#diapsida

[wingedjewels]

Masked Flowerpiercer by Jay Packer Via Flickr: This species is widespread in the Andes from Venezuela to Bolivia where it occupies mid to high elevation cloud forests, typically above 6,500 feet elevation. Hacienda El Bosque, Colombia

[mineralsrocksandfossiltalks]

March Madness Quarterfinals!

Today I will post all of our quarterfinalists. You will have the next 3 days to vote for the ones you want in the semifinals. Let's see who's left!

*Note, I can't do multiple polls so read through the post to see how to vote.*

In the first bracket we have the giant gastropod, Campanile vs the giant arthropod, Jaekelopterus. If you want to vote for Campanile, comment with a 🐚 . If you want to vote for Jaekelopterus comment with a 🦂 .

In bracket number two we have the caiman, Purussaurus vs the dicynodont, Lisowicia. If you want to vote for the caiman comment with a 🐊 and if you want to vote for the dicynodont comment with a 🦛.

In bracket number three we have the archosaur cousins, Patagotitan and Quetzalcoatlus. If you want to vote for the dinosaur comment with a 🦕 and if you want the pterosaur comment with a 🦇.

And finally, we have in bracket number 4 the giant sea turtle Archelon vs yet another mammal, the giant sloth Eremotherium. If you want to vote for the turtle comment with a 🐢. If you want to vote for the sloth comment with a 🦥.

Good luck to all the competitors and see you all in a few days for the semifinals!

[alphynix]

Araeoscelis gracilis was a superficially lizard-like animal that lived during the mid-Permian, around 275 million years ago, in what is now Texas, USA. About 60cm long (~2'), it had a slender body, proportionally long legs, and a solidly-built skull with strong teeth, suggesting that it was a fast runner that specialized in cracking open the carapaces of thick-shelled prey.

It was one of the last known members of a lineage known as araeoscelidians, which are usually considered to be very early members of the diapsid reptiles – but a recent study has proposed they might have even more ancient roots than that, possibly being a branch of stem-amniotes instead.

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NixIllustration.com | Tumblr | Twitter | Patreon

[animalids]

Sailfin lizard (Hydrosaurus celebensis)

Photo by Chien Lee

[extinctworld-ua]

Gracilicollum

Gracilicollum — рід ймовірних таністрофеїдних архозавроморфів з середньотріасової (анізій) формації Гуаньлін у Китаї. Рід містить один вид, G. latens, відомий за черепом і частковою шиєю.

Повний текст на сайті "Вимерлий світ":

https://extinctworld.in.ua/gracilicollum/

[palaeornithology]

WIP of a bust of Champsosaurus natator, a convergently gharial-like choristodere that lived around 80 million years ago in south-east Canada. 

Edit: now not so shrink wrapped! 

[wingedjewels]

Hooded Mountain-Tanager by Jay Packer Via Flickr: Hacienda El Bosque, Colombia

[wingedjewels]

Cloud-forest Pygmy-Owl by Jay Packer Via Flickr: Though it looks like all the other pygmy-owls, the Cloud-forest Pygmy-Owl has a distinct double-note song and occurs only in a very narrow elevation range in western Colombia and Ecuador where it is quite rare. We were ecstatic to locate a bird just off the side of the road that cooperated for pictures. Montezuma Road, Tatamá National Park, Colombia