Herpetoskylax hopsoni

Formerly referred as specimens of Rubidginia sp., Herpetoskylax is based on two well preserved skulls from the Late Permian of South Africa. It is a primitive therapsid related to Biarmosuchus.

Name

Herpetoskylax hopsoni

Authority

Sidor & Rubidge, 2003

Meaning of generic name

Creeping young dog

Size

Skull length: 13 cm, Length: ? 1 m

Remains

Holotype (CGP/1/67): nearly complete skull and lower jaws.

Referred materials: BP/1/3294 (distorted skull and lower jaws).

Age and Distribution

Horizon: Cistecephalus assemblage zone, Teekloof formation, Beaufort Group, Upper Permian (Wuchianpingian).

Type locality: Matjiesfontein farm, beaufort West District, Western Cape Province, South Africa.

Classification

Synapsida Therapsida Biarmosuchia Ictidorhinidae

Further Reading

Sidor, C. A., and B. S. Rubidge. 2006. Herpetoskylax hopsoni, a new biarmosuchian (Therapsida: Biarmosuchia) from the Beaufort Group of South Africa; pp. 76–113 in M. T. Carrano, T. Gaudin, R. Blob, and J. Wible (eds.), Amniote Paleobiology: Perspectives on the Evolution of Mammals, Birds, and Reptiles. University of Chicago Press, Chicago, Illinois.