What is Therocephalia?
Q: What is Therocephalia?
A: Therocephalia are an extinct group of theriodonts that lived from the middle Permian into the Triassic 265—245 million years ago. They are named after their large skulls and were successful carnivores.
Q: How long did they live for?
A: Therocephalians lived for about 20 million years, from the middle Permian into the Triassic 265—245 million years ago.
Q: Are they related to mammals?
A: Yes, Therocephalia is the group most closely related to cynodonts, which gave rise to mammals. This relationship shows in a variety of anatomical features, possibly including whiskers and hair.
Q: Where have fossils been found?
A: Fossils of therocephalians have been found in South Africa, Russia, China, and Antarctica. Early fossils discovered in Middle Permian deposits suggest a Gondwanan origin for the group.
Q: What caused their extinction?
A: It is not known what caused their extinction but it occurred by early middle Triassic during a great Permian–Triassic extinction event. A few representatives of the subgroup (called Eutherocephalia) survived into early Triassic but eventually became extinct as well.
Q: What type of environment did they live in?
A: Therocephalians lived in various environments around world including Karoo of South Africa, Russia, China and Antarctica.
