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Anteosauridae is an extinct family of large carnivorous dinocephalian therapsids that are known from the Middle Permian of Asia, Africa, and South America.These animals were by far the largest predators of the Permian period, with skulls reaching 80 cm in length in adult individuals, far larger than the biggest gorgonopsian.
Anteosaurus was once known by a large number of species, but the current thinking on this is that they merely represent different growth stages of the same type species, A. magnificus. [ 55 ] [ 10 ] We have 32 skulls of Anteosaurus , of which 16 are reasonably well preserved and on them ten species have been named.
Rather than the limbs being drawn in under the body, the stance was more sprawling. Olson (1962) notes that the Russian dinocephalian assemblages indicate environments tied to water, and Boonstra considered that the roughly contemporary Anteosaurus was a slinking crocodile-like semi-aquatic form. The long tail, weak limbs, and sprawling posture ...
Anteosaurus overviewing the landscape. The largest carnivorous non-mammalian synapsids was the dinocephalian Anteosaurus, which was 5–6 m (16–20 ft) long, and weighed 500–600 kg (1,100–1,300 lb). [16] [17] Fully grown Titanophoneus from the same family Anteosauridae likely had a skull of 1 m (3.3 ft) long. [17]
†Anteosaurus Anteosaurinae is an extinct subfamily of dinocephalian therapsids . It is one of two subfamilies in the family Anteosauridae , the other being Syodontinae .
Dinocephalians were generally large. The biggest herbivores (Tapinocephalus) and omnivores (Titanosuchus) may have weighed up to 2 tonnes (4,400 lb), and were some 4.5 metres (15 ft) long, while the largest carnivores (such as Titanophoneus and Anteosaurus) were at least as long, with heavy skulls 80 centimetres (31 in) long, and overall masses of around a half-tonne.
List of fossil species in the La Brea Tar Pits, California, United States List of fossil species in the London Clay , England List of White Sea biota species by phylum , Russia
Australosyodon is regarded as a very primitive anteosaurid dinocephalian and as first known representative of that group in the southern hemisphere. Like Syodon, Australosyodon lacked the features typical for the more apomorphic members of the anteosauridae, e.g. the boss on the lower mandible found in Anteosaurus or Titanophoneus.