Saurorictus australis (Modesto and Smith 2001) SAM PK-8666, skull length ~2.2 cm, estimated total length 15 cm, Late Permian, was considered the most complete captorhinid from that stratum. Here Saurorictus was derived from a sister to Thuringothyris and Cephalerpeton. It was basal to Romeria texana, thus basal to the captorhinids. Modesto and Smith report the supratemporal and tabular lost, but basal to so many taxa that retain those bones, Saurorictus probably retained them as well. The supratemporal at this node is reduced to a splinter.
Distinct from Thuringothyris, Saurorictus has a narrower snout in dorsal view. The postorbital skull is shorter. The postorbital and postfrontal were larger. The maxilla was deeper. The splenial is not visible in lateral view on a more gracile mandible.
Above: the original fossil was described as crushed with bone fractures, and originally illustrated with a lacrimal/naris connection. This is the last taxon in this lineage to have that connection. |
