Jaekelopterus is a genus of predatory eurypterid, a group of extinct aquatic arthropods. There are two known species: the type species J. rhenaniae from brackish to fresh water strata in the Rhineland, and J. howelli from estuarine stratum in Wyoming. Both species were first described as species of the closely related Pterygotus but were raised as a separate genus based on an observed difference in the genital appendage.
About Jaekelopterus in brief
Jaekelopterus is a genus of predatory eurypterid, a group of extinct aquatic arthropods. There are two known species: the type species J. rhenaniae from brackish to fresh water strata in the Rhineland, and J. howelli from estuarine stratum in Wyoming. Based on the isolated fossil remains of a large chelicera from the Klerf Formation of Germany, J. rhensaniae has been estimated to have reached a size of around 2. 3–2. 6 metres. J.Howelli is much smaller, reaching 80 centimetres in length. Both species were first described as species of the closely related Pterygotus but were raised as a separate genus based on an observed difference in the genital appendage. The chelicerae and compound eyes of JaekelopterUS indicate it was active and powerful with high visual acuity, most likely an apex predator in the ecosystems of Early Devonian Euramerica. The type species was originally described as a species of Ptery gotus, but this was later proved to be a misidentification. The genus is distinguished by its triangular telson and inclined principal denticles on its cheliceral rami. It also preserves a flattened posterior margin of the telson, which results in a triangular shape, as well as a massive serrated telson. Its second intermediate denticle clearly distinguishes it from J. rhenaniase, which is not bifurcated at the end of its end, but is at its end at the base of the second serrated denticle.
It is thought to have lived in fresh water environments, but fossils suggest it was more likely to have been in the sea. It was found in deposits of the Pragian and Emsian stages of the Devonian era, from the Rhinseland to the Wyoming coast. Jaekelpterus is the largest known arthropod to have ever existed, surpassing other large arthropids such as Acutiramus and PteryGotus and the millipede Arthropleura. It has a large, expanded telson and enlarged pincers and forelimbs, likely used as rudders when swimming. Another feature distinguishing the group from other euryopterid groups is their flattened and expanded telsons, likely Used as Rudders, likely as a rudder to catch fish. The telson has a different inclination of the denticles of the claws, relative to other pterygotid eurypterids, which are more similar to modern crustaceans. Its compound eyes indicate that it was a powerful predator, with a keen sense of smell and a keen ability to spot prey. It lived in a fresh water environment in the early Devonian stages of Europe and the U.S. Its fossil remains were found in strata of Willwerath, Germany, and the Rhineland.
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This page is based on the article Jaekelopterus published in Wikipedia (as of Nov. 06, 2020) and was automatically summarized using artificial intelligence.
