Kryostega

Kry-o-steg-ah.
Published on

Benjamin Gutierrez

Vertebrate Paleontologist

Benjamin Gutierrez is a leading expert on dinosaurs, particularly the mighty theropods. His fieldwork in South America has uncovered new species and provided insights into dinosaur social structures.

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Name

Kryostega ‭(‬Frozen roof‭).

Phonetic

Kry-o-steg-ah.

Named By

C.‭ ‬A.‭ ‬Sidor,‭ ‬R.‭ ‬Damiani‭ & ‬W.‭ ‬R.‭ ‬Hammer‭ ‬-‭ ‬2008.

Classification

Chordata,‭ ‬Amphibia,‭ ‬Temnospondyli,‭ ‬Stereospondyli.

Diet

Carnivore/Piscivore.

Species

K.‭ ‬collinssoni‭

Size

Preserved portion of the skull‭ ‬27‭ ‬centimetres long by‭ ‬21‭ ‬centimetres wide.‭ ‬Reconstructed skull length estimated at‭ ‬1‭ ‬meter.‭ ‬Total body size extrapolated from the reconstructed skull length estimated at about‭ ‬4.5‭ ‬meters.

Known locations

Antarctica,‭ ‬Transantarctic Mountains‭ ‬-‭ ‬Fremouw Formation.

Time Period

Olenekian of the Triassic.

Fossil representation

Partial skull.

In Depth

       Kryostega is one of the growing number of temnospondyl amphibians that are now known from Antarctica.‭ ‬With a reconstructed body length estimated to be about four and a half meters long,‭ ‬Kryostega is so far one of the largest temnospondyl amphibians known to have lived in Antarctica during the Early Triassic,‭ ‬and a candidate for being a key apex predator here at that time.‭ ‬Possible prey animals for Kryostega would include anything from fish and other temnospondyl amphibians,‭ ‬to possibly even land creatures such as cynodonts and other therapsids.‭

Further Reading

-‭ ‬A new Triassic temnospondyl from Antarctica and a review of Fremouw Formation biostratigraphy.‭ ‬-‭ ‬Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology‭ ‬28‭(‬3‭)‬:656-663.‭ ‬-‭ ‬C.‭ ‬A.‭ ‬Sidor,‭ ‬R.‭ ‬Damiani‭ & ‬W.‭ ‬R.‭ ‬Hammer‭ ‬-‭ ‬2008.

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