Statue of Scutosaurus being attacked by a gorgonopsian
Scutosaurus (meaning “shielded reptile”) is a genus of pareiasaur, an ancient group of basal armored sauropsids (“reptile”, in its broadest sense). It measured as much as 2.5–3 m long and weighed a ton, and lived around 252-248 MYA in Russia, in the late Permian period.
Description[]
Although they had no shell, their backs were covered in hard, bony plates. Despite their size and armor, they were prey for gorgonopsids. Once they tired from running from danger, they’re vulnerable. Like the massive sauropod dinosaurs, Scutosaurus couldn't chew, but instead they likely had gastroliths in their stomachs to help grind the vegetation in a gizzard. Scutosaurus could smell water from several miles away. Its genus name refers to large plates of armor scattered across its body, making it one of the best-defended animals at its time. It was a large reptile that, unlike most reptiles in the era, held its legs underneath its body to support its great weight.
Classification[]
Researchers assumed that Scutosaurus was very distant ancestor of turtles. However, later genetic studies of modern turtles have revealed that they are closely related to neodiapsids instead of pareiasaurs and other parareptiles, specifically being the sister group to Archosaurs.
In media[]
- Scutosaurus appears in the third episode of Walking with Monsters, where it incorrectly shown to live in Siberia. In reality, all known fossils of Scutosaurus were found in western part of Russia, within the East European Plain. Ironically, Scutosaurus is the only showed animal that actually lived in what is now Russia during Permian period since gorgonopsid is based on the African Gorgonops, and Diictodon is known from Africa and China. Remains that possibly belong to Rhinesuchus have been discovered in Russia, but in the Lower Triassic instead of the Permian.
- Scutosaurus is shown in the BBC's Primeval. In this series it is shown to be too large and with too narrow torso and head. In addition, it did not live in the same area as Coelurosauravus.
- Scutosaurus made another appearance in the Netflix documentary Life on Our Planet, where it was shown as prey for the gorgonopsid Inostrancevia.
Gallery[]
