| Paracryptodira Temporal range: Jurassic-Eocene |
|
|---|---|
 |
|
| Ordosemys liaoxiensis | |
Scientific classification  |
|
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Reptilia |
| Order: | Testudines |
| Suborder: | Cryptodira |
| Infraorder: | †Paracryptodira Gaffney, 1975 |
| Families | |
|
Baenidae |
|
| Synonyms | |
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Pleurosternoidea |
|
The Paracryptodira are an extinct group of turtles. Initially treated as suborder sister to the Cryptodira,[1] they are now known to be a very primitive lineage inside the Cryptodira according to the most common use of the latter taxon.[2]
Characteristics[edit]
Paracryptodira have reduced prefrontal exposure on the dorsal surface of their skulls, reduced fenestrae perilymphaticae, and secondarilyy reduced supraoccipital crests. .[2] In the skull, the posterior foramen for the internal carotid canal is located midway along the basisphenoid-pterygoid suture.[1]
Footnotes[edit]
References[edit]
- Gaffney, E.S. (1975): A phylogeny and classification of higher categories of turtles. Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History 155(5): 387-436. PDF fulltext
- Joyce, W.G. (2007): Phylogenetic relationships of Mesozoic turtles. Bulletin of the Peabody Museum of Natural History 48(1): 3–102. DOI:10.3374/0079-032X(2007)48[3:PROMT]2.0.CO;2 HTML abstract
