Varanosaurus
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Varanosaurus Temporal range: Early Permian, 280 Ma |
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| Varanosaurus | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Family: | †Ophiacodontidae |
| Genus: |
†Varanosaurus Broili, 1904 |
| Type species | |
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†Varanosaurus acutirostris Broili, 1904 |
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| Species | |
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Varanosaurus ('monitor lizard') is an extinct genus of early pelycosaur synapsid that lived during the Kungurian.
As its name implies, Varanosaurus may have looked superficially similar to present-day monitor lizards.
Varanosaurus was a small, nimble synapsid and grew up to 1–1.5 m in length with a skull length 14 cm long. It had a flattened, elongated skull and a pointed snout with a row of sharp teeth, including two pairs of conspicuous pseudocanines, implying that it was an active predator.
Varanosaurus probably lived in swamps, competing with the larger Ophiacodon for food.
Below is a cladogram modified from the analysis of Benson (2012):
Captorhinus spp.
Varanosaurus acutirostris
Ophiacodon spp.
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