A new species of ancient reptile has been identified after spending over 200 million years buried in the earth.
Named Threordatoth chasmatos, this creature was one of the last members of the procolophonids, a group of small, lizard-like reptiles that lived during the Triassic period.
Fossils of this fascinating species were recently uncovered in Cromhall, South Gloucestershire, a famous site for Triassic-era discoveries.
Cromhall, once a quarry, has revealed many prehistoric treasures over the years, including early dinosaur relatives, gliding reptiles, and some of the first known lizards.
Threordatoth now joins this list, offering a new glimpse into life during the Late Triassic.
According to Dr. Luke Meade, the lead researcher, Threordatoth likely resembled today’s horned lizards, with bony spikes on its head and possibly some body armor.
While only fragments of its jaw have been found, these fossils are crucial for understanding the procolophonids.
These reptiles, which first appeared about 260 million years ago, played an important role in ancient ecosystems.
Though they looked somewhat like modern lizards, they were only distantly related, showing how evolution can lead to similar features in unrelated animals.
Procolophonid fossils are rare because the animals were small, and their delicate bones often didn’t survive the fossilization process.
Most of the remains we have are teeth and jawbones. Dr. Marc Jones, a curator of fossil reptiles, explained that every new find helps fill in gaps in what we know about these creatures.
The fossils of Threordatoth were scattered across several museums in the U.K., including the Natural History Museum and the University of Cambridge.
While some scientists had noted the bones before, no detailed study had been done until now.
Researchers carefully removed layers of rock using weak acid, then used CT scans to study the fossils in detail. The team discovered several unique features that confirmed Threordatoth was a new species.
One of the most striking traits of Threordatoth is its teeth. Unlike its relatives, which typically had two-pointed teeth, this reptile had just four teeth on each side of its jaw, and each tooth had three points.
This highly unusual feature inspired the species name, which means “three-pointed teeth” in Old English. These teeth suggest that Threordatoth may have specialized in eating plants, making it one of the more herbivorous members of its group.
Another curious feature is its jaw. Unlike most reptiles, the two halves of its jaw were not fused together.
Instead, they were likely connected by ligaments, which might have made the jaw more flexible and helped with chewing. This unique jaw structure could also have provided shock absorption, protecting the jaw during feeding.
Procolophonids were most diverse in the Early and Middle Triassic, recovering well after the Permian mass extinction.
Over time, they began losing teeth and developing simpler, specialized diets. Threordatoth represents an extreme example of this trend, with its reduced tooth count and specialized three-pointed teeth.
The discovery of Threordatoth adds to the growing list of fascinating finds from Cromhall. Researchers believe there is still much more to uncover at the site. Dr. Meade hopes that carefully examining the remaining material could reveal even more new species and help us better understand the diverse life of the Triassic period.
