Varanosaurus

Varanosaurus Temporal range: Early Permian, 280 Ma PreЄ Є O S D C P T J K Pg N ↓
Varanosaurus
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Clade:	Synapsida
Family:	†Ophiacodontidae
Genus:	†Varanosaurus Broili, 1904
Type species
†Varanosaurus acutirostris Broili, 1904
Species[1]
†V. acutirostris Broili 1904 (type) †V. wichitaensis Romer 1937

Varanosaurus ('monitor lizard') is an extinct genus of early pelycosaur synapsid that lived during the Kungurian.^[2]

Varanosaurus acutirostris

Description

Life reconstruction of Varanosaurus

Varanosaurus acutirostris being devoured by Dimetrodon limbatus

As its name implies, Varanosaurus may have looked superficially similar to present-day monitor lizards.

Varanosaurus was a small, nimble synapsid and grew up to 1–1.5 m in length with a skull length 14 cm long.^[2] It had a flattened, elongated skull and a pointed snout with a row of sharp teeth, including two pairs of conspicuous pseudocanines, implying that it was an active predator.^[3]

Varanosaurus probably lived in swamps, competing with the larger Ophiacodon for food.

Classification

Below is a cladogram modified from the analysis of Benson (2012):^[4]

	Tseajaia campi Limnoscelis paludis Amniota Captorhinus spp. Protorothyris archeri Synapsida Caseasauria Ianthodon schultzei Edaphosauridae Sphenacodontia Varanopidae Ophiacodontidae Archaeothyris florensis Varanosaurus acutirostris Ophiacodon spp. Stereophallodon ciscoensis

See also

• List of synapsids

References

1. "Varanosaurus". Fossilworks. Retrieved 19 December 2014.
2. "Varanosaurus". Prehistoric Wildlife. Retrieved 19 December 2014.
3. Palmer, D., ed. (1999). The Marshall Illustrated Encyclopedia of Dinosaurs and Prehistoric Animals. London: Marshall Editions. p. 187. ISBN 1-84028-152-9.
4. Benson, R.J. (2012). "Interrelationships of basal synapsids: cranial and postcranial morphological partitions suggest different topologies". Journal of Systematic Paleontology. in press (4): 601. doi:10.1080/14772019.2011.631042.

Further reading

• Benes, Josef. Prehistoric Animals and Plants. Pg. 90. Artia: Prague, 1979.