Scutosaurus
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| iScutosaurus
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Extinct (fossil)
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| Scutosaurus | |
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| Translation | shield lizard |
| Type | armored reptile |
| Length | 8-10 ft (2,50-3 m) |
| Height | up to 7 ft (2,10 m) |
| Weight | one ton |
| Movement | quadruped |
| Age | 260-250 million years ago |
| Diet | herbivore |
| Environment | desert |
| Distribution | Eastern Europe |
Scutosaurus was an armor-covered pareiasaur, perhaps as much as 10 feet long, which lived around 260 million years ago in Russia, in the later Permian period. Its name means "shield lizard", referring to plates of armor scattered across its body. It was a large anapsid reptile that, unlike most reptiles, held its legs underneath its body to support its great weight.
It was an herbivore, which probably lived in herds and was adapted to the dry conditions which covered much of Pangaea at that time. It was of a very heavy build, almost rhinoceros-like.
[edit] In Popular Culture
- Scutosaurus was shown in the Walking with Monsters series. It was the main prey of Gorgonops, a large gorgonopsid, and it is also shown that it migrated in groups.
