Discover the remarkable story of Moschorhinus kitchingi, a stocky predator that thrived in the extreme conditions of the Permian Period, a time of global upheaval and mass extinction. Explore how this ancient creature’s unique skeletal features allowed it to adapt and survive when many other species perished. Gain insights into the evolutionary resilience of therocephalians, a group often overshadowed by the more famous dinosaurs and early mammals. Permian-Triassic extinction event, therocephalians
Surviving the Apocalypse
A desolate planet where oceans are acid and choked with dead algal slime; 90% of species are extinct in a catastrophe by the end of the millennium. Such was the world at the close of the Permian Period, around 252 million years ago, a time when Earth experienced its worst mass extinction event. However, in the shadow of this worldwide tumult camouflaged a stout-bodied predator called Moschorhinus kitchingi which similarly been able to situate itself as one of the head predators in these traitorous new times.
Building on their work, scientists at the University of the Witwatersrand and University of Southern California now present a detailed examination — beyond its skull– of an aggregate bonebed assemblage that offers new insights into nearly every major part of the Moschorhinus kitchingi skeleton from collections in South Africa. This research, headed by Wits Ph. The study led by graduate student Brandon Stuart, and co-authored by Adam Huttenlocker and Jennifer Botha, was published Tuesday in the open-access journal PeerJ, provides insight into what allowed this ancient predator to adapt its body structure enough to survive the excessively cold conditions which wiped many species from existence.
Decoding the Mysteries of Therocephalians
He was in a group of prehistoric animals called therokes, which are not even as glamorous as the dinosaurs and would only have to wait millions of years before they could come. Little is known about their growth and even less about how they may have lived, primarily because previous research had concentrated on their skulls.
Studying the postcranial anatomy (the bones after the skull) of Moschorhinus has revealed more about this ancient predator. Moschorhinus was found to be uniquely wide-bodied, featuring a powerful and thick robust skeleton unlike most other reptiles. Its immense scapula, humerus and femur suggest it was very capable of wrestling in close combat with its prey.
Adapting to a Changing World
What made the Permo-Triassic extinction so fascinating is that it was so similar to what we know today as climate change — because both are abrupt and lethal changes in global temperature and atmosphere. Survivors like Moschorhinus help to highlight which traits and behaviors were beneficial for a species during mass extinctions. Which, in turn, might shed light onto how current species will adapt (or not) to our rapidly changing world.
The study also underscores the resilience of therapsids therocephalia, a group largely overshadowed by dinosaurs and their early proto-mammalian relatives. The detailed study of Moschorhinus’ skeleton not only helps to fill in such gaps, but also underscores the importance of these often under-appreciated animals in understanding prehistoric life. As lead author Brandon Stuart puts it, ‘uncovering details that have been hiding in their skeletons provides us with new anatomical data to help us tease apart how patterns of variation reflect secrets of Gilasaur ecolgy and biology.
