Nujalikodon
 | This article relies on a single source. (August 2025) |
| Nujalikodon | |
|---|---|
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Clade: | Synapsida |
| Clade: | Therapsida |
| Clade: | Cynodontia |
| Clade: | Mammaliaformes |
| Order: | †Docodonta |
| Genus: | †Nujalikodon |
| Type species | |
| †Nujalikodon cassiopeiae Patrocinio et al., 2025[1] | |
Nujalikodon is a genus of mammaliaform from the Rhætelv Formation of central East Greenland. It dates to the Late Triassic, making it the oldest definitive docodontan. It is known from a fragment of jaw with a single preserved molar tooth.
Etymology
[edit]Nujalikodon is named after Nujalik, the goddess of hunting on land in Inuit mythology, and the suffix '-odon' meaning tooth. The name for the type species N. cassiopeiae, comes from the cusp pattern in the tooth, which resembles the arrangement of the stars in the constellation Cassiopeia.
References
[edit]- ↑ Patrocínio, S., Panciroli, E., Rotatori, F. M., Mateus, O., Milàn, J., Clemmensen, L. B., Crespo, V. D. 2025. The oldest definitive docodontan from central East Greenland sheds light on the origin of the clade. Papers in Palaeontology, 11, 3, e70022.