Baurioidea

Baurioidea
Temporal range: Late Permian - Middle Triassic
Life restoration of Regisaurus jacobi
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Clade: Synapsida
Clade: Therapsida
Clade: †Therocephalia
Clade: †Eutherocephalia
Superfamily: †Baurioidea
Broom, 1911
Genera
Synonyms
  • Bauriamorpha Watson and Romer, 1956
  • Scaloposauria Boonstra, 1953

Baurioidea is a superfamily of therocephalian therapsids. It includes advanced therocephalians such as Regisaurus and Bauria.[2] The superfamily was named by South African paleontologist Robert Broom in 1911. Bauriamorpha, named by D. M. S. Watson and Alfred Romer in 1956, is a junior synonym of Baurioidea.

Many baurioids were once placed in a group called Scaloposauria. Scaloposaurs were characterized by their small size and reduced postorbital bar (a strut of bone behind the eye socket). Scaloposauria is no longer recognized as a valid taxon because it likely represents juvenile forms of many groups of therocephalians. Most scaloposaurs, including Scaloposaurus and Regisaurus, are now classified in various positions within Bauroidea.[3]

Many therocephalians once classified as scaloposaurians are now considered basal baurioids. The classification of these species is uncertain, as there have been no comprehensive phylogenetic analyses of scaloposaurian taxa. The validity of many of these species is questionable, as future studies may find some to be synonymous.[4] Below is a list of these taxa:

  1. ^ Liu, J.; Abdala, F. (2024). "A new small baurioid therocephalian from the Lower Triassic Jiucaiyuan Formation, Xinjiang, China". Vertebrata PalAsiatica. doi:10.19615/j.cnki.2096-9899.240726.
  2. ^ Huttenlocker, A. (2009). "An investigation into the cladistic relationships and monophyly of therocephalian therapsids (Amniota: Synapsida)". Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society. 157 (4): 865–891. doi:10.1111/j.1096-3642.2009.00538.x.
  3. ^ Kemp, T.S. (1986). "The skeleton of a baurioid therocephalian therapsid from the Lower Triassic (Lystrosaurus Zone) of South Africa" (PDF). Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology. 6 (3): 215–232. doi:10.1080/02724634.1986.10011617. JSTOR 4523096. Archived from the original (PDF) on 4 October 2012. Retrieved 26 March 2011.
  4. ^ Abdala, F.; Rubidge, B. S.; Heever, J. A. van den (2008). "The oldest therocephalians (Therapsida, Eutheriodontia) and the early diversification of Therapsida". Palaeontology. 51 (4): 1011–1024. doi:10.1111/j.1475-4983.2008.00784.x.