''Habrosaurus'' (, meaning "graceful lizard") is an extinct
genus
Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus com ...
of prehistoric
salamander
Salamanders are a group of amphibians typically characterized by their lizard-like appearance, with slender bodies, blunt snouts, short limbs projecting at right angles to the body, and the presence of a tail in both larvae and adults. All ten ...
s, and the oldest known member of the family Sirenidae. Two species are known, ''H. prodilatus'' from the middle
Campanian
The Campanian is the fifth of six ages of the Late Cretaceous Epoch on the geologic timescale of the International Commission on Stratigraphy (ICS). In chronostratigraphy, it is the fifth of six stages in the Upper Cretaceous Series. Campanian s ...
Dinosaur Park Formation
The Dinosaur Park Formation is the uppermost member of the Belly River Group (also known as the Judith River Group), a major geologic unit in southern Alberta. It was deposited during the Campanian stage of the Late Cretaceous, between about 76. ...
of Alberta, and ''H. dilatus'' from the late
Maastrichtian
The Maastrichtian () is, in the ICS geologic timescale, the latest age (uppermost stage) of the Late Cretaceous Epoch or Upper Cretaceous Series, the Cretaceous Period or System, and of the Mesozoic Era or Erathem. It spanned the interval from ...
and
Paleocene
The Paleocene, ( ) or Palaeocene, is a geological epoch (geology), epoch that lasted from about 66 to 56 mya (unit), million years ago (mya). It is the first epoch of the Paleogene Period (geology), Period in the modern Cenozoic Era (geology), E ...
of western North America. It is relatively common in the
Lance Formation
The Lance (Creek) Formation is a division of Late Cretaceous (dating to about 69 - 66 Ma) rocks in the western United States. Named after Lance Creek, Wyoming, the microvertebrate fossils and dinosaurs represent important components of the late ...
of Wyoming, and less common in the
Hell Creek Formation
The Hell Creek Formation is an intensively studied division of mostly Upper Cretaceous and some lower Paleocene rocks in North America, named for exposures studied along Hell Creek, near Jordan, Montana. The formation stretches over portions of ...
of Montana.
Description
''Habrosaurus'' was one of the largest
lissamphibia
The Lissamphibia is a group of tetrapods that includes all modern amphibians. Lissamphibians consist of three living groups: the Salientia (frogs, toads, and their extinct relatives), the Caudata (salamanders, newts, and their extinct relatives), ...
ns of all time, comparable in length to modern
giant salamanders at about 1.6 meters, as estimated from its trunk vertebrae length (up to 2 cm long). ''H. prodilatus'' possessed chisel-like teeth, while ''H. dilatus'' had bulkier crowns. The teeth of ''H. dilatus'' also exhibited heavy wear facets while those of ''H. prodilatus'' had only mild wear, suggesting that ''H. dilatus'' was more adapted for
durophagy
Durophagy is the eating behavior of animals that consume hard-shelled or exoskeleton bearing organisms, such as corals, shelled mollusks, or crabs. It is mostly used to describe fish, but is also used when describing reptiles, including fossil tu ...
than ''H. prodilatus''. ''H. dilatus'' may have preyed upon arthropods with hard carapaces as well as mollusks.
Classification
''Habrosaurus'' is a sister taxa to both ''
Pseudobranchus'' and ''
Siren
Siren or sirens may refer to:
Common meanings
* Siren (alarm), a loud acoustic alarm used to alert people to emergencies
* Siren (mythology), an enchanting but dangerous monster in Greek mythology
Places
* Siren (town), Wisconsin
* Siren, Wisc ...
''
["Gardner"] which are the only genera in the
family
Family (from la, familia) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its ...
Sirenidae
Sirenidae, the sirens, are a family of neotenic aquatic salamanders. Family members have very small fore limbs and lack hind limbs altogether. In one species, the skeleton in their fore limbs is made of only cartilage. In contrast to most other ...
. Sirenids are classified by their
neotenous
Neoteny (), also called juvenilization,Montagu, A. (1989). Growing Young. Bergin & Garvey: CT. is the delaying or slowing of the physiological, or somatic, development of an organism, typically an animal. Neoteny is found in modern humans compa ...
traits (complete lack of hindlimbs and external gills in both larval and adult states).
References
Sirenoidea
Prehistoric amphibian genera
Prehistoric salamanders
Late Cretaceous amphibians
Cretaceous amphibians of North America
Late Cretaceous animals of North America
Campanian genus first appearances
Paleocene genus extinctions
Cretaceous–Paleogene boundary
Cretaceous United States
Hell Creek fauna
Lance fauna
Fossil taxa described in 1933
Taxa named by Charles W. Gilmore
{{paleo-salamander-stub