Tapinocephalia

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Tapinocephalia
Fossil range: Middle Permian to Late Permian
Moschops.
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Subphylum: Vertebrata
Superclass: Tetrapoda
(unranked) Amniota
Class: Synapsida
Order: Therapsida
Suborder: Dinocephalia
Infraorder: Tapinocephalia
Families and Genera

Styracocephalus
Titanosuchidae
Tapinocephalidae

The Tapinocephalians are one of the major groups of Dinocephalian therapsids. Unlike Anteosaurs and estemmenosuchids, the tapinocephalia are mainly from Africa and only one species is found in the north - Ulemosaurus from Russia. The tapinocephalia form into two clades, Styracocephalidae, Titanosuchidae, and the Tapinocephalidae. Earlier tapinocephalians were carnivorous to omnivorous. One such carnivorous/omnivorous tapinocephalians are the Titanosuchidae. They were long-tailed predators that hunted other herbivorous therapsids. Later Tapinocephalians were herbivorous. Tapinocephalians were hard-headed and might have used their thick skulls for head-butting abilities. Some had horns, some have not. The most notable tapinocephalians are Moschops, Tapinocephalus, and Titanosuchus.

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