Sericodon is an extinct genus of teleosaurid crocodyliform from the Late Jurassic (Tithonian) of Germany and Switzerland. The genus contains a single species, S. jugleri. Sericodon was placed in 'Clade T' (Aeolodontinae) and was found to be the sister taxon to Bathysuchus,Schaefer, Püntener & Billon-Bruyat (2018) Schaefer K, Püntener C, Billon-Bruyat J-P. Vertébrés mésozoïques: crocodiliens (Catalogues du patrimoine paléontologique jurassien—A16) Porrentruy : Office de la culture, Paléontologie A16; 2018. p. 184. another teleosaurid.
Taxonomy Sericodon was named for teeth from Late Jurassic deposits in Hanover, Germany, and Solothurn, Switzerland (Reuchenette Formation) by Hermann von Meyer in 1845.Meyer, H, (1845), Note on fossil reptiles: Neües Jahrbuch fur Mineralogie, Geologie und Palaontologie, 1845, p. 308-313. The genus was later synonymized with Steneosaurus by Steel (1973),Steel, Rodney (1973): Crocodylia. - In: KUHN, Oskar (ed.): Handbuch der Paläoherpetologie. Encyclopedia of Paleoherpetology, 16: 1-116, figs. 1-33; Stuttgart, Portland-USA (Gustav Fischer Verlag). but new work suggests it might be a distinct genus after all.Foffa D, Johnson MM, Young MT, Steel L, Brusatte SL. 2019. Revision of the Late Jurassic deep-water teleosauroid crocodylomorph Teleosaurus megarhinus Hulke, 1871 and evidence of pelagic adaptations in Teleosauroidea. PeerJ 7:e6646 http://doi.org/10.7717/peerj.6646
In 2020 the genus was formally revived.
This simplified cladogram by Johnson et al. (2020) shows the updated location of Sericodon within Teleosauridae and Aeolodontinae:
See also
List of marine reptiles
References