''Cynosphenodon'' ( ; "Dog Sphenodontian") is an extinct genus of the family
Sphenodontidae from the
Middle Jurassic
The Middle Jurassic is the second epoch of the Jurassic Period. It lasted from about 174.1 to 163.5 million years ago. Fossils of land-dwelling animals, such as dinosaurs, from the Middle Jurassic are relatively rare, but geological formations co ...
La Boca Formation
The La Boca Formation is a geological formation in Tamaulipas state, northeast Mexico. It was thought to date back to the Early Jurassic, concretely the Pliensbachian stage epoch. Although, the latest studies had proven that the local Vulcanism, r ...
of
Tamaulipas,
Mexico. Growth patterns in the teeth of ''Cynosphenodon'' suggest its close relationship with the modern
tuatara.
[Reynoso, V. H. (2003). Growth patterns and ontogenetic variation of the teeth and jaws of the Middle Jurassic sphenodontian ''Cynosphenodon huizachalensis'' (Reptilia: Rhynchocephalia). ''Canadian Journal of Earth Sciences 40''(4), 609–619]
References
Jurassic lepidosaurs
Sphenodontia
Fossils of Mexico
Prehistoric reptile genera
{{Jurassic-reptile-stub