Acta Palaeontologica Polonica

A new discosauriscid seymouriamorph tetrapod from the Lower Permian of Moravia, Czech Republic

Jozef Klembara

Acta Palaeontologica Polonica 50 (1), 2005: 25-48

A new genus and species, Makowskia laticephala gen. et sp. nov., of seymouriamorph tetrapod from the Lower Permian deposits of the Boskovice Furrow in Moravia (Czech Republic) is described in detail, and its cranial reconstruction is presented. It is placed in the family Discosauriscidae (together with Discosauriscus and Ariekanerpeton) on the following character states: short preorbital region; rounded to oval orbits positioned mainly in anterior half of skull; otic notch dorsoventrally broad and anteroposteriorly deep; rounded to oval ventral scales. Makowskia is distinguished from other Discosauriscidae by the following characters: nasal bones equally long as broad; interorbital region broad; prefrontal-postfrontal contact lies in level of frontal mid-length (only from D. pulcherrimus); maxilla deepest at its mid-length; suborbital ramus of jugal short and dorsoventrally broad with long anterodorsal-posteroventral directed lacrimal-jugal suture; postorbital anteroposteriorly short and lacks elongated posterior process; ventral surface of basioccipital smooth; rows of small denticles placed on distinct ridges and intervening furrows radiate from place immediately laterally to articular portion on ventral surface of palatal ramus of pterygoid (only from D. pulcherrimus); oblique anterior margin of transverse flange of pterygoid directed anteromedially-posterolaterally; cultriform process of parasphenoid relatively short and slightly rounded; ventral surface of the posterior plate of parasphenoid heavily sculptured (only from D. pulcherrimus and Ariekanerpeton); distal ends of fourth and fifth presacral ribs distinctly anteroposteriorly broadened, and extend into the hook-like, posteriorly directed processes; shaft of ?last caudal rib anteroposteriorly broadened; posterior stem of interclavicle narrows anteriorly and posteriorly from broadened mid-length section.

Key words: Skeletal anatomy, Discosauriscidae, Seymouriamorpha, Permian, Boskovice Furrow, Moravia, Czech Republic.

Jozef Klembara [klembara@fns.uniba.sk], Comenius University in Bratislava, Faculty of Natural Sciences, Mlynská dolina, 842 15 Bratislava, Slovak Republic.


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