Subcyclotosaurus

Last updated

Subcyclotosaurus
Temporal range: Early Triassic Anisian
Subcyclotosaurus skull diagram.png
Diagram of Subcyclotosaurus skull.
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Order: Temnospondyli
Suborder: Stereospondyli
Clade: Capitosauria
Family: Mastodonsauridae
Genus: Subcyclotosaurus
Watson, 1958
Type species
Subcyclotosaurus brookvalensis
Watson, 1958

Subcyclotosaurus is an extinct genus of carnivorous mastodonsaurid temnospondyl. It is known from a single partial skull from the Hawkesbury Sandstone formation in Australia. [1]

Contents

Discovery and naming

The remains of the type specimen Subcyclotosaurus brookvalensis were discovered in the Hawkesbury Sandstone formation, Australia, which is in an Anisian lacustrine shale deposit. The genus and specific name was assigned by D. M. S. Watson in 1958. [1]

Description

Skeletal reconstruction of related genus Paracyclotosaurus davidi Paracyclotosaurus davidi skeleton.png
Skeletal reconstruction of related genus Paracyclotosaurus davidi

The type specimen (AM F47499) is a partial skull roof, with fragments lost on the right side. The dorsal surface of the skull resembles a small Cyclotosaur skull from the Brookvale clays of the Hawkesbury Sandstone. [1] The specimen is from the mould of a skull broken so that the right border is lost, and is very slightly distorted by pressure so that the orbits are no longer symmetrical. The proportions of the skull resemble those of most others of Cyclotosaurus , the preorbital length being 66% of the total mid-line length. The extremes amongst Cyclotosaurus being 61% in the small Cyclotosaurus ebrachensis, and 71% in Parotosuchus helgolandicus. [1]

The skull is characterized by the small tabular without any trace of a "horn", but with a round lappet that approaches the squamosal flange lateral to the tympanic membrane, failing to meet it by about its own width. The occiput between the otic notches is proportionately wide, a reflection of the small size of the skull. The skull is otherwise of normal Parotosuchus structure, but has a small internasal vacuity between the dorsal processes of the premaxillae. Lateral lines are often shown as continuous grooves with well-defined borders. A deep groove on the maxilla begins immediately behind and lateral to the nostril and passes straight back to the lachrymal, on which bone it turns outward and forward and ends abruptly. Another groove appears to begin on the maxilla, immediately lateral to that described above. It passes back just above the insertion of the teeth for the full length of the bone. The supraorbital groove begins abruptly on the dorsal surface of the premaxilla, immediately passes on to the nasal, and extends back on that bone close to its suture with the lachrymal. It then comes on to the prefrontal, passing on to the frontal where that bone enters the orbital border. Then as a well-defined groove it surrounds the hinder part of the orbit, turns vertically on to the jugal, and then backward to cross the point where jugal, quadratojugal and squamosal meet, continuing over the squamosal to pass back on to the body. There is a canal crossing the supratemporal. [1]

Related Research Articles

<i>Elginia</i> Extinct genus of reptiles

Elginia is an extinct genus of pareiasaurid known from the Late Permian of Scotland and China. It was named for the area around Elgin in Scotland, which has yielded many fossils referred to as the Elgin Reptiles.

<i>Eothyris</i> Extinct genus of synapsids

Eothyris is a genus of extinct synapsid in the family Eothyrididae from the early Permian. It was a carnivorous insectivorous animal, closely related to Oedaleops. Only the skull of Eothyris, first described in 1937, is known. It had a 6-centimetre-long (2.4-inch) skull, and its total estimated length was 30 centimetres. Eothyris is one of the most primitive synapsids known and is probably very similar to the common ancestor of all synapsids in many respects. The only known specimen of Eothyris was collected from the Artinskian-lower.

<i>Anatosuchus</i> Extinct genus of reptiles

Anatosuchus is an extinct genus of notosuchian crocodylomorph discovered in Gadoufaoua, Niger, and described by a team of palaeontologists led by the American Paul Sereno in 2003, in the Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology. Its duck-like snout coincidentally makes it resemble a crocoduck, an imagined hybrid animal with the head of a crocodile and the body of a duck.

Mesosuchus is an extinct genus of basal Rhynchosaur from early Middle Triassic deposits of Eastern Cape, South Africa. It is known from the holotype SAM 5882, a partial skeleton, and from the paratypes SAM 6046, SAM 6536, SAM 7416 and SAM 7701 from the Aliwal North Euparkeria site. Mesosuchus is quite small, spanning around 30 cm in length. Mesosuchus was discovered and named by David Meredith Seares Watson in 1912.

