Description
- Metoposaurus
- Amphibian Tooth
- Triassic Age
- Bull Canyon Formation
- San Miguel County, New Mexico
- Specimen measures approx 1/4″ long and will come in a 1.25″ Gem Jar
Metoposaurus meaning “front lizard” is an extinct genus of stereospondyl temnospondyl amphibian, known from the Late Triassic of the U.S., Germany, Italy, Poland, and Portugal.
This mostly aquatic animal possessed small, weak limbs, sharp teeth, and a large, flat head. This highly flattened creature mainly fed on fish, which it captured with its wide jaws lined with needle-like teeth.
Metoposaurus was up to 3 m (10 feet) long and weighed about 450 kg (1,000 pounds). Many Metoposaurus mass graves have been found, probably from creatures that grouped together in drying pools during drought.