chinese pterosaur fossil preserving the skull. It consists of the front half of a [subadult](/source/Juvenile_(organism)), including a skull, lower jaws, [pectoral girdle](/source/Pectoral_girdle), [sternum](/source/Sternum), wings, [cervical](/source/Neck) and [dorsal](/source/Dorsum_(biology)) [vertebrae](/source/Vertebra), partial [pelvis](/source/Ischium) and metatarsals.

## Description

Graphic model of the tongue of *Haopterus* (top) in comparison with that of *[Liaoxipterus](/source/Liaoxipterus)* (bottom)

*H. gracilis* specimen BMNHC Ph767 skull, [National Museum of Natural Science](/source/National_Museum_of_Natural_Science)

The skull of *Haopterus* is with a length of 145 millimeters (5.7 in) long and low, lacking a crest. The snout is pointed but rounded. The [maxilla](/source/Maxilla) and [praemaxilla](/source/Praemaxilla) are completely fused with no visible [suture](/source/Suture_(anatomy)). The nasopraeorbital skull opening is elongated and elliptical with a length of 4 centimeters (1.6 in), 27,6 percent of the total skull length. The lower jaws have a length of 128 millimeters (5.0 in). On the front two thirds of their length teeth are present. There are twelve pairs of teeth in both the upper and the lower jaws. The [teeth](/source/Teeth) are robust, sharp, pointed, and curving backwards. To the front they gradually increase in length and point more to the front. The first three pairs in the praemaxilla are very small though; the describers assumed these were replacement teeth, recently erupted.

The back of the skull and the cervical vertebrae are strongly crushed, obscuring most details. Eight dorsal vertebrae are preserved, with a total length of 52 millimeters (2.0 in). The sternum was fan-shaped with a prominent keel. The wings are robustly built; the [ulna](/source/Ulna) is with 101 millimeters (4.0 in) longer than the wing metacarpal which has a length of 89 millimeters (3.5 in). The [wingspan](/source/Wingspan) of the type individual was estimated at 1.35 meter (4.43 ft). In comparison, the hindlimbs must have been weakly built, the metatarsal having a length of just 17 millimeters (0.67 in).

## Phylogeny

*Haopterus* was by Wang classified as a member of the [Pterodactylidae](/source/Pterodactylidae), mainly because of the combination of robust teeth with the lack of a skull crest. In 2006 however, a [cladistic](/source/Cladistic) analysis by Lü showed it was a basal member of the [Ornithocheiroidea](/source/Ornithocheiroidea) *sensu* Unwin (2003).[1] Later, an analysis by Kellner *et al.*, 2019 showed *Haopterus* to be a close relative of *[Mimodactylus](/source/Mimodactylus)*. Together they form the family [Mimodactylidae](/source/Mimodactylidae), which is the sister group to the [Istiodactylidae](/source/Istiodactylidae).[2]

The [cladogram](/source/Cladogram) below follows Witton's 2012 analysis:[3]

Pterodactylus antiquus Pteranodon longiceps Coloborhynchus spielbergi Hongshanopterus lacustris Haopterus gracilis Istiodactylidae Nurhachius ignaciobritoi Longchengpterus zhaoi Istiodactylus latidens Istiodactylus sinensis Liaoxipterus brachyognathus

Teeth (below) compared to those of *[Mimodactylus](/source/Mimodactylus)*

The cladogram below is a topology recovered by Kellner *et al.* (2019). In the analyses, they recovered *Haopterus* as the sister taxon of *[Mimodactylus](/source/Mimodactylus)* within the family [Mimodactylidae](/source/Mimodactylidae), and placed within the more inclusive group [Istiodactyliformes](/source/Istiodactyliformes).[4]

Istiodactyliformes Mimodactylidae Haopterus Mimodactylus Hongshanopterus Istiodactylidae Nurhachius Istiodactylinae Istiodactylus Liaoxipterus

