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Prozostrodontian
Prozostrodontia is a clade of cynodonts including mammaliaforms and their closest relatives such as Tritheledontidae and Tritylodontidae. It was erected as a node-based taxon by Liu and Olsen (2010) and defined as the least inclusive clade containing ''Prozostrodon brasiliensis'', ''Tritylodon langaevus'', ''Pachygenelus monus'', and ''Mus musculus'' (the house mouse). Prozostrodontia is diagnosed by several characters, including: * Reduced prefrontal and postorbital bones, with a reduction or disappearance of a strut of bone called the postorbital bar separating the eye socket from the temporal region * Unconnected dentary bones in the lower jaw * The presence of a small hole in the skull called the sphenopalatine foramen * A sagittal crest extending along the top of the skull and connecting with a lambdoidal crest at the back of the skull * Neural spines of the dorsal vertebrae angled backward * A convex-shaped iliac crest and a reduced posterior iliac spine on the hip * An a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Alemoatherium
''Alemoatherium'' is an extinct genus of prozostrodontian cynodont which lived in the Late Triassic of Brazil. It contains a single species, ''A. huebneri'', named in 2017 by Agustín Martinelli and colleagues. The genus is based on UFSM 11579b, a left lower jaw (dentary) found in the Alemoa Member of the Santa Maria Formation, preserving the late Carnian-age ''Hyperodapedon'' Assemblage Zone. ''Alemoatherium'' was among the smallest species of cynodonts found in the rich synapsid fauna of the Santa Maria Formation. Its blade-like four-cusped postcanine teeth show many similarities with those of dromatheriids, an obscure group of early prozostrodontians. Description The dentary is similar in shape to that of many other prozostrodontians, with an overall slender form that abruptly changes angle near the front of the jaw. This distinct change in angle separates the dentary into two main regions, the horizontal ramus behind the level of the first postcanine tooth, and the upwar ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Prozostrodon Brasiliensis
''Prozostrodon'' is an extinct genus of advanced cynodonts that was closely related to the ancestors of mammals. The remains were found in Brazil and are dated middle to late Triassic. It was originally described as a species of '' Thrinaxodon'' and was probably fairly similar to that genus in overall build. The holotype has a skull length of 6.7 cm, indicating the whole animal may have been the size of a cat, though there is some doubt as to whether the find represents an adult individual. The teeth were typical of advanced cynodonts, and the animal was probably a small carnivore hunting reptiles and other small prey. Later analysis indicated ''Prozostrodon'' was more closely related to the mammals than to the ''Thrinaxodon'' species, and it was given its own genus. Cladistic analysis indicates its closest relatives gave rise to the first mammaliaforms and therefore to the crown group mammals. The holotype of ''Prozostrodon'' was found in the Geopark of Paleorrota, Santa ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Cynodont
The cynodonts () ( clade Cynodontia) are a clade of eutheriodont therapsids that first appeared in the Late Permian (approximately 260 mya), and extensively diversified after the Permian–Triassic extinction event. Cynodonts had a wide variety of lifestyles, including carnivory and herbivory. Mammals are cynodonts, as are their extinct ancestors and close relatives, having evolved from advanced probainognathian cynodonts during the Late Triassic. All other cynodont lines went extinct, with the last known non-mammalian cynodont group, the Tritylodontidae, having its youngest records in the Early Cretaceous. Description Early cynodonts have many of the skeletal characteristics of mammals. The teeth were fully differentiated and the braincase bulged at the back of the head. Outside of some crown-group mammals (notably the therians), all cynodonts probably laid eggs. The temporal fenestrae were much larger than those of their ancestors, and the widening of the zygomatic ar ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Prozostrodon
