Breugnathair
Breugnathair is an extinct genus of squamate reptiles, known from the Middle Jurassic Kilmaluag Formation of Scotland. The genus contains a single species, Breugnathair elgolensis, known from a disarticulated partial skeleton including skull bones. Breugnathair is identified as a member of the enigmatic family Parviraptoridae; members of this clade are characterized by an unusual set conflicting anatomical traits comparable in some ways to snakes and varanids within the Toxicofera, while also bearing several characters unlike all modern squamate groups.
Discovery and naming
The Breugnathair holotype specimen, NMS G.2023.7.1, was discovered in 2015 by Stig A. Walsh in outcrops of the Kilmaluag Formation north of the village of Elgol on the Isle of Skye, Scotland. The specimen comprises various disarticulated remains of a single individual spread over about in a limestone slab. Identified bones include forelimb and hindlimb bones, pectoral and pelvic girdle elements, neck, back, and tail vertebrae, ribs, and cranium and mandible elements.In 2025, Roger B. J. Benson and colleagues described Breugnathair elgolensis as a new genus and species of squamates based on these fossil remains. The generic name, Breugnathair, is adapted from the Scottish Gaelic brjiag Nahɪrj, meaning "false snake". The specific name, elgolensis, references the discovery of the specimen near Elgol.