Menu
Home
People
Places
Arts
History
Plants & Animals
Science
Life & Culture
Technology
Reference.org
Thecodontia
open-in-new
<p>Thecodontia (meaning 'socket-teeth'), now considered an obsolete taxonomic grouping, was formerly used to describe a diverse "order" of early <a href="/facts/Archosauria/Urd4MHfp">archosaurian</a> <a href="/facts/Reptile/04n1uKf1">reptiles</a> that first appeared in the latest <a href="/facts/Permian/CYgLgu5u">Permian</a> period and flourished until the end of the <a href="/facts/Triassic/r6CNxKXC">Triassic</a> period. All of them were built somewhat like crocodiles but with shorter skulls, more erect pose and usually somewhat lighter. The group includes the ancestors of <a href="/facts/Dinosaur/JRdMqBnq">dinosaurs</a>, <a href="/facts/Pterosaur/YNQwa1ru">pterosaurs</a>, and <a href="/facts/Crocodilia/G4LbxJs6">crocodilians</a>, as well as a number of extinct forms that did not give rise to any descendants. The term <i>thecodont</i> is still used as an anatomical description of the tooth morphology seen in these species and others. </p>