Dinodontosaurus
| Dinodontosaurus | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Skeletal reconstruction |
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| Temporal occurrence | ||||||||||||
| Ladinium ( Middle Triassic ) to Rhaetian ( Upper Triassic ) | ||||||||||||
| 237 to 199.6 million years | ||||||||||||
| Locations | ||||||||||||
| Systematics | ||||||||||||
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| Scientific name | ||||||||||||
| Dinodontosaurus | ||||||||||||
| Romer , 1943 | ||||||||||||
Dinodontosaurus is a genus of the extinct Dicynodontier , a group of synapsids , which are closely related to the mammals, from the Triassic of South America. Fossils of the genus have so far been found in Argentina and Brazil . It is named for the "Dinodontosaurus Assemblage Zone" in the Brazilian Santa Maria formation .
features
Dinodontosaurus reached about two and a half meters in length and several hundred kilograms in weight. Like a walrus , it had two large, downward-pointing teeth. The legs were muscular, the head and tail were relatively short in relation to the body.
Systematics
Dinodontosaurus belonged to the Kannemeyeriidae , a family of the Dicynodontia (two-dog teeth). The genus was first described by Alfred Romer in 1943 . A total of four different types have been described:
- Dinodontosaurus brevirostris
- Dinodontosaurus oliveirai ( type species )
- Dinodontosaurus platiceps
- Dinodontosaurus platygnathus
literature
- Spencer G. Lucas and Susan K. Harris: Taxonomic and biochronological significance of specimens of the Triassic dicynodont Dinodontosaurus Romer 1943 in the Tübingen collection. Paläontologische Zeitschrift, Verlag Springer Berlin / Heidelberg, Volume 70, Number 3–4 / November 1996, ISSN 0031-0220 doi : 10.1007 / BF02988096
Web links
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- The Paleobiology Database: Dinodontosaurus