Asprosaurus
| Asprosaurus Temporal range: Late Cretaceous | |
|---|---|
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Reptilia |
| Order: | Squamata |
| Superfamily: | Varanoidea |
| (unranked): | Monstersauria |
| Genus: | †Asprosaurus Park et al., 2015 |
| Type species | |
| †Asprosaurus bibongriensis Park et al., 2015 | |
Asprosaurus is an extinct genus of anguimorph lizard from the Late Cretaceous of South Korea. Named in 2015 from the Boseong Bibong-ri Dinosaur Egg Site, the type species Asprosaurus bibongriensis is the first Mesozoic lizard to have been discovered on the Korean peninsula. Because Asprosaurus is known only from fragmentary material, its relationships with other lizards are uncertain. However, features of the lower jaw suggest that it may be a member of a clade (evolutionary grouping) called Monstersauria, which includes the living Gila monster.[1]
Size
Asprosaurus is noted for being a particularly large lizard species, measuring at an estimated length of 3-3.5 meters, a size comparable to the modern komodo dragon and the Cretaceous Palaeosaniwa. Alongside the latter, it is among the largest terrestrial squamates of the era, showcasing that these animals could grow to fairly large sizes in spite of competition from dinosaurs.[1]
References
- 1 2 Park, Jin-Young; Evans, Susan E.; Huh, Min (2015). "The first lizard fossil (Reptilia: Squamata) from the Mesozoic of South Korea". Cretaceous Research 55: 292. doi:10.1016/j.cretres.2015.03.001.
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