| Trihecaton Temporal range:
| |
|---|---|
Scientific classification 
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| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Order: | †Microsauria |
| Family: | †Trihecatontidae Vaughn, 1972 |
| Genus: | †Trihecaton Vaughn, 1972 |
| Type species | |
| †Trihecaton howardinus Vaughn, 1972
| |
Trihecaton is an extinct genus of microsaur from the Late Pennsylvanian of Colorado. Known from a single species, Trihecaton howardinus, this genus is distinctive compared to other microsaurs due to possessing a number of plesiomorphic ("primitive") features relative to the rest of the group. These include large intercentra (wedge-like components of the vertebrae), folded enamel, and a large coronoid process of the jaw. Its classification is controversial due to combining a long body with strong limbs, features which typically are not present at the same time in other microsaurs. Due to its distinctiveness, Trihecaton has been given its own monospecific family, Trihecatontidae.[1][2]
- ^ Vaughn, Peter Paul (23 February 1972). "More vertebrates, including a new microsaur, from the upper Pennsylvanian of Central Colorado". Contributions in Science. 223: 1–19. doi:10.5962/p.241208. S2CID 134446055.
- ^ Carroll, Robert L.; Gaskill, Pamela (1978). The Order Microsauria. Philadelphia: The American Philosophical Society. ISBN 978-0871691262.