Published December 4, 2025 | Version v1
Taxonomic treatment Open

Vellbergia bartholomaei Sobral, Simoes, & Schoch 2020

  • 1. Department of Paleobiology, National Museum of Natural History, MRC 121, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC 20560, USA
  • 2. Staatliches Museum für Naturkunde Stuttgart, Rosenstein 1, 70191 Stuttgart, Germany & Institut für Biologie, Universität Hohenheim, Garbenstrasse 30, 70599 Stuttgart, Germany

Description

Vellbergia bartholomaei Sobral, Simões, & Schoch, 2020

Holotype.

SMNS 91590, partial skull obliquely exposed in left lateral view (Fig. 11 B).

Type locality.

Schumann Quarry, Bed E 6, near Eschenau, Vellberg municipality, Schwäbisch Hall district, Baden-Württemberg.

Type horizon.

Untere Graue Mergel, Erfurt Formation, Lower Keuper Subgroup. Age: Middle Triassic (Ladinian: Longobardian).

Diagnosis.

Distinguished by the following combination of features: frontal with distinct anterolateral and large posterolateral process; prefrontal dorsoventrally deep and not expanded; and symphyseal portion of hemimandible strongly turned medially (based on Sobral et al. 2020).

Comments.

The phylogenetic analysis by Sobral et al. (2020) found Vellbergia bartholomaei as an early-diverging lepidosauromorph. Ford et al. (2021) recovered this taxon as the sister-taxon to Rhynchocephalia.

References.

Sobral et al. (2020), Ford et al. (2021).

Notes

Published as part of Sues, Hans-Dieter & Schoch, Rainer R., 2025, Synopsis of the Triassic reptiles from Germany, pp. 411-483 in Fossil Record 28 (2) on pages 411-483, DOI: 10.3897/fr.28.164405

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Linked records

Additional details

Biodiversity

Collection code
SMNS
Material sample ID
SMNS 91590
Scientific name authorship
Sobral, Simoes, & Schoch
Kingdom
Animalia
Phylum
Chordata
Genus
Vellbergia
Species
bartholomaei
Taxon rank
species
Type status
holotype
Taxonomic concept label
Vellbergia bartholomaei Sobral, 2020 sec. Sues & Schoch, 2025

References

  • Sobral G, Simões T, Schoch RR (2020) A tiny new Middle Triassic stem-lepidosauromorph from Germany: implications for the early evolution of lepidosauromorphs and the Vellberg fauna. Scientific Reports 10: 2273. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-020-58883-x
  • Ford DP, Evans SE, Choiniere JN, Fernandez V, Benson RBJ (2021) A reassessment of the enigmatic diapsid Paliguana whitei and the early history of Lepidosauromorpha. Proceedings of the Royal Society B 288: 20211084. https://doi.org/10.1098/rspb.2021.1084