YEAR-CLASSES OF PTEROSAURS FROM THE SOLNHOFEN LIMESTONE OF GERMANY - TAXONOMIC AND SYSTEMATIC IMPLICATIONS

Statistical analyses of measurement data and morphological studies of pterosaur fossils from the Upper Jurassic Solnhofen Limestone of Germa ny reveal the presence of year-classes resulting from repeated seasona l sampling of pterosaur populations. Year-classes of Rhamphorhynchus h ad previously been named as separate species. Similar year-classes of nominal species of Pterodactylus indicate that size-classes of some pt erodactyloid species also had been named as separate species or genera . Lumping the nominal species reduces the Solnhofen pterosaur fauna to a small number of large species, and suggests that some long-held ide as about pterosaur evolution are incorrect.