<i>Chenoprosopus</i> Genus of amphibians

Chenoprosopus is a genus of extinct cochleosauridae that lived during late Carboniferous and early Permian periods. Two known species of Chenoprosopus are C. milleri and C. lewisi. Chenoprosopus lewisi was described in the basis of a virtually complete skull with maximum skull length of 95 mm. It is significantly smaller than Chenoprosopus milleri and was differentiated from that taxon by Hook (1993) based on sutural patterns of the skull roof. Hook also mentioned the reduced size of the vomerine tusks differentiated C. lewisi from C. milleri, but the different size of these tusks may be different ontogenetic stages of growth. Many of other cochleosaurids from the same time period have an elongated vomer and wide and elongate choana. However, Chenoprosopus is distinguished by its more narrowly pointed snout and separation between the nasal from the maxilla by the broad lacrimal-septomaxilla contact.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mastodonsauridae</span> Extinct family of temnospondyls

Mastodonsauridae is a family of capitosauroid temnospondyls. Fossils belonging to this family have been found in North America, Greenland, Europe, Asia, and Australia. The family Capitosauridae is synonymous with Mastodonsauridae.

<i>Peloroplites</i> Extinct genus of dinosaurs

Peloroplites is a monospecific genus of nodosaurid dinosaur from Utah that lived during the Late Cretaceous in what is now the Mussentuchit Member of the Cedar Mountain Formation. The type and only species, Peloroplites cedrimontanus, is known from a partial skull and postcranial skeleton. It was named in 2008 by Kenneth Carpenter and colleagues. Peloroplites was 6 metres long and weighed 2 tonnes, making it one of the largest known nodosaurids, and came from a time when ankylosaurids and nodosaurids were attaining large sizes.

<i>Neopteroplax</i> Extinct genus of tetrapodomorphs

Neopteroplax is an extinct genus of eogyrinid embolomere closely related to European genera such as Eogyrinus and Pteroplax. Members of this genus were among the largest embolomeres in North America. Neopteroplax is primarily known from a large skull found in Ohio, although fragmentary embolomere fossils from Texas and New Mexico have also been tentatively referred to the genus. Despite its similarities to specific European embolomeres, it can be distinguished from them due to a small number of skull and jaw features, most notably a lower surangular at the upper rear portion of the lower jaw.

<i>Aerosaurus</i> Extinct genus of tetrapod

Aerosaurus is an extinct genus within Varanopidae, a family of non-mammalian synapsids. It lived between 252-299 million years ago during the Early Permian in North America. The name comes from Latin aes (aeris) “copper” and Greek sauros “lizard,” for El Cobre Canyon in northern New Mexico, where the type fossil was found and the site of former copper mines. Aerosaurus was a small to medium-bodied carnivorous synapsid characterized by its recurved teeth, triangular lateral temporal fenestra, and extended teeth row. Two species are recognized: A. greenleeorum (1937) and A. wellesi (1981).

<i>Polonosuchus</i> Extinct genus of reptiles

Polonosuchus is a genus of rauisuchid known from the late Triassic of Poland. It was a huge predator about 5–6 metres in length and, like all rauisuchians, was equipped with a large head of long sharp teeth. The legs were placed almost underneath the body, unlike most reptiles, which would have made it quite fast and a powerful runner. The appearance was very similar to that of the more known Postosuchus, of North America, and shared with the latter the ecological niche of the apex predator.

Australothyris is an extinct genus of basal procolophonomorph parareptile known from the Middle Permian of Tapinocephalus Assemblage Zone, South Africa. The type and only known species is Australothyris smithi. As the most basal member of Procolophonomorpha, Australothyris helped to contextualize the origin of this major parareptile subgroup. It has been used to support the hypotheses that procolophonomorphs originated in Gondwana and ancestrally possess temporal fenestrae, due to its large and fully enclosed temporal fenestra and South African heritage. It also possessed several unique features, including a high tooth number, long postfrontal, small interpterygoid vacuity, and a specialized interaction between the stapes and quadrate.

