''Aplax'' is a dubious

genus Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms as well as viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus comes above species and below family. In binomial n ...

of extinct

thalassochelydia Thalassochelydia is a clade of extinct marine turtles from the Late Jurassic and earliest Cretaceous of Europe and South America. The group is defined as including ''Eurysternum'', ''Plesiochelys'' and '' Thalassemys'' to the exclusion of '' Pe ...

n turtle from the

Late Jurassic The Late Jurassic is the third epoch of the Jurassic Period, and it spans the geologic time from 163.5 ± 1.0 to 145.0 ± 0.8 million years ago (Ma), which is preserved in Upper Jurassic strata.Owen 1987. In European lithostratigraphy, the ...

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG),, is a country in Central Europe. It is the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany lies between the Baltic and North Sea to the north and the Alps to the sou ...

. The type and only species is ''Aplax oberndorferi'', named by Hermann von Meyer in

1843 Events January–March * January ** Serial publication of Charles Dickens's novel '' Martin Chuzzlewit'' begins in London; in the July chapters, he lands his hero in the United States. ** Edgar Allan Poe's short story "The Tell-Tale Heart" ...

for a complete juvenile skeleton from the early

Tithonian In the geological timescale, the Tithonian is the latest age of the Late Jurassic Epoch and the uppermost stage of the Upper Jurassic Series. It spans the time between 152.1 ± 4 Ma and 145.0 ± 4 Ma (million years ago). It is preceded by t ...

of the Solnhofen Formation in

Bavaria Bavaria ( ; ), officially the Free State of Bavaria (german: Freistaat Bayern, link=no ), is a state in the south-east of Germany. With an area of , Bavaria is the largest German state by land area, comprising roughly a fifth of the total l ...

. Despite being aware that shell morphology changes during growth, Meyer named ''Aplax'' due to his consideration it represented a relative of '' Dermochelys'', where the adults lack distinction of shell regions as in ''Aplax''. However the taxon was later referred to

Thalassochelydia Thalassochelydia is a clade of extinct marine turtles from the Late Jurassic and earliest Cretaceous of Europe and South America. The group is defined as including ''Eurysternum'', ''Plesiochelys'' and '' Thalassemys'' to the exclusion of '' Pe ...

by Anquetin and colleagues in

2017 File:2017 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: The War Against ISIS at the Battle of Mosul (2016-2017); aftermath of the Manchester Arena bombing; The Solar eclipse of August 21, 2017 ("Great American Eclipse"); North Korea tests a ser ...

, and due to the loss of the original holotype it cannot be identified as a distinct taxon of a juvenile of existing Solnhofen turtles and is therefore a ''

nomen dubium In binomial nomenclature, a ''nomen dubium'' (Latin for "doubtful name", plural ''nomina dubia'') is a scientific name that is of unknown or doubtful application. Zoology In case of a ''nomen dubium'' it may be impossible to determine whether a s ...

''.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q96372248 Thalassochelydia Prehistoric turtle genera Tithonian genera Late Jurassic turtles Late Jurassic reptiles of Europe Jurassic Germany Fossils of Germany Nomina dubia Fossil taxa described in 1843 Taxa named by Christian Erich Hermann von Meyer