Keratocephalus was a moderately sized (3 m) Tapinocephalian therapsid that lived during the middle Permian Period; its remains were discovered in the town of Beaufort West, South Africa. Keratocephalus is characterized by a horn on the head between the eyes; it had a large skull that was 50 cm in length.
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Name
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Keratocephalus moloch
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Authority
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von Huene, 1931
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Meaning of the generic name
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Horned head
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Size
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Skull length: , Length: 2.5-3 m
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Remains
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Several skulls and postcranial remains.
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Age and Distribution
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Horizon: Lower and Middle Tapinocephalus assemblage zone, Lower Beaufort beds, Middle Permian (Capitanian).
Type locality: Beaufort West, Karoo basin, South Africa.
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Classification
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Synapsida Therapsida Dinocephalia Tapinocephalia Tapinocephalidae
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Further Reading
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Huene, F. von., 1931. Beitrag zur Kenntnis der Fauna der sudafrikanischen Karrooformation: Geologische und Palaeontologische Abhandlungen, v. 18, p. 159-227.
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Synonyms
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Pelosuchus priscus Broom, 1905
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 Life reconstruction of Keratocephalus moloch (© D. Bogdanov) |
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