Temnospondyli

Temnospondyli or temnospondyls is a diverse ancient order of small to giant tetrapods—often considered primitive amphibians—that flourished worldwide during the Carboniferous, Permian and Triassic periods, with fossils being found on every continent. A few species continued into the Jurassic and Early Cretaceous periods, but all had gone extinct by the Late Cretaceous. During about 210 million years of evolutionary history, they adapted to a wide range of habitats, including freshwater, terrestrial, and even coastal marine environments. Their life history is well understood, with fossils known from the larval stage, metamorphosis and maturity. Most temnospondyls were semiaquatic, although some were almost fully terrestrial, returning to the water only to breed. These temnospondyls were some of the first vertebrates fully adapted to life on land. Although temnospondyls are amphibians, many had characteristics such as scales and large armour-like bony plates (osteoderms) that generally distinguish them from the modern soft-bodied lissamphibians.

Temnospondyli

Daderot · Public Domain · via Wikipedia/Commons. May be a photograph of a specimen, or an artist’s reconstruction — an interpretation of a skeleton, since colour and soft tissue are almost never preserved.

On record

Recorded, not inferred
Sits inside
AmphibiaPBDB
Diet
carnivorePBDB
Life habit
amphibiousPBDB
Motility
actively mobilePBDB
Environment
brackish,freshwater,terrestrialPBDB, for Tetrapoda

Time the record covers

At least 330 million years on record.

The record covers at least 330.3 Mya to 11.7 ka. No occurrence read is dated outside 358.86 Mya to 0 Mya.

Devonian — about 0 of 6126 occurrencesCarboniferous — about 145 of 6126 occurrencesCarboniferousPermian — about 577 of 6126 occurrencesPermianEarly Triassic — about 482 of 6126 occurrencesMiddle Triassic — about 206 of 6126 occurrencesLate Triassic — about 385 of 6126 occurrencesLate TriassicEarly Jurassic — about 20 of 6126 occurrencesMiddle Jurassic — about 74 of 6126 occurrencesLate Jurassic — about 70 of 6126 occurrencesEarly Cretaceous — about 205 of 6126 occurrencesEarly CretaceousLate Cretaceous — about 1184 of 6126 occurrencesLate CretaceousPaleocene — about 147 of 6126 occurrencesEocene — about 183 of 6126 occurrencesOligocene — about 124 of 6126 occurrencesMiocene — about 737 of 6126 occurrencesPliocene — about 283 of 6126 occurrencesPleistocene — about 1214 of 6126 occurrences366–354 Mya — about 0.5 occurrences354–342 Mya — about 2 occurrences342–329 Mya — about 5 occurrences329–317 Mya — about 16 occurrences317–305 Mya — about 66 occurrences305–293 Mya — about 218 occurrences293–281 Mya — about 208 occurrences281–268 Mya — about 94 occurrences268–256 Mya — about 97 occurrences256–244 Mya — about 578 occurrences244–232 Mya — about 175 occurrences232–220 Mya — about 135 occurrences220–207 Mya — about 150 occurrences207–195 Mya — about 56 occurrences195–183 Mya — about 8 occurrences183–171 Mya — about 7 occurrences171–159 Mya — about 77 occurrences159–146 Mya — about 43 occurrences146–134 Mya — about 62 occurrences134–122 Mya — about 58 occurrences122–110 Mya — about 83 occurrences110–98 Mya — about 49 occurrences98–85 Mya — about 112 occurrences85–73 Mya — about 471 occurrences73–61 Mya — about 654 occurrences61–49 Mya — about 127 occurrences49–37 Mya — about 88 occurrences37–24 Mya — about 139 occurrences24–12 Mya — about 405 occurrences12–0 Mya — about 1941 occurrences330.3 Mya11.7 ka366 Mya0 Mya

6,126 occurrences of Temnospondyli on record, most of them in the Pleistocene. The Paleobiology Database records this as a living group. Bar height is expected occurrences, not a count: each fossil is spread across the span it is dated to, so a tall narrow bar means tight dating and a low wide one means loose.

When

6,126 occurrences

These are dates about fossils, not the animal: the record can only begin after it arose and end before it died out, so either end may reach further. Shares are expected occurrences: a fossil dated to a span is counted partly in each period it straddles. More on what this infers.