''Prozostrodon'' is an extinct genus of advanced cynodonts that was closely related to the ancestors of mammals. The remains were found in Brazil and are dated middle to late Triassic. It was originally described as a species of '' Thrinaxodon'' and was probably fairly similar to that genus in overall build. The holotype has a skull length of 6.7 cm, indicating the whole animal may have been the size of a cat, though there is some doubt as to whether the find represents an adult individual. The teeth were typical of advanced cynodonts, and the animal was probably a small carnivore hunting reptiles and other small prey. Later analysis indicated ''Prozostrodon'' was more closely related to the mammals than to the ''Thrinaxodon'' species, and it was given its own genus. Cladistic analysis indicates its closest relatives gave rise to the first mammaliaforms and therefore to the crown group In phylogenetics, the crown group or crown assemblage is a collection of species c ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Dromatheriidae
Dromatheriidae is an extinct family of prozostrodontian cynodonts, closely related to mammals. Members of the family are known from the Late Triassic (Carnian to Rhaetian) of India, Europe and North America. Apart from a few jaw fragments, dromatheriids are mainly known from their sectorial (flesh-slicing) postcanine teeth. The teeth were fairly typical among early prozostrodontians, as they were labiolingually compressed (flattened sideways), with a single root and crown hosting a longitudinal row of sharp cusps. Dromatheriids in particular have a very narrow and symmetrical crown (when seen from above) without a prominent cingulum (a ridge or array of cuspules adjacent to the main cusps). Dromatheriid teeth on average have four main cusps, though some have as few as two ('' Dromatherium'') or three ('' Tricuspes''), or as many as six (''Inditherium'', '' Pseudotriconodon''). Although the teeth have a single root, a vertical furrow on each side of the root appears to be a tra ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sagittal Crest
A sagittal crest is a ridge of bone running lengthwise along the midline of the top of the skull (at the sagittal suture) of many mammalian and reptilian skulls, among others. The presence of this ridge of bone indicates that there are exceptionally strong jaw muscles. The sagittal crest serves primarily for attachment of the temporalis muscle, which is one of the main chewing muscles. Development of the sagittal crest is thought to be connected to the development of this muscle. A sagittal crest usually develops during the juvenile stage of an animal in conjunction with the growth of the temporalis muscle, as a result of convergence and gradual heightening of the temporal lines. Function A sagittal crest tends to be present on the skulls of adult animals that rely on powerful biting and clenching of their teeth, usually as a part of their hunting strategy. Skulls of some dinosaur species, including tyrannosaurs, possessed well developed sagittal crests. Among mammals, dogs, cats, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Lambdoid Suture
The lambdoid suture (or lambdoidal suture) is a dense, fibrous connective tissue joint on the posterior aspect of the skull that connects the parietal bones with the occipital bone. It is continuous with the occipitomastoid suture. Structure The lambdoid suture is between the paired parietal bones and the occipital bone of the skull. It runs from the asterion on each side. Nerve supply The lambdoid suture may be supplied by a branch of the supraorbital nerve, a branch of the frontal branch of the trigeminal nerve. Clinical significance At birth, the bones of the skull do not meet. If certain bones of the skull grow too fast, then craniosynostosis (premature closure of the sutures) may occur. This can result in skull deformities. If the lambdoid suture closes too soon on one side, the skull will appear twisted and asymmetrical, a condition called "plagiocephaly". Plagiocephaly refers to the shape and not the condition. The condition is craniosynostosis. The lambdoid s ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sphenopalatine Foramen
The sphenopalatine foramen is a foramen in the skull that connects the nasal cavity with the pterygopalatine fossa. Structure The processes of the superior border of the palatine bone are separated by the ''sphenopalatine notch'', which is converted into the sphenopalatine foramen by the under surface of the body of the sphenoid. In the articulated skull this foramen leads from the pterygopalatine fossa into the posterior part of the superior meatus of the nose, and transmits the sphenopalatine artery and vein and the posterior superior lateral nasal nerve and nasopalatine nerve The nasopalatine nerve (long sphenopalatine nerve) is a nerve of the head. It is a branch of the pterygopalatine ganglion, a continuation from the maxillary nerve (V2). It supplies parts of the palate and nasal septum. Structure The nasopal ...s. Additional images File:Gray167.png, Articulation of left palatine bone with maxilla. File:Gray168.png, Left palatine bone. Nasal aspect. Enlarged. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Dentary Bone
