Leptochamops

Lep-toe-cham-ops.
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Emily Green

Paleobotanist

Emily Green brings the ancient world of plants to life through her insightful research and engaging writing. Her expertise lies in examining how prehistoric vegetation influenced climate patterns and animal evolution.

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Name

Leptochamops.

Phonetic

Lep-toe-cham-ops.

Named By

Charles W.‭ ‬Gilmore‭ ‬-‭ ‬1928.

Classification

Chordata,‭ ‬Reptilia,‭ ‬Squamata.‭

Diet

Insectivore.

Species

L.‭ ‬denticulatus‭

Size

Roughly‭ ‬30‭ ‬centimetres long.

Known locations

Canada,‭ ‬Alberta‭ & ‬Saskatchewan.‭ ‬USA,‭ ‬Montana,‭ ‬New Mexico,‭ ‬Utah‭ & ‬Wyoming.

Time Period

Santonian to Maastrichtian of the Cretaceous.

Fossil representation

Specimens of Many individuals.

In Depth

       The fairly high number of Leptochamops specimens so far found suggests that this would have been a fairly common little lizard in the late Cretaceous ecosystems of North America.‭ ‬Like with many modern lizard today,‭ ‬Leptochamops was probably a fairly small predator of invertebrates while it tried to keep out of the predatory scope of dromaeosaurid dinosaurs such as Saurornitholestes.

       In‭ ‬2012‭ ‬two lower jaw fragments that were previously assigned to the type species L.‭ ‬denticulatus were found to be different.‭ ‬These were used to create a new genus,‭ ‬Obamadon,‭ ‬so named after the‭ ‬44th president of the United States of America,‭ ‬Barack Obama,‭ ‬however the name was not formalised as valid until‭ ‬2013.

Further Reading

-‭ ‬Fossil vertebrates from the Late Cretaceous Lance Formation,‭ ‬eastern Wyoming,‭ ‬R.‭ ‬Estes‭ ‬-‭ ‬1964.

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