Found in

690 formations

Hell Creek — 47.80°N, 106.10°WHell Creek — 47.68°N, 106.43°WHell Creek — 45.95°N, 103.96°WHell Creek — 46.10°N, 103.30°WHell Creek — 45.98°N, 103.75°WHell Creek — 46.14°N, 103.80°WHell Creek — 46.41°N, 103.94°WHell Creek — 46.38°N, 103.96°WHell Creek — 46.21°N, 103.77°WHell Creek — 46.46°N, 104.02°WHell Creek — 46.33°N, 103.90°WHell Creek — 47.55°N, 107.13°WHell Creek — 47.62°N, 107.32°WHell Creek — 47.52°N, 106.98°WHell Creek — 47.57°N, 107.10°WHell Creek — 47.52°N, 106.40°WHell Creek — 47.58°N, 106.30°WHell Creek — 47.55°N, 107.25°WHell Creek — 47.60°N, 106.43°WHell Creek — 47.52°N, 107.18°WHell Creek — 47.53°N, 106.92°WHell Creek — 47.07°N, 106.92°WHell Creek — 47.60°N, 107.23°WHell Creek — 46.90°N, 101.50°WHell Creek — 47.61°N, 106.90°WHell Creek — 47.60°N, 107.00°WHell Creek — 46.41°N, 103.50°WHell Creek — 47.27°N, 107.13°WHell Creek — 45.66°N, 105.08°WHell Creek — 47.47°N, 107.37°WHell Creek — 45.05°N, 101.97°WHell Creek — 45.50°N, 103.10°WHell Creek — 45.64°N, 103.49°WHell Creek — 45.00°N, 103.19°WChinle — 34.51°N, 109.36°WChinle — 34.44°N, 109.46°WChinle — 35.05°N, 109.83°WChinle — 35.84°N, 111.25°WChinle — 34.94°N, 109.77°WChinle — 35.09°N, 109.79°WChinle — 35.12°N, 110.55°WChinle — 36.33°N, 106.47°WChinle — 35.47°N, 108.56°WChinle — 35.41°N, 108.47°WChinle — 36.09°N, 111.36°WChinle — 34.83°N, 109.81°WChinle — 36.40°N, 106.50°WChinle — 35.38°N, 109.37°WChinle — 34.68°N, 109.58°WChinle — 34.53°N, 109.32°WChinle — 35.02°N, 109.89°WChinle — 34.92°N, 109.91°WChinle — 34.82°N, 109.90°WChinle — 34.94°N, 109.74°WChinle — 35.33°N, 109.17°WChinle — 35.63°N, 109.10°WChinle — 36.00°N, 109.45°WChinle — 36.42°N, 109.33°WChinle — 36.40°N, 109.20°WChinle — 36.35°N, 109.47°WChinle — 36.45°N, 109.57°WChinle — 34.73°N, 109.67°WChinle — 34.83°N, 109.50°WChinle — 34.40°N, 109.60°WChinle — 36.50°N, 109.42°WChinle — 35.88°N, 111.28°WChinle — 35.84°N, 111.30°WChinle — 36.58°N, 106.83°WChinle — 35.87°N, 111.37°WChinle — 34.90°N, 107.73°WChinle — 35.56°N, 106.82°WChinle — 39.83°N, 106.33°WChinle — 39.83°N, 106.90°WChinle — 37.27°N, 109.68°WDinosaur Park — 50.75°N, 111.40°WDinosaur Park — 50.75°N, 111.51°WDinosaur Park — 49.12°N, 110.47°WDinosaur Park — 50.79°N, 111.62°WDinosaur Park — 50.75°N, 111.46°WDinosaur Park — 50.78°N, 111.33°WDinosaur Park — 49.10°N, 110.94°WDinosaur Park — 49.96°N, 110.27°WDinosaur Park — 50.68°N, 108.09°WAlamosa — 37.37°N, 105.75°WOldman — 50.75°N, 111.51°WOldman — 49.10°N, 110.94°WOldman — 49.08°N, 110.84°WOldman — 49.08°N, 110.68°WOldman — 49.16°N, 110.72°WOldman — 50.83°N, 111.32°WLance — 43.30°N, 104.37°WLance — 43.12°N, 104.64°WLance — 41.57°N, 108.67°WLance — 43.18°N, 104.53°WLance — 43.15°N, 104.57°WLance — 43.13°N, 104.49°WLance — 43.25°N, 104.52°WLance — 43.80°N, 104.62°WLance — 43.25°N, 104.65°WLance — 43.00°N, 104.50°WStaritskaya — 51.56°N, 56.05°EStaritskaya — 51.63°N, 56.03°EStaritskaya — 51.80°N, 55.68°EStaritskaya — 51.32°N, 54.82°EStaritskaya — 51.61°N, 53.90°EStaritskaya — 51.87°N, 53.98°EStaritskaya — 52.21°N, 53.30°EStaritskaya — 52.21°N, 53.08°EStaritskaya — 52.30°N, 53.08°EStaritskaya — 52.32°N, 52.96°EStaritskaya — 52.39°N, 52.95°EStaritskaya — 52.37°N, 52.69°EStaritskaya — 52.40°N, 52.46°EStaritskaya — 52.38°N, 52.45°EStaritskaya — 52.54°N, 52.36°EStaritskaya — 52.83°N, 52.35°EStaritskaya — 52.23°N, 52.02°EStaritskaya — 52.35°N, 52.12°EStaritskaya — 52.49°N, 52.22°EStaritskaya — 52.50°N, 51.93°EStaritskaya — 52.72°N, 52.06°EStaritskaya — 52.81°N, 52.18°EStaritskaya — 52.86°N, 52.08°EStaritskaya — 52.86°N, 51.73°EStaritskaya — 52.81°N, 51.76°EStaritskaya — 52.81°N, 51.73°EStaritskaya — 52.50°N, 51.07°EStaritskaya — 52.51°N, 50.87°EFort Union — 45.20°N, 109.00°WFort Union — 45.80°N, 109.80°WFort Union — 44.91°N, 108.93°WFort Union — 44.72°N, 108.62°WFort Union — 44.72°N, 108.38°WFort Union — 44.05°N, 109.00°WFort Union — 43.85°N, 108.35°WFort Union — 46.05°N, 104.48°WFort Union — 44.30°N, 109.00°WFort Union — 