Paleontologists have unveiled a remarkable discovery, published in the June 2025 issue of PalZ, adding a new species to the pterosaur family. The newly described Spathagnathus roeperi, found in the Solnhofen limestones of southern Germany, lived around 150 million years ago in the Solnhofen Archipelago, offering fresh insights into the diversity and evolution of pterosaurs during the Late Jurassic.
Discovery and Fossil Significance
The fossilized remains of Spathagnathus roeperi were recovered from the Brunn quarry near Regensburg, one of the oldest and most significant localities within the Solnhofen complex. This area has yielded countless fossils over the past two centuries, providing exceptional insight into a subtropical marine environment that existed during the Late Jurassic period.
The specimen consists primarily of a fragment of the rostum, with a tooth row still intact. Its discovery contributes to the ever-growing fossil record of the Solnhofen region. The study’s lead author, Dr. Alexandra Fernandes, a renowned paleontologist from the Bayerische Staatssammlung für Paläontologie und Geologie and the American Museum of Natural History, emphasized the unparalleled quality and importance of these fossils. “The Solnhofen limestones of southern Germany are widely recognized as one of the most productive fossil Konservat-Lagerstätten known to date,” she said.
A Rich Fossil Haven
The Solnhofen region, located between Solnhofen and Regensburg, has been a focal point for paleontological research for over 200 years, continuously yielding an extraordinary volume of material. This ongoing exploration has provided invaluable information about the subtropical shallow marine ecosystem that existed along the northern shore of the Tethys Ocean during the Late Jurassic.
“The localities and beds found in the area between Solnhofen and Regensburg have been continually explored for some 200+ years, yielding exceptional material at a prolific rate, and thereby giving a uniquely comprehensive insight into a subtropical shallow marine paleoenvironment of the Late Jurassic,” noted Dr. Fernandes. This statement underscores the unique significance of the Solnhofen limestones, which have been instrumental in shaping our understanding of prehistoric ecosystems.
Solnhofen Archipelago: A Pivotal Marine Environment
One of the most intriguing aspects of the Solnhofen region is its paleobiodiversity. The region’s high diversity is linked to its depositional setting in shallow marine reefs. Fossil remains from this area represent a wide range of ancient life forms, including marine reptiles, early birds, and a variety of pterosaurs. This diversity is attributed to the region’s unique environmental conditions, where shallow depressions in the sea floor acted as natural traps for the preservation of ancient life.
“The high paleobiodiversity of the faunal assemblage in the overarching Solnhofen region is attributed to its original depositional setting in depressions within a shallow marine reef environment at the northern shore of the Tethys Ocean, so that this setting has been dubbed the fossil assemblage of the Solnhofen Archipelago in the recent literature,” explained Dr. Fernandes. This intricate marine environment played a crucial role in the exceptional preservation of fossils, making Solnhofen one of the most important paleontological sites in the world.
