Libycosaurus

Name: Libycosaurus ‭(‬Libya lizard‭)‬.
Phonetic: Lib-e-co-sore-us.
Named By: G.‭ ‬Bonnarelli‭ ‬-‭ ‬1947.
Classification: Chordata,‭ ‬Mammalia,‭ ‬Artiodactyla,‭ ‬Anthracotheriidae,‭ ‬Bothriodontinae.
Species: L.‭ ‬petrocchii‭ (‬type‭)‬,‭ ‬L.‭ ‬algeriensis,‭ ‬L.‭ ‬anisae.
Diet: Herbivore.
Size: Up to,‭ ‬possibly over three meters long.
Known locations: Algeria.‭ ‬Chad.‭ ‬Libya.‭ ‬Tunisia.‭ ‬Uganda.
Time period: Mid-Late Miocene.
Fossil representation: Partial remains of several individuals.

       The name Libycosaurus is definitely a misnomer to be sure.‭ ‬When Libycosaurus was first named by Bonarelli in‭ ‬1947‭ ‬the partial fossil remains were thought to be those of a dinosaur.‭ ‬It was only later that it was realised that Libycosaurus was actually a kind of prehistoric relative of hippopotamuses.‭ ‬At the time of writing Libycosaurus is known from three species,‭ ‬L.‭ ‬algeriensis however is only known from teeth,‭ ‬and for this reason this species of Libycosaurus is often treated as dubious.
       Libycosaurus is not the only mammal to have been mistaken for a reptile.‭ ‬Basilosaurus for example means‭ ‘‬king lizard‭’‬,‭ ‬even though Basilosaurus is actually a whale.




Further reading
-‭ ‬Dinosaur fossil Sahara Cyrenaic.‭ ‬-‭ ‬Journal Biology Colonial Roma,‭ ‬8:‭ ‬23-33.‭ ‬-‭ ‬G.‭ ‬Bonnarelli‭ ‬-‭ ‬1947.
-‭ ‬Anthracothere dental anatomy reveals a late Miocene Chado-Libyan bioprovince.‭ ‬-‭ ‬Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences U.S.A.‭ ‬103‭ (‬23‭)‬:‭ ‬8763‭–‬7.‭ ‬-‭ ‬Fabrice Lihoreau,‭ ‬Jean-Renaud Boisserie,‭ ‬Laurent Viriot,‭ ‬Yves Coppens,‭ ‬Andossa Likius,‭ ‬Hassane Taisso Mackaye,‭ ‬Paul Tafforeau,‭ ‬Patrick Vignaud‭ & ‬Michel Brunet‭ ‬-‭ ‬2006.
-‭ ‬Sexual and individual morphometric variation in Libycosaurus‭ (‬Mammalia,‭ ‬anthracotheriidae‭) ‬from the Maghreb and Libya.‭ ‬-‭ ‬Geobios‭ ‬39‭ (‬2‭)‬:‭ ‬267-310.‭ ‬-‭ ‬Martin Pickford‭ ‬-‭ ‬2006.
-‭ ‬Libycosaurus petrocchii Bonarelli,‭ ‬1947,‭ ‬and Libycosaurus anisae‭ (‬Black,‭ ‬1972‭) (‬Anthracotheriidae,‭ ‬Mammalia‭)‬:‭ ‬Nomenclatural and geochronological implications‭ [‬Libycosaurus petrocchii Bonarelli,‭ ‬1947,‭ ‬et Libycosaurus anisae‭ (‬Black,‭ ‬1972‭) (‬Anthracotheriidae,‭ ‬Mammalia‭) ‬:‭ ‬implications nomenclaturales et g�ochronologiques‭]‬.‭ ‬-‭ ‬Annales de Pal�ontologie vol‭ ‬94,‭ ‬issue‭ ‬1‭ ‬-‭ ‬Martin Pickford‭ ‬-‭ ‬2008.
-‭ ‬Metric variation in Afromeryx and Libycosaurus‭ (‬anthracotheriidae:‭ ‬Mammalia‭) ‬and its utility for biochronology.‭ ‬-‭ ‬Revista Espa�ola de Paleontology,‭ ‬24‭ (‬2‭)‬,‭ ‬107-120.‭ ‬ISSN‭ ‬0213-6937.‭ ‬-‭ ‬Martin Pickford‭ ‬-‭ ‬2009.



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