Clepsydrops

Clepsydrops is an extinct genus of primitive synapsids from the early Late Carboniferous that was related to Archaeothyris. The name means 'hour-glass appearance' (Greek klepsydra = "hourglass" + Greek ops = "eye, face, appearance")[1].

Clepsydrops
Temporal range: Carboniferous
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Family: †Ophiacodontidae
Genus: †Clepsydrops
Cope, 1875
Species
  • Clepsydrops collettii
  • Clepsydrops limbatus
  • Clepsydrops natalis
  • Clepsydrops vinslovii
Synonyms

Archaeobelus Cope, 1877

Synapsida is the group (or clade) that includes mammals, but the term is mainly used to refer to its earliest members. Like many other early terrestrial amniotes, it probably had the diet of insects and smaller animals. It probably laid eggs on land rather than in the water, as most amniote tetrapods did.

A paleobiological inference model for the femur suggests a terrestrial lifestyle for Clepsydrops [2], as for its more recent relative Ophiacodon,[3]. This is consistent with its rather thin, compact cortex. Its jaws were slightly more advanced than those of other early amniote tetrapods like Paleothyris and Hylonomus.

See also

References
  1. http://dinosaurmailinglist.cmnh.org/2016Jun/msg00013.html
  2. Quémeneur, S.; de Buffrénil, V.; Laurin, M. (2013). "Microanatomy of the amniote femur and inference of lifestyle in limbed vertebrates". Biological Journal of the Linnean Society. 109 (3): 644–655. doi:10.1111/bij.12066.
  3. Laurin, M.; de Buffrénil, V. (2015). "Microstructural features of the femur in early ophiacodontids: A reappraisal of ancestral habitat use and lifestyle of amniotes". Comptes Rendus Palevol. 15 (1–2): 115–127. doi:10.1016/j.crpv.2015.01.001.


This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.