Megalancosaurus

Meg-ah-lan-coe-sure-us.
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Cassidy Wood

Paleoentomologist

Cassidy Wood uncovers the tiny yet significant world of prehistoric insects. Her research on amber-preserved specimens has revealed intricate details about ancient ecosystems.

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Name

Megalancosaurus ‭(‬Big forelimbed lizard‭)‬.

Phonetic

Meg-ah-lan-coe-sure-us.

Named By

M.‭ ‬Calzavara,‭ ‬G.‭ ‬Muscio‭ & ‬R.‭ ‬Wild‭ ‬-‭ ‬1980.

Classification

Chordata,‭ ‬Reptilia,‭ ‬Protorosauria,‭ ‬Drepanosauridae.

Diet

Inectivore.

Species

M.‭ ‬preonensis‭

Size

Roughly about‭ ‬25‭ ‬centimetres long.

Known locations

Italy.

Time Period

Norian of the Triassic.

Fossil representation

Two species recognised,‭ ‬most of the skeleton is known.

In Depth

       Megalancosaurus is one of the better known of the‭ ‬drepanosaurs,‭ ‬a special group of reptiles that possessed tails that could hook around branches.‭ ‬With an additional hook on the end of their tails,‭ ‬Megalancosaurus are believed to have walked along the‭ ‬branches of Triassic era tree canopies,‭ ‬hunting for small invertebrates to eat.

       Megalancosaurus is noted for having a bird-like skull,‭ ‬in fact Megalancosaurus was even once considered to possibly be an ancient ancestor of birds until the remainder of the skeleton was discovered and that idea was disproved once and for all.‭ ‬The slender jaws of Megalancosaurus were probably instead used to reach into tight recesses to pluck out hidden invertebrates.

Further Reading

-‭ ‬Megalancosaurus preonensis,‭ ‬n.‭ ‬g.,‭ ‬n.‭ ‬sp.,‭ ‬a new reptile from the Norian of Friuli‭”‬.‭ ‬Gortania‭ ‬2:‭ ‬49‭–‬63‭ ‬-‭ ‬M.‭ ‬Calzavara,‭ ‬G.‭ ‬Muscio‭ & ‬R.‭ ‬Wild‭ ‬-‭ ‬1980. -‭ ‬Birdlike characters in the Triassic archosaur Megalancosaurus.‭ ‬-‭ ‬Natur Wissenschaften‭ ‬80:564‭–‬566‭ ‬-‭ ‬R.‭ ‬Wild‭ & ‬A.‭ ‬Feduccia‭ ‬-‭ ‬1993. – Megalancosaurus,‭ ‬a possibly arboreal archosauromorph‭ (‬Reptilia‭) ‬from the Upper Triassic of Northern Italy.‭ ‬-‭ ‬Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology‭ ‬14‭(‬1‭)‬:38-52.‭ ‬-‭ ‬S.‭ ‬Renesto‭ ‬-‭ ‬1994. – Bird-like head on a chameleon body:‭ ‬new specimens of the enigmatic diapsid reptile Megalancosaurus from the Late Triassic of Northern Italy.‭ ‬-‭ ‬Rivista Italiana di Paleontologia e Stratigrafia‭ ‬106:‭ ‬157‭–‬179.‭ ‬-‭ ‬S.‭ ‬Renesto‭ ‬-‭ ‬2000. -‭ ‬The taxonomy and paleobiology of the Late Triassic‭ (‬Carnian-Norian:‭ ‬Adamanian-Apachean‭) ‬drepanosaurs‭ (‬Diapsida:‭ ‬Archosauromorpha:‭ ‬Drepanosauromorpha‭) ‬-‭ ‬New Mexico Museum of Natural History and Science Bulletin‭ ‬46:‭ ‬1‭–‬81‭ ‬-‭ ‬Silvio Renesto,‭ ‬Justin A.‭ ‬Spielmann,‭ ‬Spencer G.‭ ‬Lucas‭ & ‬Giorgio Tarditi Spagnoli‭ ‬-‭ ‬2010.

SPECIES SPOTLIGHT