44.88°N, 109.12°WFort Union — 46.90°N, 101.50°WFort Union — 46.91°N, 101.44°WFort Union — 45.40°N, 105.60°WFort Union — 44.91°N, 109.02°WFort Union — 41.92°N, 108.56°WFort Union — 47.60°N, 107.00°WFort Union — 46.33°N, 104.01°WFort Union — 46.43°N, 103.93°WFort Union — 41.30°N, 107.74°WBissekty — 42.12°N, 62.66°EBissekty — 40.70°N, 72.60°EMeisenheim — 49.75°N, 7.70°EMeisenheim — 49.59°N, 7.47°EMeisenheim — 49.73°N, 7.77°EMeisenheim — 49.71°N, 7.60°EMeisenheim — 49.58°N, 7.70°EMeisenheim — 49.57°N, 7.44°EMeisenheim — 49.78°N, 7.77°EMeisenheim — 49.73°N, 7.69°EMeisenheim — 49.59°N, 7.76°EMeisenheim — 49.41°N, 7.78°EMeisenheim — 49.83°N, 7.57°EMeisenheim — 49.52°N, 7.33°EMeisenheim — 49.41°N, 6.91°EMeisenheim — 49.44°N, 7.75°EMeisenheim — 49.50°N, 7.39°EKzylsaiskaya — 52.35°N, 52.66°EKzylsaiskaya — 52.31°N, 53.11°EKzylsaiskaya — 52.71°N, 51.34°EKzylsaiskaya — 52.43°N, 55.76°EKzylsaiskaya — 51.63°N, 56.03°EKzylsaiskaya — 51.28°N, 55.89°EKzylsaiskaya — 51.26°N, 54.43°EKzylsaiskaya — 51.59°N, 53.86°EKzylsaiskaya — 51.61°N, 53.80°EKzylsaiskaya — 52.22°N, 53.33°EKzylsaiskaya — 52.20°N, 53.23°EKzylsaiskaya — 52.08°N, 53.00°EKzylsaiskaya — 52.36°N, 52.71°EKzylsaiskaya — 52.36°N, 52.41°EKzylsaiskaya — 52.35°N, 52.33°EKzylsaiskaya — 52.24°N, 52.22°EKzylsaiskaya — 52.76°N, 51.64°EKzylsaiskaya — 52.50°N, 51.32°EUpper Freshwater Molasse — 47.67°N, 8.93°EUpper Freshwater Molasse — 48.44°N, 11.04°EUpper Freshwater Molasse — 48.66°N, 10.23°EUpper Freshwater Molasse — 48.63°N, 11.80°EUpper Freshwater Molasse — 48.09°N, 10.03°EUpper Freshwater Molasse — 48.17°N, 10.10°EArroyo — 33.81°N, 99.20°WArroyo — 33.76°N, 99.14°WArroyo — 33.70°N, 99.27°WArroyo — 33.59°N, 99.26°WArroyo — 33.73°N, 99.36°WArroyo — 33.97°N, 99.20°WValentine — 42.78°N, 100.03°WValentine — 42.80°N, 100.80°WValentine — 42.79°N, 100.07°WValentine — 42.49°N, 98.11°WErfurt — 49.08°N, 9.89°EErfurt — 49.07°N, 9.76°EErfurt — 49.00°N, 9.77°EErfurt — 49.18°N, 9.78°EErfurt — 50.83°N, 10.93°EErfurt — 49.21°N, 9.68°EErfurt — 48.92°N, 9.08°EErfurt — 48.90°N, 9.20°EErfurt — 48.92°N, 8.95°EErfurt — 49.18°N, 9.87°EErfurt — 50.90°N, 10.95°EErfurt — 50.38°N, 10.65°EErfurt — 49.39°N, 8.05°EKaiparowits — 37.80°N, 111.50°WKaiparowits — 37.40°N, 111.20°WKaiparowits — 37.42°N, 111.77°WKaiparowits — 37.20°N, 112.88°WSpilia — 41.15°N, 23.48°EKongressfjellet — 78.25°N, 16.90°EKongressfjellet — 78.46°N, 15.47°EKongressfjellet — 78.24°N, 17.21°EKongressfjellet — 78.28°N, 17.63°EKongressfjellet — 78.27°N, 16.97°EKongressfjellet — 78.50°N, 16.83°EKongressfjellet — 78.62°N, 14.43°EKongressfjellet — 78.25°N, 17.84°EKongressfjellet — 78.57°N, 15.32°EKongressfjellet — 78.58°N, 15.38°EKongressfjellet — 78.25°N, 18.06°EMaevarano — 15.91°S, 46.58°EMaevarano — 16.12°S, 45.74°EMaevarano — 15.98°S, 46.05°EMaevarano — 16.13°S, 45.63°EKopanskaya — 52.16°N, 55.91°EKopanskaya — 51.71°N, 55.79°EKopanskaya — 51.40°N, 54.66°EKopanskaya — 51.85°N, 54.18°EKopanskaya — 52.30°N, 53.08°EKopanskaya — 52.32°N, 52.96°EKopanskaya — 52.39°N, 52.95°EKopanskaya — 52.37°N, 52.69°EKopanskaya — 52.44°N, 52.46°EKopanskaya — 52.79°N, 52.44°EKopanskaya — 52.80°N, 52.33°EKopanskaya — 52.63°N, 52.01°EKopanskaya — 52.67°N, 52.19°EKopanskaya — 52.71°N, 52.07°EKopanskaya — 52.81°N, 52.18°EKopanskaya — 52.86°N, 52.10°EKopanskaya — 52.85°N, 50.43°EKopanskaya — 52.45°N, 50.48°Efacies à Congeria — 45.05°N, 7.93°EIron Springs — 37.57°N, 113.43°WIron Springs — 37.80°N, 112.81°WIron Springs — 37.90°N, 112.74°WIron Springs — 37.30°N, 113.40°WIron Springs — 37.37°N, 113.35°WMorrison — 41.89°N, 106.00°WMorrison — 38.54°N, 105.19°WMorrison — 44.46°N, 104.73°WMorrison — 40.47°N, 109.18°WMorrison — 41.98°N, 106.15°WMorrison — 39.24°N, 109.00°WMorrison — 37.63°N, 109.57°WMorrison — 40.30°N, 108.57°WStraight Cliffs — 37.80°N, 111.50°WStraight Cliffs — 37.64°N, 112.06°WStraight Cliffs — 37.60°N, 111.97°WStraight Cliffs — 37.62°N, 112.16°WStraight Cliffs — 37.60°N, 111.95°WStraight Cliffs — 35.57°N, 112.86°W

