Name:
Ulemosaurus (Greek for "Ulema River lizard"); pronounced oo-LAY-moe-SORE-us
Habitat:
Woodlands of central Asia
Historical Period:
Late Permian (250 million years ago)
Size and Weight:
About 13 feet long and 1,000 pounds
Diet:
Probably omnivorous
Distinguishing Characteristics:
Dense skull; large, squat body
About Ulemosaurus:
Like other large therapsids ("mammal-like reptiles") of the late Permian period, Ulemosaurus was a squat, splay-footed, extremely slow reptile that was completely unthreatened by the more agile predators that only evolved tens of millions of years later. This bull-sized creature was distinguished by its extremely thick skull, a sign that males may have head-butted one another for dominance within the herd. While its bulky body points to a herbivorous diet, some paleontologists believe Ulemosaurus (and other large therapsids) may have been opportunistically omnivorous, basically eating anything it could hope to digest.
