Brithopus
Name: Brithopus.
Phonetic: Bri-thop-us.
Named By: Kutorga - 1838.
Synonyms: Dinosaurus murchisoni,
Rhopalodon murchisoni.
Classification: Chordata, Synapsida,
Therapsida, Dinocephalia, Brithopodidae.
Species: B. priscus (type).
Diet: Carnivore?
Size: Estimated about 2.5 to 3 meters long.
Known locations: Russia.
Time period: Mid Permian.
Fossil representation: Partial remains.
Brithopus is a little known genus of dinocephalian therapsid, and one that has a lot of questions concerning it. When first described, Brithopus was classed as a member of the Anteosauria, and when Brithopus became the type genus of its own group, the Brithopodidae, many anteosaurians were included with this sub group. However, a complete individual of Brithopus has never been found, in fact the fossils that we do have are not only fragmentary but poorly preserved as well. This has led many to speculate that the Brithopus genus is dubious, yet in a 2011 study by C. F. Kammerer, it was suggested that the Brithopus genus might actually be more closely related to the herbivorous tapinocephalid dinocephalians.
Further reading
- Systematics of the Anteosauria (Therapsida: Dinocephalia) -
Journal of Systematic Palaeontology C. F. Kammerer - 2011.
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