Pristerodon

Pristerodon is an extinct genus of dicynodont therapsid from the Late Permian of South Africa, Zambia and India.

Pristerodon Temporal range: Late Permian
Skull at the Museum für Naturkunde, Berlin
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Clade:	Synapsida
Clade:	Therapsida
Clade:	†Anomodontia
Clade:	†Dicynodontia
Family:	†Eumantellidae
Genus:	†Pristerodon Huxley, 1868
Type species
†Pristerodon mackayi Huxley, 1868
Synonyms
Emydops longiceps Owen, 1876 Oudenodon raniceps Owen, 1876 Dicynodon trigoniceps Broom, 1904 Pristerodon brachyops (Broom, 1911) Diaelurodon whaitsi (Broom, 1911) Dicynodon pygmaeus Broom and Haughton, 1917 Emydops longus (Broom, 1921) Emydops parvus Broom, 1921 Emyduranus platyops Broom, 1921 Cerataelurus mirabilis Broom, 1931 Orophicephalus microrhynchus (Huene, 1931) Brachyuraniscus merwevillensis Broili & Schroeder, 1935 Brachyuraniscus reuningi Broili & Schroeder, 1935 Eurychororhinus boonstrai Broili & Schroeder, 1935 Synostocephalus vanhoepeni Broili & Schroeder, 1935 Emydops minimus Broom, 1935 Emyduranus gracilis Broom, 1935 Eumantellia mirus Broom, 1935 Emydops microdon Broom, 1936 Newtonella platyceps Broom, 1937 Dimetrodon siwerstrai Broom, 1940 Cryptocynodon schroederi Janensch, 1952 Emydops kitchingi Toerien, 1953 Emydops murraysburgensis Toerien, 1953 Hueneus oudebergensis Toerien, 1953 Parringtoniella broomi Toerien, 1953 Pristerodon buffaloensis Toerien, 1953

Paleobiology

Brain and senses

Pristerodon were among the earliest land animals able to hear airborne sound as opposed to hearing via ground vibrations. A South African specimen studied with neutron tomography^[1] has shown evidence of an eardrum on its lower jaw with the implication that it was hearing impaired during the act of chewing. The specimen had a 3mm cavity for cochlea which transformed sound frequency ranges into nerve impulses sent on to the brain.

Ecology

Pristerodon has been found in the Kundaram Formation of India, Usili Formation of Tanzania, the Upper Madumabisa Mudstone Formation of Zambia, and the Teekloof Formation and Abrahamskraal Formation of South Africa.

Phylogeny

Pristerodon in a cladogram modified from Angielczyk and Rubidge (2010) showing the phylogenetic relationships of Dicynodontia:^[2]

Dicynodontia

Eodicynodon Colobodectes Lanthanostegus Pylaecephalidae Robertia Diictodon Prosictodon Chelydontops Endothiodon Pristerodon Emydopoidea Emydops Myosaurus Kingoriidae Dicynodontoides Kombuisia Cistecephalidae Cistecephalus Cistecephaloides Kawingasaurus Pristerodontia Interpresosaurus Elph Rhachiocephalus Cryptodontidae Oudenodon Tropidostoma Australobarbarus Geikiidae Odontocyclops Idelesaurus Aulacephalodon Geikia Pelanomodon Dicynodontoidea Katumbia Delectosaurus Dicynodon Lystrosauridae Kannemeyeriiformes Vivaxosaurus

See also

• List of therapsids