''Palaeovaranus'' is an extinct genus of varanoid lizards from the Late

Eocene The Eocene ( ) Epoch is a geological epoch that lasted from about 56 to 33.9 million years ago (mya). It is the second epoch of the Paleogene Period in the modern Cenozoic Era. The name ''Eocene'' comes from the Ancient Greek (''ēṓs'', " ...

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan area ...

and

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

. It contains two species, ''Palaeovaranus cayluxensis'' and ''Palaeovaranus giganteus'' (formerly assigned to a separate genus ''Melanosauroides''). The genus was first named by Henri Filhol in 1877, but he had named the species ''Palaeovaranus cayluxi'' earlier as ''Palaeosaurus cayluxi'' in 1873, and as ''Necrosaurus cuxleyi'' in 1876 after it was discovered that ''Palaeosaurus'' was preoccupied. However, he failed to provide any kind of valid description, which renders

Karl Alfred Ritter von Zittel Karl Alfred Ritter von Zittel (25 September 1839 – 5 January 1904) was a German palaeontologist best known for his ''Handbuch der Palaeontologie'' (1876–1880). Biography Karl Alfred von Zittel was born in Bahlingen in the Grand Duchy ...

's 1887 description of the

taxon In biology, a taxon ( back-formation from '' taxonomy''; plural taxa) is a group of one or more populations of an organism or organisms seen by taxonomists to form a unit. Although neither is required, a taxon is usually known by a particular n ...

as the valid authority on its validity. Despite this, the name ''Necrosaurus'' was the widely used name in the literature afterwards until 2017, when the name ''Paleovaranus'' was revived.

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Eocene lizards Eocene reptiles of Europe Paleogene France Fossils of France Quercy Phosphorites Formation Paleogene Germany Fossils of Germany Fossil taxa described in 1873 {{Lizard-stub