![Rhynchosaurus](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/79/Rhynchosaurus.png)
''Rhynchosaurus'' (''beaked lizard'') is a
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
rhynchosaur
Rhynchosaurs are a group of extinct herbivorous Triassic archosauromorph reptiles, belonging to the order Rhynchosauria. Members of the group are distinguished by their triangular skulls and elongated, beak like premaxillary bones. Rhynchosaurs ...
that lived during the
Middle Triassic
In the geologic timescale, the Middle Triassic is the second of three epochs of the Triassic period or the middle of three series in which the Triassic system is divided in chronostratigraphy. The Middle Triassic spans the time between Ma and ...
period
Period may refer to:
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* Era, a length or span of time
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* Periodic sentence (or rhetorical period), a concept ...
. It lived in
Europe
Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...
. It was related to the
archosaurs
Archosauria () is a clade of diapsids, with birds and crocodilians as the only living representatives. Archosaurs are broadly classified as reptiles, in the cladistic sense of the term which includes birds. Extinct archosaurs include non-avi ...
, but not within that group. The type species of ''Rhynchosaurus'' is ''R. articeps''.
Michael Benton
Michael James Benton One or more of the preceding sentences incorporates text from the royalsociety.org website where: (born 8 April 1956) is a British palaeontologist, and professor of vertebrate palaeontology in the School of Earth Sciences ...
named two additional species, ''R. spenceri'' and ''R. brodiei'', but they were subsequently renamed ''
Fodonyx
''Fodonyx'' (meaning "digging claw") is an extinct genus of rhynchosaur from the middle Triassic epoch of Devon in England. Its fossils (25 specimens) were discovered in Otter Sandstone Formation (late Anisian age) and were first assigned to '' R ...
'' and ''
Langeronyx
''Langeronyx'' is an extinct genus of basal rhynchosaurid known from the early Middle Triassic (Anisian stage) Bromsgrove Sandstone Formation of Warwickshire, UK. It contains a single species, ''Langeronyx brodiei'', originally included in th ...
'' respectively.
[Martín D. Ezcurra, Felipe Montefeltro and Richard J. Butler (2016). "The Early Evolution of Rhynchosaurs". Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution 3: Article 142. doi:10.3389/fevo.2015.00142.] Fossils of ''Rhynchosaurus'' have been found in the
Tarporley Siltstone Formation (
Mercia Mudstone Group
The Mercia Mudstone Group is an early Triassic lithostratigraphic group (a sequence of rock strata) which is widespread in Britain, especially in the English Midlands – the name is derived from the ancient kingdom of Mercia which corresponds to t ...
) and possibly the
Sherwood Sandstone Group
The Sherwood Sandstone Group is a Triassic lithostratigraphic group (a sequence of rock strata) which is widespread in Britain, especially in the English Midlands. The name is derived from Sherwood Forest in Nottinghamshire which is underlain by r ...
of the
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...
.
[''Rhynchosaurus'']
at Fossilworks
Fossilworks is a portal which provides query, download, and analysis tools to facilitate access to the Paleobiology Database
The Paleobiology Database is an online resource for information on the distribution and classification of fossil animals ...
.org
References
External links
Archosauromorphaat Paleofile
Rhynchosaurs
Middle Triassic reptiles of Europe
Anisian genus first appearances
Anisian genus extinctions
Fossils of England
Fossil taxa described in 1842
Taxa named by Richard Owen
Prehistoric reptile genera
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