First Evidence of Late Triassic Dicynodonts from Germany

Schoch, R. 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 26:119-123. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1127/0077-7749/2012/0216


Abstract - 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.         

4 comments:

  1. It seems that dicynodonts were not so rare in the Late Triassic...
    However, it is not the first evidence of dicynodonts in the Late Triassic of central Europe - a dicynodont of similar size was briefly described by Sulej et al. (2011 [2010]) from the Woźniki assemblage in southern Poland (mid-late Carnian).

    Sulej T, Bronowicz R, Tałanda M, Niedźwiedzki G. 2011 [2010]. A new dicynodont-archosaur assemblage from the Late Triassic (Carnian) of Poland. Earth and Environmental Science Transactions of the Royal Society of Edinburgh 101: 261-269. doi:10.1017/S1755691011020123.

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  2. And there's the giant from Lisowice, briefly mentioned few years ago in Acta Pal. Pol.

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    Replies
    1. Yes, but the dicynodont from Lisowice is Norian or Rhaetian in age, not Carnian.

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  3. All new Late Triassic dicynodont finds from Laurasia are pretty exciting because with the exception of the Placerias Quarry, they are fairly rare.

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