''Eromangateuthis'' is an extinct genus of large plesioteuthidid

cephalopod A cephalopod is any member of the molluscan Taxonomic rank, class Cephalopoda (Greek language, Greek plural , ; "head-feet") such as a squid, octopus, cuttlefish, or nautilus. These exclusively marine animals are characterized by bilateral symm ...

from the

Cretaceous The Cretaceous ( ) is a geological period that lasted from about 143.1 to 66 mya (unit), million years ago (Mya). It is the third and final period of the Mesozoic Era (geology), Era, as well as the longest. At around 77.1 million years, it is the ...

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

and possibly

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

Description

''Eromangateuthis soniae'' is known from several gladii found in the

Allaru Formation The Allaru Formation, also known as the Allaru Mudstone, is a geological formation in Queensland, Australia, whose strata date back to the Early Cretaceous. Dinosaur remains are among the fossils that have been recovered from the formation.Weis ...

Queensland Queensland ( , commonly abbreviated as Qld) is a States and territories of Australia, state in northeastern Australia, and is the second-largest and third-most populous state in Australia. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Austr ...

and a potential gladius from the

Northumberland Formation The Northumberland Formation is a Late Cretaceous (?Campanian-?Maastrichtian)-aged geologic Formation (geology), formation in Canada. It belongs to the larger Nanaimo Group. Indeterminate bird and pterosaur fossils have been recovered from the for ...

British Columbia British Columbia is the westernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Situated in the Pacific Northwest between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains, the province has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that ...

. It was originally described in 1993 as ''

Boreopeltis ''Boreopeltis'' is an extinct genus of plesioteuthidid cephalopod, with 4 known species. Species * ''Boreopeltis helgolandiae'' (Engeser & Reitner, 1985) from the Aptian. * ''Boreopeltis sagittata'' (Naef, 1921) from the Tithonian. * ''Bore ...

soniae'', but was moved to its own genus in 2019 based on multiple differences between it and the type species of ''Boreopeltis''. The generic name is derived from the

Eromanga Basin The Eromanga Basin is a large Mesozoic sedimentary basin in central and northern Australia. It covers parts of Queensland, the Northern Territory, South Australia, and New South Wales, and is a major component of the Great Artesian Basin. The Er ...

in which it was discovered and the

Ancient Greek Ancient Greek (, ; ) includes the forms of the Greek language used in ancient Greece and the classical antiquity, ancient world from around 1500 BC to 300 BC. It is often roughly divided into the following periods: Mycenaean Greek (), Greek ...

''teuthís'' ( τευθίς, 'squid'). One gladius suggests it had a mantle length of 1.2 meters. This makes ''Eromangateuthis'' the largest known plesioteuthidid, with a mantle length over twice as long as the second largest, ''Boreopeltis ifrimae''.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q112893063 Fossil taxa described in 2019 Octopodiformes Monotypic prehistoric cephalopod genera