Sauropleura

Sore-o-plu-rah.
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

Sauropleura ‭(‬lizard joint‭)‬.

Phonetic

Sore-o-plu-rah.

Named By

Edward Drinker Cope‭ ‬-‭ ‬1868.

Classification

Chordata,‭ ‬Amphibia,‭ ‬Lepospondyli,‭ ‬Nectridea,‭ ‬Urocordylidae.

Diet

Invertebrates.

Species

S.‭ ‬bairdi,‭ ‬S.‭ ‬longidentata,‭ ‬S.‭ ‬pectinata,‭ ‬S.‭ ‬scalaris

Size

Unavailable.

Known locations

USA.

Time Period

Carboniferous.

Fossil representation

Several specimens.

In Depth

       Sauropleura was a small lepospondyl amphibian that had a long,‭ ‬narrow body and tail,‭ ‬with only relatively small limbs.‭ ‬As such Sauropleura was probably more at home in the water where it uses its limbs and thin body to navigate through submerged aquatic plants as it hunted for invertebrates,‭ ‬though it is not entirely out‭ ‬of the question that‭ ‬it could have left the water.

       A previous species of Sauropleura known as S.‭ ‬longipes was renamed as a new genus in‭ ‬1976‭ ‬as Anthracodromeus.

Further Reading

-‭ ‬Synopsis of the Extinct Batrachia of North America,‭ ‬Edward Drinker Cope‭ ‬-‭ ‬1868.

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