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The Traversodontid Cynodont Mandagomphodon hirschsoni from the Middle Triassic of the Ruhuhu Valley, Tanzania

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Early Evolutionary History of the Synapsida

Part of the book series: Vertebrate Paleobiology and Paleoanthropology ((VERT))

Abstract

Mandagomphodon hirschsoni (gen. nov., comb. nov.) is one of three species of traversodontid cynodont placed in Scalenodon [type species S. angustifrons (Parrington, 1946)] by Crompton (1972). It is based on a partial skull and lower jaws from the Middle Triassic of the Ruhuhu Valley, southwestern Tanzania. The upper postcanine teeth were used to diagnose species of Scalenodon, but newer traversodontid material indicates that the three species represent distinct genera. Material of “S.” hirschsoni, except for the postcanines, has not been described. It is unusual among traversodontids in having only three upper incisors, which are enlarged and procumbent. Three enlarged, procumbent anterior lower teeth are interpreted as two incisors and a canine. Analysis of postcanine wear facets indicates that the power stroke of the lower teeth was entirely in a posterior direction, including a slightly downward and backward grinding movement at the end of the stroke.

This chapter includes one or more new nomenclatural-taxonomic actions, registered in Zoobank, and for such purposes the official publication date is Sep 2013.

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Acknowledgments

My thanks to Dr. Angela Milner and Ms. Sandra Chapman of the Natural History Museum, London, for the loan of the material of Mandagomphodon hirschsoni. I also thank Ms. Claire Vanderslice for her carefully and beautifully rendered drawings of these fossils. Thanks also to Christian Kammerer and the anonymous reviewers for helping to improve the manuscript. I wish also to acknowledge the important contribution of Dr. A. W. “Fuzz” Crompton in shaping my approach to the study of vertebrate paleontology and functional biology. My research has over the years been generously supported by the National Science Foundation.

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  1. James A. Hopson

    Present address: , 3051 Piney Ridge Road, Ludington, MI, 49431, USA

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Organismal Biology, University of Chicago, 1027 East 57th Street, Chicago, IL, 60637, USA

    James A. Hopson

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  1. James A. Hopson
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Correspondence to James A. Hopson .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Division of Paleontology and Richard Gilder, Graduate School American Museum of Natural History, New York, New York, USA

    Christian F. Kammerer

  2. Department of Geology, Field Museum, Chicago, Illinois, USA

    Kenneth D. Angielczyk

  3. Museum für Naturkunde, Leibniz-Institut für Evolutions- und Biodiversitätsforschung an der Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, Berlin, Germany

    Jörg Fröbisch

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Hopson, J.A. (2014). The Traversodontid Cynodont Mandagomphodon hirschsoni from the Middle Triassic of the Ruhuhu Valley, Tanzania. In: Kammerer, C., Angielczyk, K., Fröbisch, J. (eds) Early Evolutionary History of the Synapsida. Vertebrate Paleobiology and Paleoanthropology. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-007-6841-3_14

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