 The species name honors the discoverer, Joe Gentry, a volunteer for the Western Paleontological Laboratories, in Lehi, Utah.Its describers found it to be most similar to "Scaphognathus" among pterosaurs, albeit substantially larger (estimated skull length of 280–300 mm (11–12 in), estimated wingspan of at least 2.5 m (8.2 ft)).Because of the similarity, "Harpactognathus" was assigned to the subfamily Scaphognathinae of the family Rhamphorhynchidae.