Prolacerta
Extinct genus of reptile from the lower Triassic / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Dear Wikiwand AI, let's keep it short by simply answering these key questions:
Can you list the top facts and stats about Prolacerta?
Summarize this article for a 10 year old
Prolacerta is a genus of archosauromorph from the lower Triassic of South Africa and Antarctica.[1][2] The only known species is Prolacerta broomi. The generic name Prolacerta is derived from Latin meaning “before lizard” and its species name broomi is in commemoration of the famous paleontologist Robert Broom, who discovered and studied many of the fossils found in rocks of the Karoo Supergroup. When first discovered, Prolacerta was considered to be ancestral to modern lizards, scientifically known as lacertilians.[3] However, a study by Gow (1975) instead found that it shared more similarities with the lineage that would lead to archosaurs such as crocodilians and dinosaurs (including birds). Prolacerta is considered by modern paleontologists to be among the closest relatives of the Archosauriformes.[1]
Prolacerta | |
---|---|
The skull of Prolacerta broomi | |
Scientific classification | |
Domain: | Eukaryota |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Chordata |
Class: | Reptilia |
Clade: | Archosauromorpha |
Clade: | Crocopoda |
Family: | †Prolacertidae |
Genus: | †Prolacerta Parrington, 1935 |
Species: | †P. broomi |
Binomial name | |
†Prolacerta broomi Parrington, 1935 | |