A new species of Cyamodus described

[Logo7]

A new species of the placodont genus Cyamodus has been described from Late Triassic age remains from south-west China. The new species has been given the species name C. orientalis, with the species name originating from the Latin word "oriens," meaning "east," in reference to the location of this species in the eastern Tethys, while all other known species of Cyamodus are known from the western Tethys. The remains used to describe the new species are nearly complete, with only the forelimbs being missing. It is the first known Cyamodus specimen in the world that preserves a three-dimensional skull with an associated skeleton and extends the temporal and geographical distribution of this genus, with this species being found in the Carnian of the eastern Tethys. The existence of this species, which lived in nearshore areas and is extremely similar in morphology to the European Cyamodus compared to other placodonts in the region, suggests that there was greater similarity and more rapid intercommunication between the vertebrate fauna of the western and eastern Tethys than previously thought. Here are some images of the complete skeleton and skull used to describe the new species and a link to the paper describing it.




Paper (abstract only): https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/14772019.2018.1535455

[Newt]

Wow, that is a spectacular fossil!

[Jose S.M.]

That's a beautifully preserved fossil, specially it's head.

[Halichoeres]

Another one I'd like to see from PNSO.

[Shonisaurus]

Also Safari, Collecta and even Schleich could be encouraged to make this figure in PVC. Although perhaps the most suitable candidate is PNSO.