Dicynodont mandible from Triassic of Germany

[Ben Creisler <bcreisler@gmail.com>]

From: Ben Creisler
bcreisler@gmail.com


In February  issue of Neues Jahrbuch für Geologie und Paläontologie:



Schoch, Rainer R. (2012)
A dicynodont mandible from the Triassic of Germany forms the first
evidence of large herbivores in the Central European Carnian.
Neues Jahrbuch für Geologie und Paläontologie - Abhandlungen 263(2): 119-123
http://dx.doi.org/10.1127/0077-7749/2012/0216
http://www.ingentaconnect.com/content/schweiz/njbgeol/2012/00000263/00000002/art00003


A new partial mandible from the Schilfsandstein (Stuttgart Formation,
Middle Carnian) of southern Germany forms the first unambiguous
evidence of dicynodonts in the German Triassic. The preserved anterior
part of the mandible is most consistent with kannemeyeriiform
dicynodonts known from the Middle and Late Triassic of South America,
southern Africa, North America, and the Eastern European Platform.
Extrapolation of body size from the mandible indicates that the
Schilfsandstein dicynodont was moderately large (∼2m estimated body
length). This find is significant as it forms the first evidence of
large herbivores in the Carnian pre-dinosaur faunas of Central Europe.