Pristerodon

Pristerodon is an extinct genus of dicynodont therapsid from the Late Permian of South Africa, Zambia and India.

Pristerodon
Temporal range: Late Permian
Skull at the Museum für Naturkunde, Berlin
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Clade: Synapsida
Clade: Therapsida
Suborder: Anomodontia
Clade: Dicynodontia
Family: Eumantellidae
Genus: Pristerodon
Huxley, 1868
Type species
Pristerodon mackayi
Huxley, 1868
Other species
  • Pristerodon reuningi
    (Broili & Schroeder, 1935)
Synonyms
  • Brachyuraniscus reuningiBroili & Schroeder, 1935
  • Brachyuraniscus merwevillensisBroili & Schroeder, 1935
  • Cerataelurus mirabilisBroom, 1931
  • Cryptocynodon parringtoni Huene, 1942
  • Cryptocynodon schroederi Janensch, 1952
  • Eumantellia mirus Broom, 1935
  • Hueneus oudebergensis Toerien, 1953
  • Parringtoniella broomi Toerien, 1953

Paleobiology

Brain and senses

Pristerodon were among the earliest land animals able to hear airborne sound as opposed to hearing via ground vibrations. A South African specimen studied with neutron tomography[1] has shown evidence of an eardrum on its lower jaw with the implication that it was hearing impaired during the act of chewing. The specimen had a 3mm cavity for cochlea which transformed sound frequency ranges into nerve impulses sent on to the brain.

Ecology

Pristerodon has been found in the Kundaram Formation of India, Usili Formation of Tanzania, the Madumabisa Mudstone Formation of Zambia, and the Teekloof Formation of South Africa.

See also

References

  1. Laaß, Michael (26 June 2015). "The origins of the cochlea and impedance matching hearing in synapsids" (PDF). Acta Palaeontologica Polonica. 60. doi:10.4202/app.00140.2014. Retrieved 14 July 2015.


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