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Caiman Brevirostris
''Caiman brevirostris'' is an extinct species of caiman that lived during the Late Miocene, around 11.6 million years ago, to the end of the Miocene 5.3 million years ago in Acre and Amazonas, Brazil as well as Urumaco, Venezuela. Several specimens have been referred to the species, but only 3 of them are confidently placed in the species. ''C. brevirostris'' was originally named in 1987 on the basis of a single, incomplete rostrum with an associated mandibular ramus that had been found in Acre, Brazil. ''C. brevirostris'' is very distinct among ''Caiman'' species and caimaninae overall in that it preserves a characteristically short and robust skull that bears blunt posterior teeth that were built to break down harder foods. This was an adaption for durophagy (the diet of hard-shelled organisms), likely to crush shells of mollusks and clams which were common in the wetlands that ''C. brevirostris'' resided in. Discovery and naming ''Caiman brevirostris'' was described in 1987 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Late Miocene
The Late Miocene (also known as Upper Miocene) is a sub-epoch of the Miocene epoch (geology), Epoch made up of two faunal stage, stages. The Tortonian and Messinian stages comprise the Late Miocene sub-epoch, which lasted from 11.63 Ma (million years ago) to 5.333 Ma. The evolution of life The gibbons (family Hylobatidae) and orangutans (genus ''Pongo'') are the first groups to split from the line leading to the hominins, including humans, then gorillas (genus ''Gorilla''), and finally, chimpanzees and bonobos (genus ''Pan (genus), Pan''). The splitting date between hominin and chimpanzee lineages is placed by some between 4 to 8 million years ago, that is, during the Late Miocene. References External links GeoWhen Database - Late Miocene Miocene, .03 Miocene geochronology, 03 Messinian, * Tortonian, * {{geochronology-stub ... [...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 fissu ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Kuttanacaiman Iquitosensis
''Kuttanacaiman'' is a monotypic genus of extinct caiman represented by the type species ''Kuttanacaiman iquitosensis''. ''Kuttanacaiman'' lived in what is now the Amazon basin during the Middle Miocene, approximately 13 million years ago (Ma). The species was named in 2015 on the basis of one nearly complete skull and a second partial skull from the Pebas Formation near Iquitos, Peru. ''K. iquitosensis'' is characterized by a short, rounded snout and blunt teeth at the back of its jaws that were likely adapted to crushing freshwater bivalves. Its estimated total body length is . Etymology The genus name comes from the Quechuan languages, Quechua word ''kuttana'', meaning "grinding or crushing machine", and its species name honors the Iquitos native peoples. Habitat ''Kuttanacaiman'' lived in Amazonia at a time before the Amazon River Basin was established; in its place was a massive wetland, called the Pebas Mega-Wetland System, that covered an approximate area of over in ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Eocaiman Cavernensis
''Eocaiman'' is an extinct genus of caiman containing species living from the Early Paleocene to Miocene in what is now Argentina (Salamanca and Sarmiento Formations), Itaboraí Formation of Brazil and Colombia ( Honda Group).''Eocaiman'' at Fossilworks.org ''Eocaiman'' contains three described species: ''E. cavernensis'', ''E. palaeocenicus'', and ''E. itaboraiensis'', and is typically recovered as one of the more basal members of |
Globidentosuchus Brachyrostris
''Globidentosuchus'' is an extinct genus of basal caimanine crocodylian known from the late Middle to Late Miocene of the Middle and the Upper Members of the Urumaco Formation at Urumaco, Venezuela. Its skull was very short and robust, with large units of spherical teeth used to break the shells of molluscs as part of its durophagus diet. It is thought to be one of the most basal Caimanines, even sharing some traits with alligatorids. Etymology The generic name ''Globidentosuchus'' is derived from the Latin roots ''globus'' meaning "sphere" and ''dens'' meaning "tooth", referring to the spherical teeth in the posterior skull, and Greek ''souchos'' meaning "crocodile" after its classification. The species name ''brachyrostris'' is derived from the Greek ''brachys'' meaning "short" and Latin ''rostrum'' meaning "snout" after the truncated and robust rostrum of the species. History and taxonomy ''Globidentosuchus'' was described in 2013 by T. M. Scheyer and colleagues, the ty ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Gnatusuchus Pebasensis
''Gnatusuchus'' is an extinct genus of caiman represented by the type species ''Gnatusuchus pebasensis'' from the Middle Miocene Pebas Formation of Peru. ''Gnatusuchus'' lived about 13 million years ago (Ma) in a large wetland system called the Pebas mega-wetlands that covered over one million square kilometers of what is now the Amazon Basin (the modern basin had not yet developed at that time and instead of draining from west to east into the Atlantic Ocean, river systems drained northward through the wetlands and into the Caribbean Sea). Discovery and naming Fish and molluscs have long been known from the Pebas Formation, however starting in 2002 systematic surveys of the Peruvian Iquitos area have led to the discovery of many vertebrate remains including further fish remains, mammals, turtles and an abundance of crocodilians, with two contemporaneous lignitic bonebeds preserving a minimum of 7 coexisting taxa. Among the fossils recovered from the Iquitos localities is the holo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Caimaninae
