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Discosauriscus
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Discosauriscus
Temporal range: Gzhelian-Cisuralian
Discosauriscus austriacus
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Order: Seymouriamorpha
Family: Discosauriscidae
Genus: Discosauriscus
Kuhn, 1933
Species
  • Discosauriscus austriacus (Makowsky, 1876)
  • Discosauriscus pulcherrimus (Fritsch, 1879) (type)
Synonyms
  • Letoverpeton Spinar, 1952
Discosauriscus pulcherrimus from the Autunian of the Boskovice Furrow – Czech Republic. Max Rouger Collection.

Discosauriscus was a small seymouriamorph[1] which lived in what is now Central and Western Europe during the latest Carboniferous[2] and in the Early Permian Period. Its best fossils have been found in the Broumov and Bačov Formations of Boskovice Furrow, in the Czech Republic.

Classification

[edit]
A reconstruction of a juvenile Discosauriscus with external gills
Fossil in Vienna

Discosauriscus belongs to the order Seymouriamorpha, and is the type genus of the family Discosauriscidae. Currently recognised are two valid species - Discosauriscus austriacus and Discosauriscus pulcherrimus. Letoverpeton is a junior synonym of Discosauriscus.[3]

Characteristics

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Discosauriscids were long thought to be known from larval or neotenic forms,[4] and three ontogenetic stages had been distinguished.[5] However, more recent studies concluded that some subadult, probably terrestrial specimens were known,[6][7] so the case for neoteny in this taxon is not as well-supported as once thought. Discosauriscus had wide jaws with sharp teeth, short limbs and relatively long tail.[8] The phalangeal formula was 2-3-4-5-3 for both hind- and forelimbs. The body was covered with rounded scales with concentric rings, and a well-preserved lateral-line system has been described.[5]

Discosauriscus may have had electroreceptive organs.[9]

References

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