Loading coastlines…

The named rock units Temnospondyli has been recovered from, largest first. Drawn where the rock is now, not where it formed. 666 further formations hold fewer occurrences each and are not listed. 1,948 occurrences have no formation on record, which is common for older literature.

Temnospondyli and its relatives

Pleistocene

Where Temnospondyli and its relatives were recorded in the Pleistocene.

Found in the same rock

3,008 taxa

The Paleobiology Database records at least 965 sites for Temnospondyli, and this reads 240 of them. The number is how many of those sites it was catalogued from too. The 24 sharing the most are listed.

This is not a list of everything alive at the time. It is only what has come out of the same ground as this animal and been written down.

Entered from

1,553 references

Each of the 6,126 occurrences read was entered from one of these publications, ordered by how many each accounts for. This is not a search for papers mentioning the name. 1,541 further references are not listed. Entries link to doi.org where the Paleobiology Database holds an identifier, and to its own record where it does not. Relayed as the Paleobiology Database holds them, not checked against what they resolve to.

Media and terms

Media content2

Picture of Temnospondyli

Credit
Daderot
Licence
Public Domain
Commercial use
the licence allows it

Sequential Section Scan

Licence
not stated by the source
Commercial use
cannot be read from the licence given — check the record
Specimen
Temnospondyli indet. · UO:IB:UOPB3702

Smithsonian Open Access was not reached for this taxon, so this list is what the others held rather than everything there is.

The description on this site

Licence
CC BY-SA 4.0

This is what the site found, which is not the same as what exists.

Keep going

What may have been alongside itAmphibia through timeFormations of the PleistoceneThe world it lived on

Occurrence data from the Paleobiology Database, CC BY 4.0. (von Zittel 1887)