A rhynchosaur from the Upper Triassic Maleri Formation of India
- 10 January 1974
- journal article
- Published by The Royal Society in Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society of London. B, Biological Sciences
- Vol. 267 (884) , 209-261
- https://doi.org/10.1098/rstb.1974.0001
Abstract
Six associated rhynchosaur skeletons, recently discovered by the Geological Studies Unit of the Indian Statistical Institute in the Upper Triassic Maleri Formation, allow an almost complete osteological description and restoration of the species Paradapedon huxleyi . The dentition is highly specialized, ankylothecodont, each tooth firmly fixed with a long root, new teeth added posteriorly in diagonal rows, without tooth replacement. The creatures probably lived in flood-plains or marshy environments, as shell eaters feeding mainly on mussels. Possible evolutionary trends within the family Rhynchosauridae are outlined. The seven genera of rhynchosaurs are grouped on their morphological characters into three well-defined subfamilies which represent three stages in rhynchosaur evolution, occurring in Lower, Middle and Upper Triassic respectively.Keywords
This publication has 2 references indexed in Scilit:
- Die Lebensweise der RhynchosauridenPalZ, 1939
- ON A SKULL AND PARTIAL SKELETON OFMESOSUCHUS BROWNIWATSONTransactions of the Royal Society of South Africa, 1924