Woznikella is an extinct genus of kannemeyeriiform dicynodont from the Late Triassic (Carnian and potentially Norian) of Poland and possibly Germany of Europe. The Type species and only known species is W. triradiata.
Discovery and naming
It was discovered in the Grabowa Formation of southern Poland at a locality near the town of Woźniki for which the
genus name is named after. The
specific name refers to the triradiate pattern of ridges on the palatal-surface of the
beak; two lateral ridges that converge into a single ridge down the middle, forming a 'Y'-shape. The
holotype specimen comprises a partial skeleton of an immature individual, including a fragmentary skull, various vertebrae, a
scapula and other portions of the
pectoral girdle, a
humerus,
radius and
ulna of the forelimb and a partial
femur. A fragmentary mandible from the Stuttgart Formation of
Bavaria,
Germany may also be referrable to
Woznikella.
The Woźniki fossil assemblage was first discovered in 2007, and the remains of Woznikella were first formally reported on in 2010.
Phylogeny
Phylogenetic analyses found
Woznikella to be closely related to the
stahleckeriids (a family of Late Triassic dicynodonts) if not a member of the
clade, although its precise relationships could not be determined with certainty (although it does not appear to be directly related to another Polish dicynodont, the stahleckeriid
Lisowicia).
The cladogram below depicts the strict consensus of three most parsimonious (i.e. shortest) phylogenetic trees of all named kannemeyeriiform taxa except for Ufudocyclops, which was unstable. In this tree, Woznikella is part of the "Stahleckeriidae group" but falls outside of Stahleckeriidae proper (Stahleckeriinae + Placeriinae):
