Palatinerpeton

Palatinerpeton is an extinct genus of temnospondyl amphibian.[1] Fossils have been found in the Lauterecken-Odernheim Formation of Germany.[2]

Palatinerpeton Temporal range: Asselian ~298–290 Ma PreꞒ Ꞓ O S D C P T J K Pg N
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Order:	†Temnospondyli
Clade:	†Stereospondylomorpha (?)
Genus:	†Palatinerpeton Boy, 1996
Type species
†Palatinerpeton kraetschmeri Boy, 1996

Phylogeny

Palatinerpeton is one of several Late Carboniferous and Early Permian European temnospondyls with uncertain affinities; the others include Iberospondylus, Sclerocephalus, and Cheliderpeton. Phylogenetic studies have placed them as either early representatives of a group called Stereospondylomorpha, or close relatives of a group called Eryopidae. Stereospondylomorpha is a large clade mostly made up of Mesozoic taxa, while Eryopidae is a small family consisting of several Carboniferous and Permian temnospondyls. These two groups are usually considered distantly related. Schoch & Witzmann (2009) conducted a phylogenetic analysis in which Eryopidae and Stereospondylomorpha were found to be closely related, both members of a clade called Eryopoidea. Palatinerpeton was found to be the sister taxon of Eryopoidea. Below is a cladogram from their study:[1]

Temnospondyli

Capetus palustris       Dendrerpeton acadianum       Trimerorhachis insignis     Dissorophoidea   Acanthostomatops vorax       Ecolsonia cutlerensis     Micropholis stowi         Iberospondylus schultzei       Palatinerpeton kraetschmeri   Eryopoidea Eryopidae   "Onchiodon" frossardi       Onchiodon labyrinthicus     Eryops megacephalus       Stereospondylomorpha   Sclerocephalus spp.       Cheliderpeton latirostre     Archegosaurus decheni

References

1. Schoch, R. R.; Witzmann, F. (2009). "Osteology and relationships of the temnospondyl genusSclerocephalus". Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society. 157: 135. doi:10.1111/j.1096-3642.2009.00535.x.
2. Palatinerpeton at Fossilworks.org