''Phthinosuchus'' is an extinct
genus
Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms as well as viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus comes above species and below family. In binomial nom ...
of
therapsid
Therapsida is a major group of eupelycosaurian synapsids that includes mammals, their ancestors and relatives. Many of the traits today seen as unique to mammals had their origin within early therapsids, including limbs that were oriented more ...
s from the
Middle Permian
The Guadalupian is the second and middle series/ epoch of the Permian. The Guadalupian was preceded by the Cisuralian and followed by the Lopingian. It is named after the Guadalupe Mountains of New Mexico and Texas, and dates between 272.95 ± ...
of Russia. ''Phthinosuchus'' is the sole member of the family Phthinosuchidae. ''Phthinosuchus'' may have been one of the most primitive therapsids, meaning that its ancestors may have branched off early from the main therapsid line.
Discovery
''Phthinosuchus'' was named in 1954 by
Ivan Yefremov
Ivan Antonovich (real patronymic Antipovich) Yefremov ( ru , Ива́н Анто́нович (Анти́пович) Ефре́мов; April 23, 1908 – October 5, 1972; last name sometimes transliterated as Efremov) was a Soviet paleonto ...
. It is currently only known from the back of the skull, as the front of the skull was lost after description. Two species, ''P. discors'' and ''P. horissiaki'', have been described.
Description
''Phthinosuchus'' was 1.5 m (5 ft) long with a 20 cm skull, and looked much like the
Sphenacodontids
Sphenacodontidae (Greek: "wedge point tooth family") is an extinct family (biology), family of small to large, advanced, carnivore, carnivorous, Late Pennsylvanian to Guadalupian, middle Permian pelycosaurs. The most recent one, ''Dimetrodon ang ...
, such as ''
Dimetrodon
''Dimetrodon'' ( or ,) meaning "two measures of teeth,” is an extinct genus of non-mammalian synapsid that lived during the Cisuralian (Early Permian), around 295–272 million years ago (Mya). It is a member of the family Sphenacodont ...
'' and ''
Sphenacodon''. Its
temporal fenestrae were larger than those of the Sphenacodontids.
Its jaw was slender, unlike other predatory therapsids,
but like the other
early therapsids, it was probably sprawling and
carnivorous
A carnivore , or meat-eater (Latin, ''caro'', genitive ''carnis'', meaning meat or "flesh" and ''vorare'' meaning "to devour"), is an animal or plant whose food and energy requirements derive from animal tissues (mainly muscle, fat and other ...
.
Classification
''Phthinosuchus'' is a member of the suborder
Phthinosuchia, which was made specifically for ''Phthinosuchus'' given that it did not fit into any other suborder.
See also
*
List of therapsids
This list of therapsids is an attempt to create a comprehensive listing of all genera that have ever been included in the Therapsida excluding mammals and purely vernacular terms. The list includes all commonly accepted genera, but also genera tha ...
*
Evolution of mammals
The evolution of mammals has passed through many stages since the first appearance of their synapsid ancestors in the Pennsylvanian sub-period of the late Carboniferous period. By the mid-Triassic, there were many synapsid species that looked l ...
*
Dinocephalia
Dinocephalians (terrible heads) are a clade of large-bodied early therapsids that flourished in the Early and Middle Permian between 279.5 and 260 million years ago (Ma), but became extinct during the Capitanian mass extinction event. Dinocephal ...
ns
References
Dinocephalians
Prehistoric therapsid genera
Prehistoric synapsids of Europe
Fossil taxa described in 1954
Taxa named by Ivan Yefremov
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