Varanops

Va-ran-nops.
Published on

John Stewart

Paleoecologist

John Stewart is a distinguished paleoecologist whose work has significantly advanced our understanding of prehistoric ecosystems. With over two decades dedicated to unearthing fossils across Asia and Africa

Cite Feedback Print

Name

Varanops ‭(‬Varan face‭)‬.

Phonetic

Va-ran-nops.

Named By

Samuel Wendell Williston‭ ‬-‭ ‬1914.

Classification

Chordata,‭ ‬Synapsida,‭ ‬Pelycosauria,‭ ‬Varanopidae.

Diet

Carnivore.

Species

V.‭ ‬brevirostris

Size

About 1 ‭to 1.2 metes long.

Known locations

USA, Oklahoma - Garber Formation, Texas - Arroyo Formation.

Time Period

Capitanian of the Permian.

Fossil representation

Several specimens,‭ ‬often of juveniles.

In Depth

       As a late surviving member of the group,‭ ‬Varanops is often cited as one of the last of the pelycosaurs.‭ ‬With its relatively long legs,‭ ‬Varanops may have been more suited to open ground,‭ ‬as opposed to dense undergrowth where they may have been of a hindrance.‭ ‬They may have also provided for sudden bursts from an ambush point if Varanops employed ambush tactics as a hunting strategy.

       The skulls are often damaged in the fossilisation process,‭ ‬due to their light build for their size,‭ ‬but have revealed a fenestra in the lower jaw that is positioned below the temporal fenestra of the skull.‭ ‬This could be to save skull weight of allow for more specialised muscle attachment.‭ ‬The teeth are curved and laterally compressed for slicing.‭ ‬The teeth towards the middle of the upper jaw are also enlarged,‭ ‬possibly‭ ‬suggesting prey that was agile,‭ ‬and requiring numerous smaller teeth at the front to grip,‭ ‬yet of a size requiring larger teeth to deal with.‭ ‬These prey items may have been some of the diapsid reptiles like Araeoscelis and maybe even terrestrial amphibians like Cacops.

       Varanops did not survive to see the Permian extinction,‭ ‬and is thought to have succumbed to competition from both the diapsids and therapsids that were becoming more common,‭ ‬and more capable predators.

Further Reading

– American Permian vertebrates. – University of Chicago Press, Chicago: 130 pp. – Samuel W. Williston – 1911. – The osteology of some American Permian vertebrates. – Contributions of the Walker Museum 1: 107–162. – Samuel W. Williston – 1914. – An articulated skeleton of Varanops with bite marks: the oldest known evidence of scavenging among terrestrial vertebrates. – Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology 26 (4): 1021–1023. – Robert R. Reisz and Linda A. Tsuji – 2006. – Varanops brevirostris (Eupelycosauria: Varanopidae) from the Lower Permian of Texas, with discussion of varanopid morphology and interrelationships. – Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology 30 (3): 724–746. – Nicol�s E. Campione & Robert R. Reisz – 2010.

SPECIES SPOTLIGHT