In Depth The cynodonts are known to come in a variety of sizes, but at up to two meters in length, Diademodon is easily amongst the largest known cynodonts. Like other cynodonts, Diademodon may have been an omnivore eating both certain parts of plants as well as other animals and carrion. Diademodon lived during the … Read more
In Depth Trirachodon is a genus of cynodont therapsid that lived in Africa during the mid Triassic. Trirachodon are known to have lived in burrows, and studies of the burrow structure as well as the discovery of up to twenty individual Trirachodon in the same burrow system show us that Trirachodon most probably lived in … Read more
In Depth Scylacorhinus is a genus of scylacosaurid therapsid that lived in South Africa during the Permian. Further Reading - Catalogue of types and figured specimens of fossil vertebrates in the American Museum of Natural History. II.–Permian, Triassic and Jurassic reptiles of South Africa. - Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History 25(2):105-164. - … Read more
In Depth Clepsydrops is a genus of ophiacodontid synapsid that lived in North America during the Early Permian. Clepsydrops is noted as being similar to the genus Archaeothyris, and like it, is thought to have been a predator of small animals. One former species of Clepsydrops, C. natalis, has now been re-described as a species … Read more
In Depth The incredibly broad range of Kannemeyeria fossils indicates that it probably had a worldwide distribution, especially across the southern continents. It is unknown how far north the full extent of Kannemeyeria was, but other similar dicynodonts such as Placerias are known from North America. Kannemeyeria is what you might call a typical large … Read more
In Depth Diegocanis is a genus of cynodont that lived in South America during the late Triassic. Diegocanis is similar to both Ecteninion & Trucidocynodon, and all of these genera fall within the Ecteniniidae. Further Reading - A new non-mammaliaform eucynodont from the Carnian-Norian Ischigualasto Formation, Northwestern Argentina. - Revista Brasileira de Paleontologia 16: 61. … Read more
In Depth Pyozia is a genus of varanopid pelycosaur that lived in Russia during the Permian. Further Reading - Pyozia mesenensis, a New, Small Vapanopid (Synapsida: Eupelycosauria) from Russia: ‘‘Pelycosaur’’ Diversity in the Middle Permian. - Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology 24(1):173-179. - J. S. Anderson & R. R. Reisz - 2004.
In Depth Ictidorhinus is a genus of biarmosuchian therapsid that lived in South Africa during the late Permian. At the time of writing the genus is still only known by a single partial skull, that shows some juvenile characteristics such as a large orbit. Further Reading - On a nearly perfect skull of a new … Read more
In Depth Easily one of the more common pelycosaurs in Europe, Haptodus was also one of the earliest with the first species appearing in the late Carboniferous period. Earlier species that appeared in the Carboniferous such as H. garnettensis were smaller at about seventy centimetres in length and were probably insectivores. By the early Permian … Read more
In Depth Lacking teeth in the usual sense, Lystrosaurus had two tusks, typical of the dicynodonts. These tusks projected downwards from the maxilla, and are thought to have been used to dig up the nutritious roots of plants that grew in the arid climates of the time. It is also thought that Lystrosaurus had a … Read more