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A new taxon of cistecephalid dicynodont from the upper Permian Kundaram Formation of India
Author(s) -
Kammerer Christian F.,
Bandyopadhyay Saswati,
Ray Sanghamitra
Publication year - 2016
Publication title -
papers in palaeontology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.827
H-Index - 15
ISSN - 2056-2802
DOI - 10.1002/spp2.1055
Subject(s) - permian , taxon , paleontology , biological dispersal , geography , geology , population , demography , structural basin , sociology
Abstract A new cistecephalid dicynodont, Sauroscaptor tharavati gen. et sp. nov., is described from the upper Permian Kundaram Formation of India. This taxon is represented by specimens formerly referred to the African dicynodont genera Cistecephalus and Emydops . Sauroscaptor can be distinguished from other cistecephalids by the extremely posterior position of the pineal foramen (overhanging the edge of the occiput), bipartite nuchal crest, and relatively narrow skull roof. The recognition of Sauroscaptor as a distinct cistecephalid taxon adds to the increasing evidence for high levels of basinal endemism in this family. However, dicynodont biogeographical patterns are complex, and there is no simple relationship between inferred dispersal ability based on body size and levels of endemicity within clades.