''Charruodon'' is an extinct genus of

cynodont Cynodontia () is a clade of eutheriodont therapsids that first appeared in the Late Permian (approximately 260 Megaannum, mya), and extensively diversified after the Permian–Triassic extinction event. Mammals are cynodonts, as are their extin ...

s which existed in the ''Hyperodapedon'' Assemblage Zone of the Santa Maria Formation in the

Paraná Basin The Paraná Basin (, ) is a large cratonic sedimentary basin situated in the central-eastern part of South America. About 75% of its areal distribution occurs in Brazil, from Mato Grosso to Rio Grande do Sul states. The remainder area is distribu ...

in southeastern

Brazil Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...

during the

Late Triassic The Late Triassic is the third and final epoch (geology), epoch of the Triassic geologic time scale, Period in the geologic time scale, spanning the time between annum, Ma and Ma (million years ago). It is preceded by the Middle Triassic Epoch a ...

. The genus contains only the

type species In International_Code_of_Zoological_Nomenclature, zoological nomenclature, a type species (''species typica'') is the species name with which the name of a genus or subgenus is considered to be permanently taxonomically associated, i.e., the spe ...

''Charruodon tetracuspidatus'', which is known from a single specimen of uncertain provenance. Upon its first description, ''Charruodon'' was tentatively placed within the family Therioherpetidae, but a 2017 study by Agustín G. Martinelli and colleagues instead recovered it as a more basal member of

Probainognathia Probainognathia is one of the two major subgroups of the clade Eucynodontia, the other being Cynognathia. The earliest forms were carnivorous and insectivorous, though some groups eventually also evolved herbivorous diets. The earliest and most b ...

. In 2023, Hoffmann, Ribeiro & de Andrade reinterpreted the specimen as representing an early ontogenetic stage, and ''C''. ''tetracuspidatus'' to be a ''nomen dubium''.

References

Probainognathia Late Triassic synapsids of South America Triassic Brazil Fossils of Brazil Santa Maria Formation Nomina dubia Fossil taxa described in 2000 {{paleo-cynodont-stub