Overview
- The new genus and species Wyoteuthis linsterorum was formally described in a peer‑reviewed paper published September 10, 2026, based on two rare fossils from Wyoming's Sundance Formation.
- Researchers used computed tomography to study internal structure without damage and concluded the rostrum is about 10 cm long and up to 6 cm wide, the thickest recorded for any belemnite.
- The authors place Wyoteuthis in the family Megateuthididae, which shows that a megateuthidid-grade lineage persisted into the Oxfordian stage of the Late Jurassic.
- The team estimates the live animal measured roughly 60 cm long and suggests its bulky rostrum may have been an adaptation for preying on smaller co-occurring belemnites such as Pachyteuthis.
- Both specimens are now on public display at the Wyoming Dinosaur Center and the species name honors fossil collector Cliff Linster, who found one specimen and donated it for study.