These plates and spines were fused to the underlying bones

but for a longer period of time than the latter

retains a relatively primitive structure

adapted to withstand high mechanical forces during biting

Cameroceras 's head likely housed a set of muscular tentacles with primitive suckers or hooks

Tanystropheus longobardicus Silesaurus These plates and spines wereDuring the Middle Triassic, the coastal ecosystems of the supercontinent Pangaea hosted a diverse and, in many cases, morphologically unusual reptilian fauna. Prominent among these forms is Tanystropheus longobardicus , a basal archosauromorph whose unique anatomy has been the subject of extensive paleobiological and functional debate. This reptile is mainly characterized by an extremely elongated neck composed of disproportionately long cervical