Late Permian vertebrate community of the Pranhita–Godavari valley, India

Abstract

The Kundaram Formation of the Pranhita–Godavari valley yields the only Late Permian multispecies terrestrial vertebrate assemblage from India. This includes various medium and small dicynodonts such as Endothiodon, Oudenodon, Kingoria, Emydops, Cistecephalus and Pristerodon. At present two species of Endothiodon ( E. mahalanobisi and E. uniseries) are known. Apart from these dicynodonts, the Kundaram vertebrate fauna also contains a medium-sized gorgonopsian and a small captorhinid. The material, from the red mudstone dominated Kundaram Formation, includes numerous isolated, disarticulated skulls and lower jaws. Postcranial elements are relatively rare except for a few broken limb ends and vertebrae. The bones are encrusted by iron rich matrix and most of them had suffered deformation. This skull dominant accumulation is attributed to prolonged aerial exposure prior to burial resulting in disarticulation of the skeletons and subsequent inundation by floodwater. The limb bones and other postcranial elements of the already disarticulated skeletons were winnowed out by shallow competent flow while the relatively heavier skulls and lower jaws resisting transportation were buried near the site of death. The Late Permian scenario of the Pranhita–Godavari valley was characterised by the dominance of herbivores. This abundance of herbivores at the base and the presence of relatively few carnivores and omnivores at the top of the Kundaram food pyramid indicate a trophic structure similar to that of the modern-day terrestrial ecosystem.