Eternauta patagonica
| Eternauta patagonica Temporal range: Late Jurassic,
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|---|---|
| Skull of Eternauta patagonica (photograph and diagram in right view) | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Reptilia |
| Order: | †Ichthyosauria |
| Family: | †Ophthalmosauridae |
| Subfamily: | †Platypterygiinae |
| Genus: | †Eternauta Campos et al., 2025 |
| Species: | †E. patagonica
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| Binomial name | |
| †Eternauta patagonica Campos et al., 2025
| |
Eternauta patagonica is an extinct species of ophthalmosaurid ichthyosaurian known from the Late Jurassic (Tithonian age) Vaca Muerta Formation of Argentina. E. patagonica is the only species in the genus Eternauta, known from a nearly complete skull with an associated rib and front flipper. The anatomy of the mandible and scleral ring indicate Eternauta had a different feeding strategy compared to other ichthyosaurs it coexisted with.