Parvosaurus

{{Short description|Extinct species of reptile}} {{about|the German rhynchocephalian|the Brazilian [[gracilisuchid]]|Parvosuchus|the Arizonan [[phytosaur]]|Pravusuchus|the South African [[therocephalian]]|Pardosuchus}} {{Speciesbox | fossil_range = [[Late Triassic]] {{fossilrange|Norian}} | image = Parvosaurus.png | genus = Parvosaurus | parent_authority = Freisem et al., 2024 | species = harudensis | authority = Freisem et al., 2024 }}

'''''Parvosaurus''''' is an extinct species of [[rhynchocephalia]]n reptile known from the Late Triassic of Germany.

==Discovery== The specimen was discovered in the rock surrounding a specimen of ''[[Plateosaurus]]'' that had been collected from a brick pit located in [[Saxony-Anhalt]] between [[Halberstadt]] and [[Quedlinburg]] on the Bundesstraße 79 highway in sediments belonging to the Late Triassic ([[Norian]]) [[Arnstadt Formation]] by [[Werner Janensch]] in 1928. The specimen was not discovered until the block was CT scanned as part of the redescription of the small reptile ''[[Elachistosuchus]]'' in 2015.<ref name=":0">{{Cite journal |last1=Freisem |first1=Lisa S. |last2=Müller |first2=Johannes |last3=Sues |first3=Hans-Dieter |last4=Sobral |first4=Gabriela |date=2024-03-16 |title=A new sphenodontian (Diapsida: Lepidosauria) from the Upper Triassic (Norian) of Germany and its implications for the mode of sphenodontian evolution |journal=BMC Ecology and Evolution |language=en |volume=24 |issue=1 |page=35 |doi=10.1186/s12862-024-02218-1 |doi-access=free |issn=2730-7182 |pmc=10944618 |pmid=38493125|bibcode=2024BMCEE..24...35F }}</ref>

==Description== The species is only known from a skull and partial lower jaws. The skull has been compressed during fossilization. The specimen is thought to be a juvenile, as it has relatively large eyes and is small in size, with the skull only being around {{convert|1.6|cm|in}} in length, comparable to that of ''[[Diphydontosaurus]]''. The dentition is very similar to that of ''Diphydontosaurus.<ref name=":0" />''

==Taxonomy== ''Parvosaurus'' was placed as a basal sphenodontian by its describers, more derived than ''[[Diphydontosaurus]]'' but less derived than ''[[Planocephalosaurus]]<ref name=":0" />'':

{{clade |label1=Rhynchocephalia |1={{clade |1=''[[Gephyrosaurus]]'' |label2=Sphenodontia |2={{clade |1=''[[Diphydontosaurus]]'' |2={{clade |1='''''Parvosaurus''''' |2={{clade |1=''[[Planocephalosaurus]]'' |2={{clade |1=''[[Clevosaurus]]'' |2=[[Neosphenodontia]] }}}}}}}}}}}}

== References == {{Reflist}}

[[Category:Rhynchocephalia]] [[Category:Norian genera]] [[Category:Monotypic prehistoric reptile genera]] [[Category:Fossils of Germany]] [[Category:Fossil taxa described in 2024]]