Eocyclotosaurus

Eocyclotosaurus
Temporal range: Middle Triassic
Scientific classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Order: Temnospondyli
Suborder: Stereospondyli
Clade: Capitosauria
Family: Heylerosauridae
Genus: Eocyclotosaurus
Ortlam, 1970
Type species
E. woschmidti
Ortlam, 1970
Other species
  • E. lehmani Kamphausen and Morales, 1981
  • E. wellesi Schoch, 2000
  • E. appetolatus Rinehart, Lucas, and Schoch, 2015

Eocyclotosaurus (Greek ‘èoos’ = dawn, ‘kyklos’ = circle, 'ous' = ear ) is an extinct genus of mastodonsauroid temnospondyl from the Middle Triassic (Anisian). The name Eocyclotosaurus means "dawn round-eared lizard". It is characterized as a capitosauroid with a long and slender snout, closed otic fenestra, and small orbits. It measured over one metre and had a 22 cm skull.

It lived between 247 and 242 million years ago in both North America, Germany, France and the British Isles during the early Triassic.