## Paleobiology

The authors concluded that its slender hindfeet meant that it was forced to move [quadrupedally](/source/Quadruped) on land, suggesting a [piscivore](/source/Piscivore) lifestyle as a specialised soarer.[5] Although its close relative *[Mimodactylus](/source/Mimodactylus)* was considered to be a faunivore feeding on crustaceans, suggested by Kellner *et al.*, 2019.[4]

## See also

- [List of pterosaur genera](/source/List_of_pterosaur_genera)

- [Timeline of pterosaur research](/source/Timeline_of_pterosaur_research)

## References

1. **[^](#cite_ref-1)** Lü Junchang and Ji Qiang (2006), "Preliminary results of a phylogenetic analysis of the pterosaurs from western Liaoning and surrounding area", *Journal of the Paleontological Society of Korea* **22** (1): 239–261

1. **[^](#cite_ref-2)** Kellner, Alexander W. A.; Caldwell, Michael W.; Holgado, Borja; Vecchia, Fabio M. Dalla; Nohra, Roy; Sayão, Juliana M.; Currie, Philip J. (2019-11-29). ["First complete pterosaur from the Afro-Arabian continent: insight into pterodactyloid diversity"](https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6884559). *Scientific Reports*. **9** (1): 17875. [Bibcode](/source/Bibcode_(identifier)):[2019NatSR...917875K](https://ui.adsabs.harvard.edu/abs/2019NatSR...917875K). [doi](/source/Doi_(identifier)):[10.1038/s41598-019-54042-z](https://doi.org/10.1038%2Fs41598-019-54042-z). [ISSN](/source/ISSN_(identifier)) [2045-2322](https://search.worldcat.org/issn/2045-2322). [PMC](/source/PMC_(identifier)) [6884559](https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6884559). [PMID](/source/PMID_(identifier)) [31784545](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/31784545).

1. **[^](#cite_ref-witton2012_3-0)** Witton, Mark P. (2012). ["New Insights into the Skull of *Istiodactylus latidens* (Ornithocheiroidea, Pterodactyloidea)"](https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3310040). *PLOS ONE*. **7** (3) e33170. [Bibcode](/source/Bibcode_(identifier)):[2012PLoSO...733170W](https://ui.adsabs.harvard.edu/abs/2012PLoSO...733170W). [doi](/source/Doi_(identifier)):[10.1371/journal.pone.0033170](https://doi.org/10.1371%2Fjournal.pone.0033170). [PMC](/source/PMC_(identifier)) [3310040](https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3310040). [PMID](/source/PMID_(identifier)) [22470442](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/22470442).

1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-Mimodactylus_4-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-Mimodactylus_4-1) Kellner, Alexander W. A.; Caldwell, Michael W.; Holgado, Borja; Vecchia, Fabio M. Dalla; Nohra, Roy; Sayão, Juliana M.; Currie, Philip J. (2019). ["First complete pterosaur from the Afro-Arabian continent: insight into pterodactyloid diversity"](https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6884559). *Scientific Reports*. **9** (1): 17875. [Bibcode](/source/Bibcode_(identifier)):[2019NatSR...917875K](https://ui.adsabs.harvard.edu/abs/2019NatSR...917875K). [doi](/source/Doi_(identifier)):[10.1038/s41598-019-54042-z](https://doi.org/10.1038%2Fs41598-019-54042-z). [PMC](/source/PMC_(identifier)) [6884559](https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6884559). [PMID](/source/PMID_(identifier)) [31784545](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/31784545).

1. **[^](#cite_ref-WL01_5-0)** Wang X. and Lü J. (2001). Discovery of a pterodactyloid pterosaur from the Yixian Formation of western Liaoning, China. *Chinese Science Bulletin* **45**(12):447–454.

