Moschops
Encyclopedia
Moschops is an extinct genus
of therapsid that lived in the Late Permian
, around 255 million years ago. Therapsids were proto-mammals (non-mammal synapsid
s), which were the dominant land animals. Five metres long, Moschops was the largest land animal of its time, a herbivore preyed on by other therapsids. Its remains were found in the Karoo
region of South Africa.
, but the hind limbs were more mammal
ian in form, being placed directly under the body. The diet of Moschops was mostly plants, sometimes eating meat.
It had a thickened skull and it has been proposed that the animals competed with each other by head-butting; mountain sheep use a similar method. A short, but heavy tail may have counter-balanced its large head if the thick skull was a natural occurrence. It was probably the main source of food for predatory therapsids such as Lycaenops
.
It makes an appearance in cartoon called The Moschops, a 1999 cartoon by Jim Trainor that was shown in the 2005 New York Underground Film Festival.
It also appears in the computer game series named Carnivores
as an unhuntable creature, though far too small.
Genus
In biology, a genus is a low-level taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms, which is an example of definition by genus and differentia...
of therapsid that lived in the Late Permian
Permian
The PermianThe term "Permian" was introduced into geology in 1841 by Sir Sir R. I. Murchison, president of the Geological Society of London, who identified typical strata in extensive Russian explorations undertaken with Edouard de Verneuil; Murchison asserted in 1841 that he named his "Permian...
, around 255 million years ago. Therapsids were proto-mammals (non-mammal synapsid
Synapsid
Synapsids are a group of animals that includes mammals and everything more closely related to mammals than to other living amniotes. They are easily separated from other amniotes by having an opening low in the skull roof behind each eye, leaving a bony arch beneath each, accounting for their name...
s), which were the dominant land animals. Five metres long, Moschops was the largest land animal of its time, a herbivore preyed on by other therapsids. Its remains were found in the Karoo
Karoo
The Karoo is a semi-desert region of South Africa. It has two main sub-regions - the Great Karoo in the north and the Little Karoo in the south. The 'High' Karoo is one of the distinct physiographic provinces of the larger South African Platform division.-Great Karoo:The Great Karoo has an area of...
region of South Africa.
Description
It was the largest land animal at the time, with a body length of around 5 metres (16.4 ft). It was a heavily-built herbivore with short, chisel-like teeth for cropping vegetation. The forelimbs sprawled outwards, like those of a modern lizardLizard
Lizards are a widespread group of squamate reptiles, with nearly 3800 species, ranging across all continents except Antarctica as well as most oceanic island chains...
, but the hind limbs were more mammal
Mammal
Mammals are members of a class of air-breathing vertebrate animals characterised by the possession of endothermy, hair, three middle ear bones, and mammary glands functional in mothers with young...
ian in form, being placed directly under the body. The diet of Moschops was mostly plants, sometimes eating meat.
It had a thickened skull and it has been proposed that the animals competed with each other by head-butting; mountain sheep use a similar method. A short, but heavy tail may have counter-balanced its large head if the thick skull was a natural occurrence. It was probably the main source of food for predatory therapsids such as Lycaenops
Lycaenops
Lycaenops is a genus of carnivorous therapsid . It measured about 1 meter long and lived during the late mid-Permian to the early Late Permian in what is now South Africa....
.
In popular culture
A UK children's animation series called 'Moschops' ran for 13 episodes in 1983; there was an accompanying set of books. The titular character was joined for adventures by his friends and relatives, including an Allosaurus and Diplodocus (Jurassic), and a Triceratops, ichthyosaur, and Tyrannosaurus (Cretaceous). All the other characters were in fact anachronistic with the Permian Period in which the historical Moschops lived, and geographically remote from its location.It makes an appearance in cartoon called The Moschops, a 1999 cartoon by Jim Trainor that was shown in the 2005 New York Underground Film Festival.
It also appears in the computer game series named Carnivores
Carnivores (video game)
Carnivores is a first person shooting video game produced by Action Forms and released by WizardWorks Software in 1998. It is the first of Carnivores series.-Storyline:...
as an unhuntable creature, though far too small.