Australia: The Land Where Time Began

A biography of the Australian continent 

This 1 m long lizard-like reptile is the most complete fossil reptile known from Australia. A slab of sandstone contains the scattered remains of the entire animal. A number of small labyrinthodont bone fragments were found associated with its ribs that has been interpreted as probably being its last meal. It is believed to be very similar to, and possibly closely related to, Chasmatosaurus, from the Triassic of Africa and China.

It had a long premaxilla that was slightly curved, no parietal foramen, vertical quadrate, a vacuity at the posterior end of the dentary, the vertebrae were shallowly amphicoelous vertebrae, the cervical ribs were long and double-headed, it had long limbs and feet, it lacked bony scutes. It is the only proterosuchian to retain an interclavical, indicating it is a primitive form. The skull had a narrow snout and, unlike the antorbital fenestra of Kalisuchus that has a square shaped anterior margin, the anterior margin is rounded. There is an unusually large number of teeth in the premaxilla.

Sources & Further reading

Dinosaurs of Australia and New Zealand, John A. Long, UNSW Press, 1998

Archosauria

Therapsida

Gorgonopsida

Synapsida

Lepidosauria

Eosuchia

Mekosuchines

Mudtsoiid Snakes

Australian Reptiles

Megalania

Triassic Australia

Jurassic Australia

Cretaceous Australia