Jesairosaurus is an extinct genus

Genus

In biology, a genus is a low-level taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms, which is an example of definition by genus and differentia...

 of prolacertiform archosauromorph known from Illizi Province

Illizi Province

Illizi is a province in the south-eastern corner of Algeria named after its eponymous seat.It borders Libya to the east, Ouargla Province to the north and, Tamanghasset Province to the east and south.-Administrative divisions:...

 of Algeria

Algeria

Algeria , officially the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria , also formally referred to as the Democratic and Popular Republic of Algeria, is a country in the Maghreb region of Northwest Africa with Algiers as its capital.In terms of land area, it is the largest country in Africa and the Arab...

.

Description

Jesairosaurus is known from the holotype

Holotype

A holotype is a single physical example of an organism, known to have been used when the species was formally described. It is either the single such physical example or one of several such, but explicitly designated as the holotype...

 ZAR 6, articulate

Articulate

Articulate may refer to:*Articulate *Articulate sign*Articulate sound*Joint, also known as articulation*Word modified by an article...

d and three-dimensionally preserved skull

Skull

The skull is a bony structure in the head of many animals that supports the structures of the face and forms a cavity for the brain.The skull is composed of two parts: the cranium and the mandible. A skull without a mandible is only a cranium. Animals that have skulls are called craniates...

 and pectoral girdle

Girdle

A girdle is a garment that encircles the lower torso, perhaps extending below the hips, and worn often for support. The word girdle originally meant a belt. In modern English, the term girdle is most commonly used for a form of women's foundation wear that replaced the corset in popularity...

 and from nine paratypes including ZAR 7-8, two skulls and two postcrania

Postcrania

Postcrania[p] in zoology and vertebrate paleontology refers to all or part of the skeleton apart from the skull. Frequently, fossil remains, e.g...

l skeleton

Skeleton

The skeleton is the body part that forms the supporting structure of an organism. There are two different skeletal types: the exoskeleton, which is the stable outer shell of an organism, and the endoskeleton, which forms the support structure inside the body.In a figurative sense, skeleton can...

s, ZAR 9, a skull and ZAR 10-15, postcrania. It was collected in the Gour Laoud, locality 5003 from the base of lower sandstones of the Lower Zarzaïtine Formation of Zarzaïtine Series, dating to the Anisian

Anisian

In the geologic timescale, the Anisian is the lower stage or earliest age of the Middle Triassic series or epoch and lasted from 245 million years ago until 237 million years ago, approximately...

-Olenekian

Olenekian

In the geologic timescale, the Olenekian is an age in the Early Triassic epoch or a stage in the Lower Triassic series. It spans the time between 249.7 ± 0.7 Ma and 245 ± 0.7 Ma . The Olenekian follows the Induan and is followed by the Anisian.The Olenekian saw the deposition of a large part of the...

 stages of the Early

Early Triassic

The Early Triassic is the first of three epochs of the Triassic period of the geologic timescale. It spans the time between 251 ± 0.4 Ma and 245 ± 1.5 Ma . Rocks from this epoch are collectively known as the Lower Triassic, which is a unit in chronostratigraphy...

 to the Middle Triassic

Middle Triassic

In the geologic timescale, the Middle Triassic is the second of three epochs of the Triassic period or the middle of three series in which the Triassic system is divided. It spans the time between 245 ± 1.5 Ma and 228 ± 2 Ma...

. Jesairosaurus is most closely related to Malerisaurus langstoni according to its original descripton.

Etymology

Jesairosaurus was named by Nour-Eddine Jalil in 1997

1997 in paleontology

-newly named:-Newly named birds:-Dinosaurs:* Paleontologist Karen Chin receives a coprolite that was excavated during 1995 from strata dating back to the Maastrichtian in Saskatchewan, Canada. The specimen was about 17 inches long and contained fragments of bone...

 and the type species

Type species

In biological nomenclature, a type species is both a concept and a practical system which is used in the classification and nomenclature of animals and plants. The value of a "type species" lies in the fact that it makes clear what is meant by a particular genus name. A type species is the species...

 is Jesairosaurus lehmani. The specific name honors J.-P. Lehman for describing for the first time vertebrate material from the Triassic of Algeria.