''Solnhofia'' is a

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 species is ''Solnhofia parsonsi'', named by Gaffney in

1975 It was also declared the ''International Women's Year'' by the United Nations and the European Architectural Heritage Year by the Council of Europe. Events January * January 1 - Watergate scandal (United States): John N. Mitchell, H. R. ...

for a partial skull and jaw 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 ...

. Additional material including a complete skeleton is known from the late

Kimmeridgian In the geologic timescale, the Kimmeridgian is an age in the Late Jurassic Epoch and a stage in the Upper Jurassic Series. It spans the time between 157.3 ± 1.0 Ma and 152.1 ± 0.9 Ma (million years ago). The Kimmeridgian follows the Oxford ...

of Switzerland and the Kimmeridgian/Tithonian of other deposits within Bavaria, and potentially also unprepared material from the Late Jurassic of

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan ar ...

. The genus was referred to the family

Eurysternidae Eurysternidae is an extinct family of turtles in the clade Thalassochelydia. It consists of several genera of marine turtles from marine deposits in Europe, including ''Achelonia'', ''Chelonides'', ''Eurysternum''. ''Hydropelta'', ''Chelonides'' ...

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 ...

, which may represent an artificial grade of early thalassochelydians. In 2020 a new species ''Solnhofia brachyrhyncha'' was described from the Kimmeridigan aged

Reuchenette Formation The Reuchenette Formation is a Jurassic geologic formation in Switzerland. It is Kimmeridgian in age and predominantly consists of well stratified limestone, with lithology variable both laterally and stratigraphically including wackestones, pa ...

of Switzerland.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q96405975 Thalassochelydia Prehistoric turtle genera Kimmeridgian genera Tithonian genera Late Jurassic turtles Late Jurassic reptiles of Europe Jurassic Germany Fossils of Germany Solnhofen fauna Jurassic Switzerland Fossils of Switzerland Fossil taxa described in 1975 Taxa named by Eugene S. Gaffney