Dinosaurs & Prehistory - Other prehistoric animals - Purlovia - Therapsids - Permian - Paleontology
What did Purlovia probably feed on primarily?
Correct!
Purlovia maxima was neither a mammal nor a dinosaur, but a therapsid from the group Therocephalia. He lived during the late Permian period in what is now Russia. The genus was scientifically named in 2011. The surprising thing is his diet. Many early therocephalians were carnivores, but Purlovia is interpreted as a herbivore. A recent study of the evolution of the jaw shapes of early land vertebrates places Purlovia maxima explicitly among the herbivorous synapsids, following Ivakhnenko's original nutritional interpretation. Purlovia had a strong skull with large canine teeth, strong incisors and numerous smaller rear teeth. A related Late Permian therocephalian from China, Caodeyao liuyufengi, exhibits several unusual features otherwise known particularly in Purlovia maxima. Modern phylogenetic analyzes even place both in a common Laurasian lineage. Anyone who knows Purlovia from ARK is particularly likely to fall for the wrong answer: In the game, Purlovia is an aggressive, burrowing ambush hunter and carnivore. The official ARK wiki itself points out that the fossil model, on the other hand, was herbivorous.
Despite its powerful skull and large canine teeth, Purlovia is probably interpreted as a herbivore.