A caiman (also cayman as a variant spelling) is an alligatorid belonging to the subfamily Caimaninae, one of two primary lineages within the Alligatoridae family, the other being alligators. Caimans inhabit Mexico, Central and South America from marshes and swamps to mangrove rivers and lakes. They have scaly skin and live a fairly nocturnal existence. They are relatively small-sized crocodilians with an average maximum weight of depending on species, with the exception of the black caiman (''Melanosuchus niger''), which can grow more than in length and weigh in excess of 1,000 kg (2,200 Ib). The black caiman is the largest caiman species in the world and is found in the slow-moving rivers and lakes that surround the Amazon basin. The smallest species is the Cuvier's dwarf caiman (''Paleosuchus palpebrosus''), which grows to long. There are six different species of caiman found throughout the watery jungle habitats of Central and Southern America. The average length for most o ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Stangerochampsa
''Stangerochampsa'' is an extinct genus of globidontan alligatoroid, possibly an alligatorine or a stem-caiman, from the Late Cretaceous of Alberta. It is based on RTMP.86.61.1, a skull, partial lower jaws, and partial postcranial skeleton discovered in the late Campanian–early Maastrichtian-age Horseshoe Canyon Formation. ''Stangerochampsa'' was described in 1996 by Wu and colleagues. The type species is ''S. mccabei''. The generic name honors the Stanger family, the owners of the ranch where the specimen was found, and the species name honors James Ross McCabe, who discovered, collected, and prepared it. ''Stangerochampsa'' is described as "small to medium–sized"; the type skull is long from the tip of the snout to the occipital condyle, and is wide at its greatest, while the thigh bone is long. It had heterodont dentition, with large crushing teeth at the rear of the jaws. Classification Wu and colleagues, using phylogenetic analyses, found their new genus to b ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Brachychampsa
''Brachychampsa'' is an extinct genus of alligatoroid, possibly a basal caiman. Specimens have been reported from New Mexico, Colorado, Wyoming, Montana, North and South Dakota, New Jersey, and Saskatchewan, though only those from Montana, Utah, and New Mexico are based on material sufficient to justify the referral. One specimen has been reported from the Darbasa Formation of Kazakhstan, although the species status is indeterminate for the fossil. The genus first appeared during the late Campanian stage of the Late Cretaceous (Judithian North American stage) and became extinct during the late Maastrichtian stage of the Cretaceous (Lancian North American Land Mammal "Age"). ''Brachychampsa'' is distinguished by an enlarged fifth maxillary tooth in the upper jaw. Species The type species of ''Brachychampsa'' is ''B. montana'', first discovered from the Hell Creek Formation of Montana and described by Charles W. Gilmore in a paper in 1911. In that same paper, Gilmore recombine ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Albertochampsa
''Albertochampsa'' is an extinct genus of globidontan alligatoroid (possibly a stem-caiman) from the Late Cretaceous of Alberta. It was named in 1972 by Bruce Erickson, and the type species is ''A. langstoni''. It is known from a skull from the Campanian-age Dinosaur Park Formation, where it was rare; ''Leidyosuchus ''Leidyosuchus'' (meaning " Leidy's crocodile") is an extinct genus of alligatoroid from the Late Cretaceous of Alberta. It was named in 1907 by Lawrence Lambe, and the type species is ''L. canadensis''. It is known from a number of specimens fro ...'' is the most commonly found crocodilian at the Park. The skull of ''Albertochampsa'' was only about 21 cm long (8.3 in). References Crocodilians Late Cretaceous crocodylomorphs of North America Late Cretaceous reptiles of North America Fossil taxa described in 1972 Prehistoric pseudosuchian genera {{Cretaceous-reptile-stub ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Alligatorinae
Alligatorinae is a subfamily within the family Alligatoridae that contains the alligators and their closest extinct relatives, and is the sister taxon to Caimaninae (the caimans). Many genera in Alligatorinae are described, but only the genus ''Alligator'' is still living, with the remaining genera extinct. Evolution Alligators and caimans split in North America during the early Tertiary or late Cretaceous (about 53 million to about 65 million years ago). The Chinese alligator split from the American alligator about 33 million years ago and likely descended from a lineage that crossed the Bering land bridge during the Neogene. The modern American alligator is well represented in the fossil record of the Pleistocene. The alligator's full mitochondrial genome was sequenced in the 1990s. The full genome, published in 2014, suggests that the alligator evolved much more slowly than mammals and birds. Phylogeny Alligatorinae is cladistically defined as ''Alligator mississippiensi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Splenial
The splenial is a small bone in the lower jaw of reptiles, amphibians and birds, usually located on the lingual side (closest to the tongue) between the angular and surangular The suprangular or surangular is a jaw bone found in most land vertebrates, except mammals. Usually in the back of the jaw, on the upper edge, it is connected to all other jaw bones: dentary, angular, splenial and articular The articular bone i ....Watson, D. M. S. (1912). LXVII.—On some reptilian lower jaws. Journal of Natural History, 10(60), 573-587. References Vertebrate anatomy {{Vertebrate anatomy-stub ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
