Article: The Pangaea dicynodont Rechnisaurus and the comparative biostratigraphy of Triassic dicynodont faunas

A dicynodont from the Triassic Manda Beds of East Africa is found to belong to the kannemeyeriid genus Rechnisaurus, first described from India, with which the genus Shaanbeikannemeyeria from China and Mongolia is congeneric. The divergent skull modifications of the Families Lystrosauridae and Kannemeyeriidae from the primitive Permian dicynodont skull morphology are explained in functional terms, both being adaptations to increase the length of the jaw adductor muscles. The kannemeyeriid pattern is similar to that of the ceratopsian dinosaurs, while that of the lystrosaurids seems also to be the result of feeding adaptations rather than suggesting semi-aquatic life. The relative ages of dicynodont-bearing Triassic faunas are reviewed in the light of recent changes in taxonomy and biostratigraphy.