Othniel Charles Marsh first named it as a species of Pterodactylus: P. montanus, the specific name meaning "from the mountains" in Latin, but soon changed his mind and gave it a new generic name. At the same time he assigned another wing bone, teeth, vertebrae, and a scapulacoracoid to it, but this material is probably too large to belong to the type individual.
Othniel Charles Marsh initially designated it as a species of Pterodactylus: P. montanus, with "montanus" meaning "from the mountains" in Latin, but later revised his classification and assigned it to a new genus.