Gorgonopsia
Two Inostrancevia pursue a Scutosaurus
- Africa
- Russia
- China
The Gorgonopsia were a group of therapsids ( " mammal -like reptiles "). They lived in the mid to upper Permian million years ago 270-251 and were the dominant predators of this era. The group was named by Harry Seeley according to the Gorgons of Greek mythology, winged bogies with snake hair, let everyone who looks at it, to stone. The Gorgonopsia were the most positive group of Theriodontia.
All the fossils of the group were found in Africa, Russia and China. Outside they are completely unknown. No form of group survived the mass extinction at the end of the Permian.
Features
A characteristic feature of the gorgonopsians were the saber tooth-like enlarged canines. In the upper jaw were five and well-developed mandibular four incisors, while behind the canine teeth per jaw half were four or five very small, simply constructed teeth. The skulls were built relatively primitive, the skull roof was a isolated bone, the Präparietale. The structure of the skull and the arrangement of the cranial window suggest that the jaws are opened very wide and the animal could bite vigorously.
The rest of the body was elongated and pointed to lean, long limbs, which probably allowed a fast running. The arranged under the body legs and the differentiated ( heterodonte ) teeth are what makes up that point to the later development of mammals.
The Phalangenformel is 2-3-4-5-3 and thus reflects past of primitive reptiles.
Except for differences in body size, the individual species differed relatively little from each other. The former representative reached the size of a small dog. The known type Lycaenops was about a meter long, while the last and largest Gorgonopside, Inostrancevia, was more than four feet long. To his prey included, among other things, probably Dinocephalia, Dicynodontia and Pareiasauria.
System
Outer systematics
The gorgonopsians are no longer considered reptiles, but they form an original, yet many primitive features having side branch on the stem lineage of mammals ( Mammalia). They form within the therapsids ( formerly known as " mammal -like reptiles ") having the Therocephalia and Cynodontia the group of Theriodontia.
The kinship relationships illustrated by the following cladogram:
Dinocephalia †
Anomodontia †
Gorgonopsia †
Therocephalia †
Cynodontia
Inside systematics
Within the Gorgonopsia three subfamilies are distinguished, of which, however, may only Rubidgeinae are monophyletic.
- Gorgonopsidae Aelurognathus
- Aelurosaurus
- Aloposaurus
- Arctognathus
- Arctops
- Broomisaurus
- Cephalicustriodus
- Cerdorhinus
- Clelandina
- Cyonosaurus
- Dinogorgon
- Eoarctops
- Galesuchus
- Gorgonops
- Kamagorgon
- Leontocephalus
- Lycaenops
- Paragalerhinus
- Scylacognathus
- Sycosaurus
- Viatkogorgon
- Gorgonopsinae Sauroctonus
- Scylacops
- Broomicephalus
- Niuksenitia
- Prorubidgea
- Rubidgea
- Inostrancevia
- Pravoslavleria
Trivia
In the TV series Primeval - Return of the prehistoric monsters gorgonopsians occur several times. From the size and appearance to the in the program only Gorgonopside animals referred Inostrancevia.