English: Redondasaurus bermani Hunt & Lucas, 1993 - fossil reptile skull from the Triassic of New Mexico, USA. (CM 69727, Carnegie Museum of Natural History, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA)
Prima facie, this fossil skull looks like it is a crocodilian - but it's not! This is a phytosaur. Phytosaurs and crocodilians are unrelated reptiles that have similar body plans - an excellent example of convergent evolution. Phytosaurs are an extinct group of reptiles known only from Upper Triassic rocks, possibly extending into the Lower Jurassic.
This is the holotype skull of Redondasaurus bermani, a phytosaur from Triassic nonmarine rocks in New Mexico.
Classification: Animalia, Chordata, Vertebrata, Reptilia, Phytosauria, Phytosauridae or Parasuchidae
Stratigraphy: upper siltstone member, Rock Point Formation, Chinle Group (a.k.a. Rock Point Member, Chinle Formation), Rhaetian Stage, upper Upper Triassic
Locality: Whitaker Quarry (Ghost Ranch Quarry), Ghost Ranch, Rio Arriba County, northern New Mexico, USA
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