Pamizinsaurus
Encyclopedia
Pamizinisaurus is a genus
of sphenodontia
n reptile
known from Lower Cretaceous (Albian
) Tlayúa Formation
of Mexico
. A crushed skeleon of a juvenile reptile was found in Tlayua Quarry, in central Mexico. It was named Pamizinsaurus tlayuaensis by Reynoso in 1997, after the name of the quarry of which it was found. Its skull length is 16 millimetre (0.62992125984252 in). The fossil was covered in small round osteoderm
s that could have protected it from predators.
; grouping it with the modern Sphenodon
(better known as the Tuatara), Zapatadon
, Cynosphenodon
, Homoeosaurus, Sapheosaurus
, and Ankylosphenodon.
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 sphenodontia
Sphenodontia
Sphenodontia is an order of lizard-like reptiles that includes only one living genus, the tuatara , and only two living species...
n reptile
Reptile
Reptiles are members of a class of air-breathing, ectothermic vertebrates which are characterized by laying shelled eggs , and having skin covered in scales and/or scutes. They are tetrapods, either having four limbs or being descended from four-limbed ancestors...
known from Lower Cretaceous (Albian
Albian
The Albian is both an age of the geologic timescale and a stage in the stratigraphic column. It is the youngest or uppermost subdivision of the Early/Lower Cretaceous epoch/series. Its approximate time range is 112.0 ± 1.0 Ma to 99.6 ± 0.9 Ma...
) Tlayúa Formation
Tlayúa Formation
The Tlayúa Formation is an Early Cretaceous geological formation near Tepexi de Rodríguez, Puebla, Central Mexico.-Lepidosaurs:Cyanobacteria, foraminifera, algae, gymnosperms, sponges,...
of Mexico
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
. A crushed skeleon of a juvenile reptile was found in Tlayua Quarry, in central Mexico. It was named Pamizinsaurus tlayuaensis by Reynoso in 1997, after the name of the quarry of which it was found. Its skull length is 16 millimetre (0.62992125984252 in). The fossil was covered in small round osteoderm
Osteoderm
Osteoderms are bony deposits forming scales, plates or other structures in the dermal layers of the skin. Osteoderms are found in many groups of extant and extinct reptiles, including lizards, various groups of dinosaurs , crocodilians, phytosaurs, aetosaurs, placodonts, and hupehsuchians...
s that could have protected it from predators.
Relatives
Pamizinsaurus was a genus of the subfamily SphenodontinaeSphenodontinae
In 1996, Reynoso named Sphenodontinae a subfamily of Sphenodontidae. Sphenodontinae has one tribe, named Sphenodontini.-Sphenodontini:Sphenodontini is the only tribe of the Sphenodontinae subfamily. Its two members are Cynosphenodon, and the modern Tuatara....
; grouping it with the modern Sphenodon
Tuatara
The tuatara is a reptile endemic to New Zealand which, though it resembles most lizards, is actually part of a distinct lineage, order Sphenodontia. The two species of tuatara are the only surviving members of its order, which flourished around 200 million years ago. Their most recent common...
(better known as the Tuatara), Zapatadon
Zapatadon
Zapatadon was a sphenodontid reptile from the end of the Early Jurassic La Boca Formation of Tamaulipas, Mexico.-Classification:Zapatadon was closely related to Cynosphenodon, Homoeosaurus, Sapheosaurus, Ankylosphenodon, Pamazinsaurus, and the modern Tuatara....
, Cynosphenodon
Cynosphenodon
Cynosphenodon is an extinct genus of the family Sphenodontidae from the Middle Jurassic La Boca Formation of Tamaulipas, Mexico. Growth patterns in the teeth of Cynosphenodon suggest its close relationship with the modern tuatara....
, Homoeosaurus, Sapheosaurus
Sapheosaurus
Sapheosaurus was a sphenodontid of the suborder Homoeosauria, although its skull was longer and narrower than that of Homoeosaurus. It was classified as a genus of sapheosaurid by Michael Benton in 1985.-Species:...
, and Ankylosphenodon.