Kallimodon
| Kallimodon Temporal range: Late Jurassic
| |
|---|---|
| Kallimodon pulchellus | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Reptilia |
| Order: | Rhynchocephalia |
| Suborder: | Sphenodontia |
| Genus: | †Kallimodon Cocude-Michel, 1963 |
| Type species | |
| †K. pulchellus (Zittel, 1887)
| |
| Other species | |
| |
Kallimodon is a genus of sphenodontian reptile from the Late Jurassic of Bavaria, southern Germany.
Description
The skull lacks a quadratojugal process of the jugal. The fourth metacarpal and metatarsal bones of the forefoot and hindfoot, respectively, are longer than the third digits of these feet. The unguals are relatively flat. Preserved soft tissue shows that Kallimodon pulchellus had square scales on the tail region.[1]
Ecology
The morphology of the limbs resembles those of terrestrial lizards, but Kallimodon has been suggested as semi-aquatic, which may be supported by the finding of apparent fish remains in the body cavity of one specimen, which may represent stomach contents.[1]
Systematics
Kallimodon was originally described as a species of Homoeosaurus by Karl von Zittel in 1887. However, in 1963 it was renamed Kallimodon due to differences from the Homoeosaurus type species.[2] In 1997, Kallimodon was sunk as a junior synonym of Leptosaurus, with the type species referred to as L. pulchellus.[3] However, subsequent studies find Kallimodon to be valid and distinct from Leptosaurus. One specimen previously referred to this genus is actually a distinct taxon.[4][5] In recent studies, Kallimodon has been recovered as part of the clade Leptorhynchia, which also includes the sapheosaurs, pleurosaurs and Homoeosaurus, among others.[6]
Cladogram after Beccari et al. 2025:[1]
| Rhynchocephalia |
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References
- ^ a b c Beccari, Victor; Guillaume, Alexandre R. D.; Jones, Marc E. H.; Villa, Andrea; Cooper, Natalie; Regnault, Sophie; Rauhut, Oliver W. M. (2025-07-01). "An arboreal rhynchocephalian from the Late Jurassic of Germany, and the importance of the appendicular skeleton for ecomorphology in lepidosaurs". Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society. 204 (3) zlaf073. doi:10.1093/zoolinnean/zlaf073. hdl:10362/186782. ISSN 0024-4082.
- ^ Cocude-Michel M. 1963. Les Rhynchocéphales et les Sauriens des Calcaires lithographiques (Jurassique supérieur) d’Europe occidentale.– Nouvelles Archives du Muséum d’Histoire Naturelle de Lyon 7: 1–187.
- ^ S. Renesto and G. Viohl. 1997. A sphenodontid (Reptilia, Diapsida) from the late Kimmeridgian of Schamhaupten (Southern Franconian Alb, Bavaria, Germany). Archaeopteryx 15:27-46
- ^ Rauhut O. W. M., Heyng A. M., López-Arbarello A. & Hecker A. (2012): A new rhynchocephalian from the Late Jurassic of Germany with a dentition that is unique amongst tetrapods. PLoS ONE 7: e46839.
- ^ Oliver W. M. Rauhut & Adriana López-Arbarello (2015) Zur Taxonomie der Brückenechse aus dem oberen Jura von Schamhaupten. [On the taxonomy of rhynchocephalians from the Late Jurassic of Schamhaupten] Archaeopteryx 33: 1-11 https://www.researchgate.net/publication/301517359_Zur_Taxonomie_der_Bruckenechse_aus_dem_oberen_Jura_von_Schamhaupten_On_the_taxonomy_of_the_rhynchocephalian_from_the_Late_Jurassic_of_Schamhaupten
- ^ DeMar, David G.; Jones, Marc E. H.; Carrano, Matthew T. (2022-12-31). "A nearly complete skeleton of a new eusphenodontian from the Upper Jurassic Morrison Formation, Wyoming, USA, provides insight into the evolution and diversity of Rhynchocephalia (Reptilia: Lepidosauria)". Journal of Systematic Palaeontology. 20 (1): 1–64. doi:10.1080/14772019.2022.2093139. hdl:2440/136608. ISSN 1477-2019. S2CID 252325953.