478:
120:
500:). Very often the top of the head is rounded, and the bones of the forehead are elevated into a sort of dome or boss, in the middle of which is a large pineal opening. In some specimens this boss is of only moderate thickness, while in others it has become greatly thickened into a huge mass of bone (pachyostosis). It has been suggested that these animals engaged in intra-specific head-butting behavior, presumably for territory or mates. A similar thickening of the skull occurs in
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ages, radiating into several lineages, existing simultaneously, and differing mainly in details of the skull and, to an even lesser degree, the skeleton. It is not clear how such similar animals could each find their own ecological niche, but such was obviously the case. There is a parallel here with
604:
Gregory (1926) considered that dinocephalians were aquatic animals, the wide hands and feet and the extensive fore and aft reach being useful for propelling the animal through water and the massive forehead being an advantage in diving. He suggested that the pineal organ might have been phototropic,
574:
There is some disagreement over whether these animals lived in dry upland environments (Colbert), swamps, or either, depending on the species or tribe. There is no doubt that the
Tapinocephalidae occupied different ecological niches. However, the tendency of earlier writers like Gregory (1926) and
608:
Tapinocephalines were seen by
Boonstra (1956) as semi-aquatic animals. The cumbersome body, poor locomotor apparatus and feeble lower jaw and massive cranium all suggested to him that these animals could not have fed efficiently on land on tough vegetation. Instead he presented them as wallowers,
464:
The body is deep and capacious, allowing for a developed herbivore gut. The shoulders are much higher than the pelvic region, so that the back slopes, giraffe-fashion, from neck to tail. This seems to imply that they fed on vegetation of about a meter or more from the ground. The limbs are heavy,
579:
consigned to the swamps because their limbs were too clumsy and their bodies too heavy for them to exist on dry land. In fact, if they were head-butters, it is unlikely they could have been clumsy swamp wallowers, since head-butting implies some degree of mobility.
617:
Rescuing the tapinocephalids from a life of diluvian swamp-wallowing, Bakker (1975, 1986) argued that bone histology, geographic distribution, and predator-prey relationships showed that these were active, fully terrestrial and at least partially
518:
In keeping with their vegetarian lifestyle, the chisel-edged teeth are undifferentiated, lacking canines, and rather peg-like. In maturity the teeth have a talon and a crushing heel and the upper and lower teeth of the whole battery intermesh.
413:, and the Tapinocephalinae. They are known from both Russia and South Africa. In all probability, the Tapinocephalidae had a worldwide (Pangean) distribution. They flourished briefly during the
531:, with an adult weight from about 500 to 1,000 kilograms (1,100 to 2,200 lb), possibly up to 1.5 or 2 tonnes (3,310 or 4,410 lb) in the largest forms, such as
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was terrestrial. It is quite likely that some tapinocephalid species may have frequented pond margins, feeding on soft vegetation, others preferred dry uplands.
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Bakker, RT (August 1986). "The
Dinosaur Heresies : New Theories Unlocking the Mystery of the Dinosaurs and Their Extinction".
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with sturdy forelegs that sprawled out to the sides, while the longer hind legs were placed directly under the hips (the
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The skeleton of
Moschops capensis Broom, a dinocephalian reptile from the Permian of South Africa
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Boonstra (1965) to consider them semi-aquatic wallowers is reminiscent of the old fable of the
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Others like McNab and Geist suggest that the tapinocephalids were better considered inertial
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The tapinocephalid skull is massively constructed, and either long-snouted (e.g.
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helping the animal to orient itself relative to the surface of the water.
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The tapinocephalids were an advanced family of giant herbivorous
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being buoyed up by water, feeding on soft marsh vegetation.
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had the same posture). The feet are broad and short.
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445:megafauna, a number of factors were involved.
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718:Bakker, RT (1975). "Dinosaur Renaissance".
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401:. It is defined as the clade containing
707:. Boonstra, LD. 1956. pp. 137–169.
693:. Boonstra, LD. 1965. pp. 251–265.
691:The skull of Struthiocephalus kitchingi
651:
679:. Gregory, WT. 1926. pp. 179–251.
546:, these were the heavyweights of the
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583:Boonstra suggests that form such as
131:. The skeleton is displayed at the
133:American Museum of Natural History
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740:10.1038/scientificamerican0475-58
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27:Extinct family of therapsids
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562:Head-butting behaviour of
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502:pachycephalosaurian
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660:"†Tapinocephalia"
483:Moschops capensis
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305:Struthiocephalini
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16:(Redirected from
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326:
320:
310:
304:
294:
288:
282:
272:
266:
241:
222:Infraorder:
216:Dinocephalia
196:
183:
128:
29:
1531:Wikispecies
1429:Ulemosaurus
1360:Mormosaurus
1321:Lamiasaurus
1161:Syodontinae
1143:Sinophoneus
1136:Anteosaurus
1116:Microsyodon
1071:Anteosauria
981:Novocynodon
974:Microurania
641:homeotherms
634:theriodonts
631:endothermic
627:pelycosaurs
624:ectothermic
620:endothermic
544:pareiasaurs
536:atherstonei
467:dicynodonts
459:Ulemosaurus
449:Description
443:Pleistocene
439:pareiasaurs
428:ceratopsian
404:Ulemosaurus
350:Ulemosaurus
1607:Categories
1300:Dinartamus
1177:Notosyodon
1027:Rhopalodon
917:see below↓
856:Therapsida
779:at Palaeos
647:References
613:Physiology
419:Capitanian
327:Moschopina
258:Subgroups
209:Suborder:
203:Therapsida
18:Moschopina
1225:Brithopus
896:Synapsida
881:Synapsida
847:Synapsida
830:Kingdom:
773:at Kheper
726:(4): 58.
577:sauropods
506:dinosaurs
481:Skull of
431:dinosaurs
424:hadrosaur
190:Synapsida
163:Kingdom:
157:Eukaryota
1522:Q3044557
1516:Wikidata
1482:Category
1401:Moschops
1314:Jonkeria
1239:Orthopus
838:Chordata
836:Phylum:
832:Animalia
598:Moschops
497:Moschops
342:Moschops
247:Lydekker
235:Family:
177:Chordata
173:Phylum:
167:Animalia
153:Domain:
1577:4128643
1551:4817747
1328:Scullya
1307:Enobius
728:Bibcode
570:Ecology
433:of the
415:Wordian
1564:117037
1191:Syodon
510:Eocene
395:family
1590:38978
1559:IRMNG
861:Clade
852:Clade
843:Clade
473:Skull
197:Clade
184:Clade
1546:GBIF
894:see
589:and
523:Size
426:and
422:the
417:and
251:1890
53:PreꞒ
736:doi
724:232
397:of
1609::
1587::
1574::
1561::
1548::
1533::
1518::
863::
854::
845::
734:.
722:.
668:^
636:.
550:.
515:.
407:,
249:,
199::
186::
103:Pg
47:Ma
42:,
1331:?
1040:?
1022:?
1011:?
1000:?
992:?
984:?
806:e
799:t
792:v
742:.
738::
730::
662:.
371:†
363:†
357:†
347:†
339:†
331:†
325:†
319:†
309:†
303:†
293:†
287:†
281:†
271:†
265:†
239:†
226:†
213:†
108:N
98:K
93:J
88:T
83:P
78:C
73:D
68:S
63:O
58:Ꞓ
20:)
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