In Depth
As a procolophonian parareptile, Owenetta is a basal member of the group that is confirmed to have lived at the end of the Permian. However the full temporal range of Owenetta may in fact extend further than this into the early Triassic, although this is a matter of contention. For a while a second species named O. kitchingorum existed that seemed to confirm this extension into the Triassic. However further study of the second species has resulted in its placement of a new genus, and as such the temporal range for Owenetta was reduced back into the Permian. New material however has again raised the possibility that Owenetta may actually have survived the Permian extinction and lived during the Early Triassic.
The skulls of Owenetta are often used for comparison with other early parareptiles to try and produce a more complete picture of early reptile evolution. However more study and new fossils have resulted in Owenetta’s position in parareptile lineage often changing.
Further Reading
– A New Type of Cotylosaurian, Owenetta rubidgei. – Annals of the Transvaal Museum 19(3):319-321. – R. Broom – 1939. – Owenetta in perspective. – Palaeontologica Africana 20:115–118. – C. E. Gow – 1977. – Owenetta and the origin of turtles. – Nature 349:324-326. – R. R. Reisz & M. Laurin – 1991. – Owenetta kitchingorum, sp. nov., a small parareptile (Procolophonia: Owenettidae) from the Lower Triassic of South Africa. – Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology 22(2):244-256. – R. R. Reisz & D. Scott – 2002.
