Bharitalasuchus tapani – a carnivorous reptile that lived 240 million years ago

Bharitalasuchus tapani – a carnivorous reptile that lived 240 million years ago

Subject : Science & tech

Context : In the mid 20th century, researchers from the Indian Statistical Institute, Kolkata, carried out extensive studies on rocks of the Yerrapalli Formation , uncovering several fossils. By studying some of these specimens stored at the Institute, an international team has now thrown light on a carnivorous reptile that lived 240 million years ago.

Concept :

• The Yerrapalli Formation of the Pranhita-Godavari Basin in Telangana has had several fossils unearthed from it.
• One of the species identified includes a carnivorous reptile that lived 240 million years ago. It has been named Bharitalasuchus tapani.
• Studies have revealed that the reptile belonged to a family of extinct reptiles named Erythrosuchidae.
• The Bharitalasuchus tapani were robust animals with big heads and large teeth, and these probably predated other smaller reptiles. They were approximately the size of an adult male lion and might have been the largest predators in their ecosystems.
• Apart from this erythrosuchid reptile, the fossil assemblage of the Yerrapalli Formation includes many other extinct creatures such as ceratodontid lungfish, rhynchosaur and allokotosaurian.