## External links

- [*Haopterus*](https://web.archive.org/web/20070923153840/http://archosauria.org/pterosauria/taxonomy/genera/haopterus.html) in The Pterosauria

v t e Pterosauria Kingdom: Animalia Phylum: Chordata Class: Sauropsida Clade: Archosauria Clade: Avemetatarsalia Clade: Pterosauromorpha Avemetatarsalia see Avemetatarsalia Pterosauria see below↓ Pterosauria Pterosauria Daohugoupterus Eotephradactylus Preondactylia Austriadactylus Preondactylus Caviramidae? Carniadactylus? Caviramus Raeticodactylus? Austriadraconidae Arcticodactylus? Austriadraco Seazzadactylus Eopterosauria Austriadraco? Peteinosaurus? Preondactylia? Raeticodactylidae Caviramus? Pachagnathus Raeticodactylus Yelaphomte Eudimorphodontidae Arcticodactylus? Carniadactylus? Eudimorphodon Zambellisauria? Peteinosaurus? Macronychoptera Herbstosaurus Dimorphodontidae Allkaruen? Caelestiventus Dimorphodon Parapsicephalus? Peteinosaurus? Rhamphinion? Lonchognatha? Eudimorphodon? Novialoidea Campylognathoididae Bergamodactylus Campylognathoides Rhamphorhynchidae Angustinaripterus Bellubrunnus Cacibupteryx Dearc Dolicorhamphus? Dorygnathus Harpactognathus Klobiodon Nesodactylus Orientognathus Parapsicephalus? Qinglongopterus Rhamphorhynchus Sericipterus Scaphognathidae? Scaphognathidae? Fenghuangopterus Jianchangnathus Jianchangopterus Scaphognathus Sordes? Pterodactylomorpha see below↓ Pterodactylomorpha Pterodactylomorpha Allkaruen? Sordes? Monofenestrata Archaeoistiodactylus Makrodactylus Melkamter Normannognathus Anurognathidae? Darwinoptera Ceoptera Pterorhynchus Wukongopteridae Archaeoistiodactylus? Cuspicephalus Darwinopterus Douzhanopterus? Kunpengopterus Wukongopterus Pterodactyliformes Changchengopterus? Douzhanopterus Laueropterus Skiphosoura Caelidracones Anurognathidae Anurognathus Batrachognathus Cascocauda Dendrorhynchoides? Jeholopterus? Luopterus Mesadactylus Sinomacrops Vesperopterylus Pterodactyloidea Dermodactylus Eurolimnornis Herbstosaurus? Kryptodrakon Ningchengopterus Pangupterus Propterodactylus Samrukia? Wenupteryx Lophocratia see below↓ Lophocratia Archaeopterodactyloidea Prejanopterus Germanodactylidae Altmuehlopterus? Germanodactylus Normannognathus? Tendaguripterus? Euctenochasmatia Diopecephalus Pterodactylus Ctenochasmatoidea Gallodactylidae Aurorazhdarcho? Cycnorhamphus Normannognathus? Petrodactyle? Moganopterinae? Aurorazhdarchia Aerodactylus Gallodactylidae? Aurorazhdarchidae Ardeadactylus? Aurorazhdarcho Huanhepterus? Ctenochasmatidae Ardeadactylus? Balaenognathus Beipiaopterus Cathayopterus Cratonopterus Ctenochasma Elanodactylus Eosipterus Feilongus Forfexopterus Garudapterus Gegepterus Gladocephaloideus Gnathosaurus Huanhepterus? Kepodactylus Liaodactylus Lusognathus Moganopterus Otogopterus Petrodactyle? Plataleorhynchus Pterodaustro Pterofiltrus Spathagnathus Tacuadactylus Eupterodactyloidea Altmuehlopterus? Ornithocheiroidea see below↓ Ornithocheiroidea Ornithocheiroidea Piksi? Tapejaroidea Dsungaripteridae Banguela? Domeykodactylus Dsungaripterus Lonchognathosaurus? Noripterus Ordosipterus Puntanipterus? Tendaguripterus? Azhdarchoidea Inabtanin Ornithostoma Tapejaromorpha Bennettazhia