Anaschisma
| Anaschisma Temporal range: Late Triassic, | |
|---|---|
| Skeleton of Anaschisma at the AMNH | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Order: | †Temnospondyli |
| Suborder: | †Stereospondyli |
| Family: | †Metoposauridae |
| Genus: | †Anaschisma Branson, 1905 |
| Type species | |
| †Anaschisma browni Branson, 1905 | |
| Synonyms | |
|
Genus synonymy
Species synonymy
| |
Anaschisma ("ripped up") is an extinct genus of large temnospondyls. These animals were part of the family called Metoposauridae, which filled the crocodile-like predatory niches in the late Triassic. It had a large skull about 62 centimetres (24 in) long, and possibly reached 3 metres (9.8 ft) long. It was an ambush hunter, snapping up anything small enough to fit in its huge jaws. It was very common during the Late Triassic (Carnian-Norian age) in what is now the American Southwest.