Moschorhinus is an akidnognathid therapsid synapsid from the Lopingian of South Africa. It was named in 1920 by Robert Broom. It was another notable disaster taxon, and it, like had decreased in size in order to survive the Permian extinction.
Physiology[]
Moschorhinus was a therocephalian with 4 legs, a regularly-shaped body, a short tail, and a mid-sized head with a mouth containing large canines in the front and smaller teeth in the back. Its body would have been covered in fur.
Diet[]
Moschorhinus was a predator, preying on dicynodonts, cynodonts, and small reptiles. Near the curves of its jaws, it had a pair of large canines, which were used for cutting into prey.
Ecology[]
Overall, Moschorhinus was very similar to gorgonopsians such as Inostrancevia; it was a large therapsid predator with big canines that were used to slice into the hides of prey. In fact, due to surviving the cataclysmic Permian extinction, it seemed to replace their roles for a little while before going extinct itself. However, after the deadly event, it decreased in size, going from a large size of 1.5 meters to a slightly more modest size of 1.2 meters, which was still enough to make it the biggest synapsid predator in the Early Triassic. This phenomenon is called the Lilliput effect, and happens with many other organisms that have survived extremely fatal extinction events.