Dimetrodon is probably the best-known of the
mammal-like reptiles. It was a predator that
lived in the Permian period between about
280 million and 265 million years ago.
Dimetrodon is believed to have been the largest predator
in its habitat. Adults were up to 11 feet (3.5 meters)
in length. It had four sprawling legs, and a large
tail, and probably walked in a similar manner to lizards.
It most noteable feature however is the large sail
on its back.
Dimetrodon's sail was filled with blood vessels and
is believed to have mainly served to help in
regulating body temperature. By facing the sail
towards the sun, Dimetrodon could heat itself
up quickly, and it could also use the sail to cool itself
if it became too hot. Additionally, the sail
may have served a number of secondary purposes such
as attracting mates, or helping to deter other
predators (by making the animal appear larger
than it was).
The name Dimetrodon means "two measures of teeth",
and was chosen in 1878 by
Edward D. Cope.
This name reflects the fact that the animal's skull contains two
different types of teeth (unlike reptiles which normally only
contain a single type of teeth) - namely
sharp canine teeth, and shearing teeth.
Fossils
of Dimetrodon have so been found in
North America and
Europe.
As well as
fossils of the animal
itself,
fossilized Dimetrodon
footprints have also been found.
Disclosure: Products details and descriptions provided by Amazon.com. Our company may receive a payment if you purchase products from them after following a link from this website.
CERTAIN CONTENT THAT APPEARS ON THIS SITE COMES FROM AMAZON SERVICES LLC. THIS CONTENT IS PROVIDED 'AS IS' AND IS SUBJECT TO CHANGE OR REMOVAL AT ANY TIME. CERTAIN CONTENT THAT APPEARS ON THIS SITE,COMES FROM AMAZON EU S.à r.l. THIS CONTENT IS PROVIDED 'AS IS' AND IS SUBJECT TO CHANGE OR REMOVAL AT ANY TIME.
In Association With Amazon.com Answers 2000 Limited is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com. In Association With Amazon.co.uk Answers 2000 Limited is a participant in the Amazon EU Associates Programme, an affiliate advertising programme designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.co.uk. As an Amazon Associate, our company earns from qualifying purchases. Amazon, the Amazon logo, Endless, and the Endless logo are trademarks of Amazon.com, Inc. or its affiliates.
Disclosure:
Our company's websites' content (including this website's content) includes advertisements for
our own company's websites, products, and services,
and for other organization's websites, products, and services.
In the case of links to other organization's websites,
our company may receive a payment, (1) if you purchase products or services,
or (2) if you sign-up for third party offers, after following links from this website.
Unless specifically otherwise stated, information about other organization's products and services,
is based on information provided by that organization,
the product/service vendor, and/or publicly available information - and should
not be taken to mean that we have used the product/service in question.
Additionally, our company's websites contain some adverts which we are paid
to display, but whose content is not selected by us, such as Google AdSense ads. For more
detailed information, please see Advertising/Endorsements Disclosures
Our sites use cookies, some of which may already be set on your computer. Use of our site constitutes consent for this. For details, please see Privacy.
Click privacy for information about our company's privacy, data collection and data retention policies, and your rights.
