Diadectes

Live reconstruction of Diadectes

• United States (Oklahoma, Utah, Texas)
• Germany

Diadectes was one of the largest Permian land vertebrates and next Edaphosaurus the largest herbivores of his time. Fossils of the genus have been found in Oklahoma, Utah, Texas, and Germany.

Features

Diadectes was three meters long and had a squat body, massive shoulder and pelvic girdles, short, strong legs and strong eddies and ribs. Overall, similar to his build of the primitive amniotes. The massive head is highly specialized, among other things, there is a formed by the palatine bone, partially developed secondary palate and an ear slot that is not formed as in amphibians from the shed leg, but as with progressive amniotes from square leg. The skullcap is thick and consists of spongy bone. The lower jaw is very high. There are eight short, pin-like teeth, which were adapted to demolish parts of the plants on the front edge of the upper and lower jaw. Be blunt, laterally widened molars were at the lateral edges of pine.

System

Diadectes was originally assigned to the tribe of reptiles ( Cotylosauria ) together with the Anthracosauriern and primitive reptiles, a group which is now regarded as paraphyletic. Later, he was regarded along with Seymouria than the reptiles closest amphibian.

Diadectes is the type genus of a group Diadectomorpha original land vertebrates to the further next three heavily -built herbivores and carnivorous Limnoscelidae be counted. The Diadectomorpha regarded today as the sister group of the amniotes and presented with them in the taxon Reptiliomorpha, which is the sister group of amphibians. However, some scientists believe that the Diadectomorpha are the sister group of synapsids, a taxon which also includes the mammals. The Diadectomorpha would enable true amniotes. Reason for this assumption is, among other things, a detailed examination of the occipital region of Diadectes.