Krusatodon

Extinct genus of mammaliaforms

Krusatodon
Temporal range: Middle Jurassic, 174.1–163.5 Ma
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Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Clade: Synapsida
Clade: Therapsida
Clade: Cynodontia
Clade: Mammaliaformes
Order: Docodonta
Family: Tegotheriidae
Genus: Krusatodon
Sigogneau-Russell, 2003
Species:
K. kirtlingtonensis
Binomial name
Krusatodon kirtlingtonensis
Sigogneau-Russell, 2003

Krusatodon is a genus of extinct docodont mammaliaform from the Middle Jurassic of the United Kingdom. It is known from remains found in the Forest Marble Formation and also from the Kilmaluag Formation on the Isle of Skye, Scotland.[1][2]

Etymology

The name Krusatodon honours the German zoologist and palaeontologist Dr. Georg Krusat, who carried out important research on docodonts and other early mammals.[1]

Description

Prior to 2024, Krusatodon was mainly known from a handful of individual molar teeth, and an undescribed jaw.[2] In 2024, a juvenile and an adult skeleton of the species were described.[3] Like all docodontans, these teeth have a more complex arrangement of cusps than other groups of early mammaliaforms (the group that includes mammals). This includes a large main cusp on the lower teeth (cusp a) and a number of smaller cusps around it, with a "pseudotalonid" - a basin where food can be crushed and ground. This arrangement is similar to the tribosphenic molar seen in later mammals.

Adult individuals were relatively small-sized compared to living mammals, with a body mass of 54–156 grams (0.119–0.344 lb).[3]

Paleobiology

Analysis of tooth histology suggests that Krusatodon had relatively long lives compared to modern mammals of similar size, with the adult skeleton described in 2024 estimated to have been 7 years old at the time of death.[3]

References

  1. ^ a b Sigogneau-Russell D. 2003. Docodonts from the British Mesozoic. Acta Palaeontologica Polonica, 48(3)
  2. ^ a b Panciroli, E., Benson, R.B.J., Walsh, S. Butler, R.J., Castro, T.A., Jones, M.E.H. and Evans, S. 2020. Diverse vertebrate assemblage of the Kilmaluag Formation (Bathonian, Middle Jurassic) of Skye, Scotland. Earth and Environmental Science Transactions of the Royal Society of Edinburgh, 111: 135-156.
  3. ^ a b c Panciroli, Elsa; Benson, Roger B. J.; Fernandez, Vincent; Fraser, Nicholas C.; Humpage, Matt; Luo, Zhe-Xi; Newham, Elis; Walsh, Stig (2024-07-24). "Jurassic fossil juvenile reveals prolonged life history in early mammals". Nature. doi:10.1038/s41586-024-07733-1. ISSN 0028-0836.
  • Briggs, Helen (2024-07-24). "Skye fossils reveal secrets of first mammals to walk the Earth". BBC Home. Retrieved 2024-07-24.
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Synapsida
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Cynodontia
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Charassognathidae
Procynosuchidae
Galesauridae
Eucynodontia
Cynognathia
    • see Cynognathia
Probainognathia
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Abdalodon diastematicus Galesaurus planiceps
Chiniquodontidae
Probainognathidae
Ecteniniidae
Prozostrodontidae
Tritheledontidae
Mammaliamorpha
Tritylodontidae
Mammaliaformes
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Chiniquodon theotonicus

Riograndia guaibensis

Oligokyphus triserialis
Kuehneotheriidae
Shuotheriidae
Docodonta
Haramiyida
Euharamiyida
Hahnodontidae?
Crown-Mammalia
    • see Mammalia
Morganucodon watsoni Docofossor brachydactylus
See also
Incertae sedis
Paraphyletic /
Polyphyletic groups
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Taxon identifiers
Krusatodon
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