In anatomy, the mandible, lower jaw or jawbone is the largest, strongest and lowest bone in the human facial skeleton. It forms the lower jaw and holds the lower teeth in place. The mandible sits beneath the maxilla. It is the only movable bone of the skull (discounting the ossicles of the middle ear). It is connected to the temporal bones by the temporomandibular joints. The bone is formed in the fetus from a fusion of the left and right mandibular prominences, and the point where these sides join, the mandibular symphysis, is still visible as a faint ridge in the midline. Like other symphyses in the body, this is a midline articulation where the bones are joined by fibrocartilage, but this articulation fuses together in early childhood.Illustrated Anatomy of the Head and Neck, Fehrenbach and Herring, Elsevier, 2012, p. 59 The word "mandible" derives from the Latin word ''mandibula'', "jawbone" (literally "one used for chewing"), from '' mandere'' "to chew" and ''-bula ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pachygenelus Monus
''Pachygenelus'' is an extinct genus of tritheledontid cynodonts. Fossils have been found from the Karoo basin in South Africa and date back to the Early Jurassic. ''Pachygenelus'' had both an articular- quadrate and dentary-squamosal jaw joint characteristic of ictidosaurs. Only mammals possess the dentary-squamosal articulation, while all other tetrapods possess the typical arcticular-quadrate articulation. Thus the jaw of ''Pachygenelus'' can be seen as transitional between non-mammalian synapsids and true mammals. Another feature of ''Pachygenelus'' that is shared with mammals is plesiomorphic prismatic enamel, or enamel arranged into strengthened prisms. The upper and lower tooth rows occluded with one another, although not as close as what is seen in true mammals. Wear facets are present on the lingual sides of the upper and external faces of the lower postcanines, and are seen as evidence for the occlusion. Despite all of the derived adaptation seen in its teeth, the d ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Temporal Fenestra
An infratemporal fenestra, also called the lateral temporal fenestra or simply temporal fenestra, is an opening in the skull behind the orbit in some animals. It is ventrally bordered by a zygomatic arch. An opening in front of the eye sockets, conversely, is called an antorbital fenestra. Both of these openings reduce the weight of the skull. Infratemporal fenestrae are commonly (although not universally) seen in the fossilized skulls of dinosaurs. Synapsids, including mammals Mammals () are a group of vertebrate animals constituting the class Mammalia (), characterized by the presence of mammary glands which in females produce milk for feeding (nursing) their young, a neocortex (a region of the brain), fu ..., have one temporal fenestra, while sauropsids, the birds and reptiles, have two. References {{ref list Dinosaur anatomy Foramina of the skull ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Orbit (anatomy)
In anatomy, the orbit is the cavity or socket of the skull in which the eye and its appendages are situated. "Orbit" can refer to the bony socket, or it can also be used to imply the contents. In the adult human, the volume of the orbit is , of which the eye occupies . The orbital contents comprise the eye, the orbital and retrobulbar fascia, extraocular muscles, cranial nerves II, III, IV, V, and VI, blood vessels, fat, the lacrimal gland with its sac and duct, the eyelids, medial and lateral palpebral ligaments, cheek ligaments, the suspensory ligament, septum, ciliary ganglion and short ciliary nerves. Structure The orbits are conical or four-sided pyramidal cavities, which open into the midline of the face and point back into the head. Each consists of a base, an apex and four walls."eye, human."Encyclopædia Britannica from Encyclopædia Britannica 2006 Ultimate Reference Suite DVD 2009 Openings There are two important foramina, or windows, two important f ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