Keresdrakon? Thalassodromidae? Alanqa? Argentinadraco? Banguela? Kariridraco Leptostomia? Thalassodromeus Tupuxuara Xericeps? Tapejaridae Afrotapejara Aymberedactylus Bakonydraco? Caiuajara Caupedactylus Eopteranodon? Europejara Huaxiadraco Keresdrakon? Lacusovagus? Nemicolopterus Sinopterus Tapejara Torukjara Tupandactylus Vectidraco Wightia Neoazhdarchia Dsungaripteromorpha? Microtuban Dsungaripteridae Thalassodromidae? Azhdarchomorpha Chaoyangopteridae Apatorhamphus? Chaoyangopterus Eoazhdarcho Jidapterus Lacusovagus? Meilifeilong Microtuban? Shenzhoupterus Azhdarchiformes Montanazhdarcho Radiodactylus Alanqidae? Alanqa Argentinadraco? Keresdrakon? Leptostomia? Montanazhdarcho? Xericeps? Azhdarchidae Aerotitan? Alanqa? Albadraco? Aralazhdarcho Arambourgiania Azhdarcho Cryodrakon Eurazhdarcho? Galgadraco Gobiazhdarcho Hatzegopteryx Infernodrakon Mistralazhdarcho? Navajodactylus? Nipponopterus Palaeocursornis Phosphatodraco? Quetzalcoatlus Thanatosdrakon Tsogtopteryx Wellnhopterus? Zhejiangopterus? Pteranodontoidea see below↓ Pteranodontoidea Pteranodontoidea Santanadactylus Pteranodontia Pteranodontidae Bogolubovia Dawndraco Pteranodon Tethydraco Volgadraco? Nyctosauromorpha Alamodactylus Cretornis Volgadraco? Aponyctosauria Alcione Epapatelo Simurghia Nyctosauridae Barbaridactylus Muzquizopteryx Nyctosaurus Ornithocheiromorpha Aussiedraco Serradraco Unwindia Lonchodectidae Ikrandraco Lonchodectes Lonchodraco? Lanceodontia Draigwenia Lonchodectidae? Istiodactyliformes Hongshanopterus? Linlongopterus Yixianopterus Lonchodectidae? Mimodactylidae Haopterus Linlongopterus Mimodactylus Istiodactylidae Istiodactylus Liaoxipterus Lingyuanopterus Longchengpterus Luchibang Nurhachius Ornithocheiriformes Barbosania Brasileodactylus Cearadactylus Hamipterus Boreopteridae Boreopterus Zhenyuanopterus Ornithocheirae Ornithocheiridae Aetodactylus? Araripesaurus Arthurdactylus Camposipterus? Caulkicephalus? Cimoliopterus? Coloborhynchus? Draigwenia? Ferrodraco? Guidraco? Haliskia? Ludodactylus? Mythunga? Ornithocheirus Siroccopteryx? Tropeognathus? Uktenadactylus? Targaryendraconia? Saratovia Cimoliopteridae Aetodactylus Camposipterus? Cimoliopterus Targaryendraconidae Aussiedraco? Barbosania? Targaryendraco Anhangueria Brasileodactylus? Ornithocheiridae? Hamipteridae? Hamipterus Iberodactylus Anhangueridae Aerodraco Akharhynchus Anhanguera Amblydectes? Caulkicephalus? Cearadactylus? Coloborhynchus Ferrodraco? Guidraco Haliskia? Liaoningopterus Ludodactylus Maaradactylus Mythunga Nicorhynchus Siroccopteryx? Thapunngaka Tropeognathus Uktenadactylus

Taxon identifiers Haopterus Wikidata: Q137490 GBIF: 4818454 IRMNG: 1389047 Open Tree of Life: 4946586 Paleobiology Database: 138740

[Portals](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Contents/Portals):
- [Paleontology](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Portal:Paleontology)
- [China](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Portal:China)

---
Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Haopterus](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Haopterus) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Haopterus?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.