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''Pristerodon'' is an extinct genus of dicynodont therapsid from the Late Permian of South Africa, Zambia and India.


Paleobiology


Brain and senses

''Pristerodon'' were among the earliest land animals able to hear airborne sound as opposed to hearing via ground vibrations. A South African specimen studied with neutron tomography has shown evidence of an
eardrum In the anatomy of humans and various other tetrapods, the eardrum, also called the tympanic membrane or myringa, is a thin, cone-shaped membrane that separates the external ear The outer ear, external ear, or auris externa is the extern ...
on its lower jaw with the implication that it was hearing impaired during the act of chewing. The specimen had a 3mm cavity for cochlea which transformed sound frequency ranges into nerve impulses sent on to the brain.


Ecology

''Pristerodon'' has been found in the
Kundaram Formation The Kundaram Formation is a geological formation in India, located within the Pranhita–Godavari Basin. The unit is between 250–400 metres thick and at its base consists of sandstone-mudstone alterations, followed by a sequence dominated by re ...
of India, the Madumabisa Mudstone Formation of Zambia, and the
Teekloof Formation The Teekloof Formation is a geological formation that forms part of the Beaufort Group, one of the five geological groups that comprises the Karoo Supergroup in South Africa. The Teekloof Formation is the uppermost formation of Adelaide Subgroup ...
of South Africa.


Gallery

File:Dicynodon trigoniceps 1 DB.jpg, Restoration of ''Pristerodon mackayi'' Image:Pristerodon mackayi scale.svg, Size of ''Pristerodon mackayi'' relative to a human


See also

* List of therapsids


References


External links


The main groups of non-mammalian synapsids at Mikko's Phylogeny Archive
Dicynodonts Lopingian synapsids of Africa Fossils of South Africa Fossils of Zambia Lopingian synapsids of Asia Fossils of India Fossil taxa described in 1868 Taxa named by Thomas Henry Huxley Anomodont genera Permian India {{anomodont-stub