Moschops

Moschops (Greek for "calf face") is an extinct genus of dinocephalian therapsids that lived in what is now South Africa during the Capitanian stage of the Middle Permian around 264.4–260 million years ago. Fossils have been found in the Tapinocephalus Assemblage Zone of the Abrahamskraal Formation. Like other members of Tapinocephalidae, they were heavily built herbivores reaching a body mass of at least , and it has been debated whether or not they were semi-aquatic, like hippopotamuses. They had short, thick heads and are widely thought to have engaged in head-butting contests against rival individuals of the same species.

Moschops (Greek for "calf face") is an extinct genus of dinocephalian therapsids that lived in what is now South Africa during the Capitanian stage of the Middle Permian around 264.4–260 million years ago. Fossils have been found in the Tapinocephalus Assemblage Zone of the Abrahamskraal Formation. Like other members of Tapinocephalidae, they were heavily built herbivores reaching a body mass of at least , and it has been debated whether or not they were semi-aquatic, like hippopotamuses. They had short, thick heads and are widely thought to have engaged in head-butting contests against rival individuals of the same species. ==Description== Moschops were heavy set dinocephalian synapsids, with the AMNH 5552 specimen recorded has having a spine approximately long measured along the length of the curve. 187 A 2017 study estimated that Moschops weighed on average was up to in maximum body mass based on a regression formula, while a 2024 study estimated a body mass of approximately for the SAM-PK-11972 specimen based on a sculpted 3D model, and suggested that this estimate was likely to be considerably more accurate than those based on regression formulae. ==Classification== Moschops is classified as part of Dinocephalia, which is part of Therapsida, which also includes cynodonts and their mammalian descendants. Dinocephalians were the dominant group of therapsids during the Middle Permian, encompassing both large carnivores and herbivores. Within Dinocephalia, Moschops is placed as part of the herbivorous Tapinocephalidae. A 2009 study considered four species to be potentially valid, Moschops capensis, Moschops koupensis, Moschops whaitsi and Moschops oweni, but stated that this assessment was preliminary, as no detailed taxonomic revision had been taken of tapinocephalids for several decades up to that point. Further revisions of the taxonomy of Moschops have yet to be published, although from 2015¹ onwards M. whaitsi has been returned to its original genus Moschognathus in scientific literature and once again regarded as distinct. Delphinognathus conocephalus could represent juvenile Moschops, thus possibly synonymous. Delphinognathus is only known from a single, moderately pachyostosed skull. It has a conical boss on the parietal surrounding the pineal foramen. However, it has otherwise been suggested that Delphinognathus is an indeterminate juvenile tapinocephalid that cannot be assigned to any other tapinocephalid genus with confidence. A subadult tapinocephalid skull (AM 4950) which was originally attributed to Moschops capensis, was the subject of an analysis of the anatomy of its cranial vault in 2017 under the assumption it represented that species. However, this skull is now referred to Moschognathus whaitsi rather than to Moschops. ==References== ==External links== Moschops, pictures and a brief overview Tapinocephalidae at Paleos.com

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