Your Inner Fish

by

Neil Shubin

Small to medium size reptiles from the late Triassic to Jurassic periods (around 200 million-years-ago) that show a mammalian style jaw with signs of occlusion between the teeth. The teeth are reptilian in shape and size, but scrape against each other instead of not touching each other like normal reptilian teeth.
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Trithledont Term Timeline in Your Inner Fish

The timeline below shows where the term Trithledont appears in Your Inner Fish. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Chapter 4: Teeth Everywhere
History of Life  Theme Icon
...found in Nova Scotia. He uncovers a tiny reptile jaw from an animal called a trithledont that shows signs of wear on the cusps of the teeth – evidence of occlusion.... (full context)
Scientific Discovery Theme Icon
Shubin returns to Nova Scotia in the summer of 1985, hoping to find more trithledont fossils, but is disappointed to find that the dig site from the previous year is... (full context)
History of Life  Theme Icon
Understanding Complex Concepts Through Simple Analogies Theme Icon
...patches of sandstone that protected the fossils from the volcanic heat. They find several more trithledonts, which provide valuable clues to the progression from reptilian teeth to mammalian teeth. Though trithledonts... (full context)