| Scalopodon | |
|---|---|
Scientific classification | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Clade: | Synapsida |
| Clade: | Therapsida |
| Clade: | †Therocephalia |
| Superfamily: | †Baurioidea |
| Genus: | †Scalopodon Tatarinov1999 |
| Type species | |
| †Scalopodon tenuisfrons Tatarinov 1999 | |
Scalopodon is an extinctgenus oftherocephaliantherapsids from theLate Permian ofRussia. Thetype speciesScalopodon tenuisfrons was named in 1999 from theKotelnichsky District ofKirov Oblast.[1]Scalopodon is known from a single fragmentaryholotype specimen including the back of the skull, the left side of the lower jaw and isolatedpostorbital andprefrontal bones. The skull was found in theDeltavjatia Assemblage Zone, which dates back to the earlyWuchiapingian about 260 million years ago.[2] Distinguishing features ofScalopodon include narrowfrontal bones and a distinctivesagittal crest along theparietal region at the back of the skull.Scalopodon was originally classified in the familyScaloposauridae, and was the first scaloposaurid found in Russia (scaloposaurids are also known from southern Africa and Antarctica).[1] More recent studies of therocephalians have found scaloposaurids likeScalopodon to be juvenile forms of larger therocephalians and do not consider Scaloposauridae to be a valid group.Scalopodon and most other scaloposaurids are now classified asbasal members ofBaurioidea.[3]
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