Ausktribosphenos
genus of mammals
Ausktribosphenos is an extinct genus of mammals from the Early Cretaceous of Australia, sometime between 121 - 113 Ma during the Aptian. The only recorded species, Ausktribosphenos nyktos, was found on Flat Rocks in the Wonthaggi Formation, Victoria.
Discovery and naming
The holotype fossil of Ausktribosphenos was found in the Shore platform at Flat Rocks, Bunarong Marine Park, Victoria, Southeastern Australia, and described in 1997.
The generic name Ausktribosphenos derives from the place name Australia, where the fossils were found; and the English word Tribosphenic, which further derives from the Greek words tribeo, to mean "rub"; and sphḗn, to mean "wedge", in reference to the shape of the teeth. The specific name nyktos derives from the name of the Greek god Nyx, which further derives from the Greek word Núx, to mean "night", in reference to the fact that the polar region of the world Ausktribosphenos lived in would have prolonged nights, and 3 months of perpetual darkness.
The whole meaning of the name is "The Australian Cretaceous tribosphenic mammal that lived by night".
Description
The lower jaw of Ausktribosphenos is roughly 16 mm (0.6 in) in length, with a proposed length of around 85 mm (3.3 in) for the entire animal. Due to all the distinct differences and similarities seen in the fossil material of Ausktribosphenos from other Cretaceous mammals, from the shape of the jaw itself down to the teeth, it was placed into the Mammalia class, but put into its own family, the Ausktribosphenidae.
This brief starts where responsible research should: with the source description of “Ausktribosphenos” as genus of mammals. Everything that follows is an evidence route, not borrowed authority.
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The subject matters to the science & nature register because the source frames it as genus of mammals. Its deeper value depends on whether names, dates, institutions and citations support that framing.
The date and method of observation matter as much as the stated conclusion, especially where classification or consensus has changed. The source revision retrieved here is dated May 28, 2025. The linked authority identifier is Q4822777. None of the 0 selected statements returned an explicit reference. The first chronological checks are 1997.
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This entry incorporates text from “Ausktribosphenos” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.