Arctognathus

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Arctognathus
Temporal range: 259.9–252.17 Ma Late Permian[1]
Life restoration of A. curvimola
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Clade: Synapsida
Clade: Therapsida
Clade: Gorgonopsia
Family: Gorgonopsidae
Genus: Arctognathus
Broom, 1911
Species
  • A. curvimola (Owen, 1876 [originally Lycosaurus curvimola]) (type)
Synonyms
  • Arctognathoides Boonstra, 1934
  • Lycaenodontoides Haughton, 1924

Arctognathus is an extinct genus of gorgonopsids that throve during the Late Permian in the Karoo basin of what is now South Africa.[2]

Discovery[edit]

1886 illustration of a A. curvimola skull

A carnivore, like all gorgonopsid, Arctognathus was given its name ("Bear jaw") in reference to its short and rounded snout. There is only one recognized species, A. curvimola.[3]

Description[edit]

It was a small gorgonopsid with a total length estimated at 1.1 m and an 18 cm skull.[4]

Classification[edit]

Restoration of A. curvimola in environment
Head of A. curvimola

Below is a cladogram from the phylogenetic analysis of Gebauer (2007):[5]

Gorgonopsia 

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ "Arctognathus". paleobiodb.org. Retrieved 2021-10-10.
  2. ^ Sidor 2003, p. 606
  3. ^ Christian F. Kammerer (2014) Cranial osteology of Arctognathus curvimola, a short-snouted gorgonopsian from the Late Permian of South Africa. Papers in Palaeontology (advance online publication) DOI: 10.1002/spp2.1002 http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/spp2.1002/abstract
  4. ^ "Arctognathus - Palaeocritti - a guide to prehistoric animals". Archived from the original on April 3, 2016.
  5. ^ Gebauer, E.V.I. (2007). Phylogeny and evolution of the Gorgonopsia with a special reference to the skull and skeleton of GPIT/RE/7113 ('Aelurognathus?' parringtoni) (PDF) (Ph.D. thesis). Tübingen: Eberhard-Karls Universität Tübingen. pp. 1–316.

Bibliography[edit]