Name:
Prolacerta.
Phonetic: Pro-lah-ser-tah.
Named By: F. R. Parrington - 1935.
Synonyms: Pricea longiceps
Classification: Chordata, Reptilia,
Archosauromorpha, Prolacertiformes, Prolacertidae.
Species: P. broomi (type).
Diet: Insectivore?
Size: About 50-55 centiemtres long.
Known locations: Antartica - Fremouw Formation.
South Africa - Katberg Formation, Normandien Formation.
Time period: Early Triassic.
Fossil representation: Several individuals.
Once considered a transitional form between archosaurs and lizards, palaeontologists are no longer as certain as they once were as to exactly how Prolacerta were related to these groups. One key observation is that the teeth are rooted deep and fused to the bones, and not loosely implanted like the teeth of known archosaurs. It’s probable that Prolacerta is closer to lizards, though at the time of writing it remains the only genus of the Prolacertidae. Prolacerta does have a small notch between the maxilla and premaxilla like some archosauriforms and rhynchosaurs, though it’s not certain if this is due to a familial relation or convergent evolution.
Further reading
- Prolacerta and the protorosaurian reptiles; Part
I. - American
Journal of Science. 243 (1): 17–32. - Charles L. Camp - 1945.
- Prolacerta and the protosaurian reptiles; Part
II. - American Journal
of Science. 243 (2): 84–101. - Charles L. Camp - 1945.
- The morphology and relationships of Youngina capensis Broom and
Prolacerta broomi Parrington. - Palaeontologia Africana : Annals of the
Bernard Price Institute for Palaeontological Research - Chris E. Gow -
1965.
- The braincase of Prolacerta broomi (Reptilia:
Triassic). - Neues
Jahrbuch f�r Geologie und Pal�ontologie - Abhandlungen. 173: 181–200.
Retrieved 2018-11-22. - S. E. Evans - 1986.
- The skull of the Early Triassic archosauromorph reptile Prolacerta
broomi and its phylogenetic significance. - Zoological
Journal of
the Linnean Society 140 (3): 335. - S. P. Modesto
& H. D. Sues - 2004.
- The skeletal anatomy of the triassic protorosaur Dinocephalosaurus
orientalis Li, from the Middle Triassic of Guizhou
Province,
southern China. - Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology 28:
95–110. - O. Rieppel, C. Li, N. C. Fraser -
2008.