Clelandina

Clelandina; Temporal range: Late Permian
	Holotype skull of C. rubidgei
Scientific classification
Domain:	Eukaryota
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Clade:	Synapsida
Clade:	Therapsida
Clade:	†Gorgonopsia
Family:	†Gorgonopsidae
Tribe:	†Rubidgeini
Genus:	†Clelandina; Broom, 1948
Type species
	Clelandina rubidgei; Broom, 1948
Synonyms
	Genus-level Tigrisaurus; Broom & George, 1950; Dragocephalus; Brink & Kitching, 1953; Species-level Clelandina major Broom, 1940; Tigrisaurus pricei Broom & George, 1950; Dracocephalus scheepersi Brink & Kitching, 1953; Dinogorgon (Dracocephalus) scheepersi Watson & Romer, 1956; Clelandina scheepersi Sigogneau, 1970; Dinogorgon pricei Sigogneau, 1970; Rubidgea pricei Gebauer, 2007;

Clelandina is an extinct genus of rubidgeine gorgonopsian from the Late Permian of Cistecephalus Assemblage Zone of South Africa. It was first named by Broom in 1948. The type and only species is C. rubidgei. It is relatively rare, with only four known specimens.[1][2]

Restoration of C. rubidgei

Referred skull, the holotype of Tigrisaurus pricei

Description

Clelandina rubidgei has an extraordinarily small sclerotic ring relative to the size of its orbit, which implies that it was diurnal. It is the only rubidgeine with a preserved sclerotic ring, so it is unknown whether this trait was shared by other members of the subfamily. Like all rubidgeines, it was relatively large, with a skull up to 36 cm long. It had reduced dentition, with the teeth posterior to the canines being absent and replaced with a bony ridge. The skull has heavily pachyostosed, with massive rugose bosses.[1]

Classification

Clelandina shares many characteristics with the contemporary Rubidgea, and is currently recognized as the sister taxon of this genus. Together with Dinogorgon and Leontosaurus, these genera form Rubidgeini, a clade of large gorgonopsians with distinctively robust, broad, and pachyostosed skulls.[1]

Below is a cladogram recovered by Christian Kammerer in 2016.[1]

Rubidgeinae

Smilesaurus ferox

Aelurognathus tigriceps

Ruhuhucerberus haughtoni