Stagonolepis
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Stagonolepis Fossil range: Late Triassic |
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Stagonolepis
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Stagonolepis is an extinct genus of archosaur reptile belonging to the aetosaur order. It was about 3 m (10 ft) long.
An aetosaur, Stagonolepis was a quadrupedal animal covered in thick scutes that ran down the length of the animal's body. A slow-moving browser, it used this heavy body armor to repel attacks from contemporary thecodont carnivores. Stagonolepis had a very small head for its size; it was only 25 cm (10 in), accounting for less than 10% of the total body length. It had no teeth in the front of its jaws, but a beak-like tip that arched upwards, allowing it to uproot plants (similar to how a pig uses its snout), including horsetails, ferns, and the newly evolved cycads.
Fossil remains of the animal have been found in Scotland.