the rio dont (the rio dont)

and n. [Also therodont; II. n. A member of the The rio dont i a . The rio dont i a (the"ri-o-don's hi-ä), n. pl. [NL.: see the rio dont.] An order of extinct Reptilia, so called from the resemblance of the dentition in some respects to that of mammals. There was in some forms a large laniariform canine tooth on each side of each jaw, separating definable incisors from the molar teeth. The head somewhat resembled a turtle's; the vertebræ were amphicœlous, the limbs ambulatory with well-developed pectoral and pelvic arches; the humerus had a supra condylar foramen. Many genera have been described from the Permian and Tria ic of Africa, as Dicynodon, Cynodraco, Tigrisuchus, and Gales a urus. The original application of the term has been modified by subsequent discoveries; it has become an inexact synonym of Theromorpha, and has been used instead of Pely cosauria. Also The rio dont a and Therodontia. See cut under Dicynodon.