Nikkasaurus
| Nikkasaurus Temporal range: middle Permian | |
|---|---|
 | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Order: | Therapsida |
| Suborder: | †Biarmosuchia |
| Family: | †Nikkasauridae |
| Genus: | †Nikkasaurus Ivahnenko, 2000 |
| Species: | †N. tataronovi |
| Binomial name | |
| Nikkasaurus tataronovi Ivahnenko | |
Nikkasaurus is an extinct genus of therapsids.
They were small animals, with skulls about 5 cm long. Their eyes had large orbits and sclerotic rings. The head was tilted back, as with all therapsids. The skull looks superficially similar to those of the Pelycosaurs, in particular Varanopidae. Nikkasaurus was probably mainly insectivorous, and possibly nocturnal. The only known species is N. tatarinovi, described by MF Ivahnenko in 2000, from the Middle Permian Mezen River Basin. Nikkasaurus is possibly a relic of a more ancient stage of therapsid development.
See also
References
- Kemp, Thomas Stainforth (2005). The Origin and Evolution of Mammals. ISBN 0-19-850760-7.
This article is issued from
Wikipedia.
The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike.
Additional terms may apply for the media files.