<i>Fodonyx</i> Extinct genus of reptiles

Fodonyx is an extinct genus of rhynchosaur from the middle Triassic epoch of Devon in England. Its fossils were discovered in Otter Sandstone Formation and were first assigned to Rhynchosaurus spenceri. This species was reassigned to its own genus, Fodonyx the holotype of which is EXEMS 60/1985/292, that described by David W. E. Hone and Michael J. Benton in 2008. In 2010, one skull was reassigned to the new genus Bentonyx. It is distinguished from other rhynchosaurs by a single autapomorphy, the ventral angling of the paraoccipital processes. In all other rhynchosaurs these processes angle dorsally or are horizontal. It is not known if this conferred any advantage to Fodonyx. Fodonyx was between 40 and 50 cm long.

<i>Jesairosaurus</i> Extinct genus of reptiles

Jesairosaurus is an extinct genus of early archosauromorph reptile known from the Illizi Province of Algeria. It is known from a single species, Jesairosaurus lehmani. Although a potential relative of the long-necked tanystropheids, this lightly-built reptile could instead be characterized by its relatively short neck as well as various skull features.

Huskerpeton is an extinct genus of recumbirostran from the Early Permian period. They belong to the order Microsauria, which was established in 1863 by Dawson, and was quickly expanded to include many different small taxa. They lived in what is now Nebraska and Kansas. The holotype of Huskerpeton was uncovered at the Eskridge formation in Nebraska, which is part of how it got its name.

<i>Khunnuchelys</i> Extinct genus of turtles

Khunnuchelys was a genus of trionychine turtle from the Late Cretaceous of Asia. Three species are known, K. erinhotensis, the type species, K. kizylkumensis, and K. lophorhothon. K. erinhotensis is known from the Iren Dabasu Formation in China from the late Turonian until the middle Campanian. K. kizylkumensis is known from the late Turonian Bissekty Formation of Uzbekistan. The third species, described in 2013 by Danilov et al., is known from the early to middle Campanian aged Bostobe Formation of Kazakhstan.

<i>Regaliceratops</i> Extinct genus of dinosaurs

Regaliceratops is a monospecific genus of chasmosaurine ceratopsid dinosaur from Alberta, Canada that lived during the Late Cretaceous in what is now the St. Mary River Formation. The type and only species, Regaliceratops peterhewsi, is known only from an adult individual with a nearly complete skull lacking the lower jaw, which was nicknamed "Hellboy". Regaliceratops was named in 2015 by Caleb M. Brown and Donald M. Henderson. Regaliceratops has an estimated length of 5 metres (16 ft) and body mass of 2 metric tons. The skull of Regaliceratops displays features more similar to centrosaurines, which suggests convergent evolution in display morphology in ceratopsids.

<i>Mosaiceratops</i> Extinct genus of reptiles

Mosaiceratops is a genus of ceratopsian, described by Zheng, Jin & Xu in 2015 and found in the Xiaguan Formation of Neixiang County. Mosaiceratops lived in the upper Cretaceous in what is now the Henan Province of China.

<i>Kyhytysuka</i> Extinct marine reptile

Kyhytysuka is an extinct genus of ophthalmosaurian ichthyosaur from Early Cretaceous Colombia. The animal was previously assigned to the genus Platypterygius, but given its own genus in 2021. Kyhytysuka was a mid-sized ophthalmosaurian with heterodont dentition and several adaptations suggesting that it was a macropredatory vertebrate hunter living in shallow waters. It contains a single species, Kyhytysuka sachicarum.

Eardasaurus is a genus of thalassophonean pliosaurid from the middle Jurassic Oxford Clay Formation. The animal would have measured over 4.7 m (15 ft) long and possessed a high amount of teeth relative to other pliosaurs. Its teeth show distinct ridges formed by the tooth enamel, some of which are very pronounced and similar to carinae, giving the teeth a cutting edge.

Varanosuchus is an extinct genus of atoposaurid neosuchian from the Early Cretaceous Sao Khua Formation of Thailand. Varanosuchus is known from three individuals which preserve assorted postcranial material and a complete skull. The skull of Varanosuchus was altirostral, meaning it wasn't flattened like in modern crocodilians and instead much deeper, while the limbs were slender and straight, leading to it somewhat resembling a monitor lizard. Little is known about the ecology of atoposaurids, however, based on the slender, erect limbs, the altirostral skull and the well ornamented osteoderms it has been suggested that Varanosuchus was a terrestrial animal with some semi-aquatic affinities. Only a single species is recognized, Varanosuchus sakonnakhonensis.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 Watson, David M. S. (1958). "A new labyrinthodont (Paracyclotosaurus) from Trias of New South Wales". Bulletin of the British Museum (Natural History). Geology. 3 (7): 233–263. CC-BY icon.svg Material was copied from this source, which is available under a Creative Commons License.

See also