1. Description

2. Classification

3. Notes

4. References

5. General references

Brachyopoidea is a superfamily of temnospondyls that lived during the Mesozoic. It contains the families Brachyopidae and Chigutisauridae. The earliest records of brachyopids are from the Lower Triassic in Australia. The latest-surviving member of the superfamily is the chigutisaurid Koolasuchus from the Early Cretaceous of Australia.

Description

Some large brachiopoids, such as Siderops and Koolasuchus, grew to lengths of around {{convert|2.5|m|ft}}. However, an unnamed Late Triassic or Early Jurassic brachiopoid from Lesotho in southern Africa is estimated to have been far larger. At an estimated {{convert|7|m|ft}}, the brachiopoid from Lesotho is one of the largest amphibians sensu lato{{Ref_label|A|a|none}} ever known.^[1] This estimate is based on a single jaw fragment found in 1970 by a French expedition near Alwynskop in Quthing.^[1]

Because of its size, the fragment was initially considered to be from a mastodonsaur.^[2] However, the specimen was redescribed as a brachyopoid in 2005. Several features of the specimen indicate that it is from a brachyopoid. There is a large tusk protruding from the ectopterygoid, a bone of the palate, and the dental morphology is similar to that of other brachyopoids. When viewed from the side, the upper margin of the jaw appears concave.^[3]

Classification

Shown below is a cladogram of Brachyopoidea adapted from Ruta et al. (2007).^[4]

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Notes

1. {{Note_label|A|a|none}} Amphibians in the most general sense- i.e. terrestrial or semi-terrestrial vertebrates which do not belong to amniota.

References

General references

• {{cite journal | last1 = Dong | first1 = Z. | year = 1985 | title = The Dashanpu Dinosaur Fauna of Zigong Sichuan Short Report V - Labyrinthodont Amphibia | url = | journal = Vertebrata PalAsiatica | volume = 23 | issue = | pages = 301–306 }}
• Marsicano, Claudia A. (2005) A new temnospondyl record from the Upper Triassic of Argentina. Ameghiniana, vol.42, no.2, p. 501-504. ISSN 0002-7014.
• {{cite journal | last1 = Shishkin | first1 = M.A. | year = 1991 | title = A Late Jurassic labyrinthodont from Mongolia | url = | journal = Paleontological Journal | volume = 1991 | issue = | pages = 78–91 }}
• {{cite journal | last1 = Warren | first1 = A. A. | last2 = Marsicano | first2 = C. | year = 2000 | title = A phylogeny of Brachyopoidea (Temnospondyli, Stereospondyli) | url = | journal = Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology | volume = 20 | issue = | pages = 462–483 | doi=10.1671/0272-4634(2000)020[0462:APOTBT]2.0.CO;2}}
• {{cite journal | last1 = Yates | first1 = A.M. | last2 = Warren | first2 = A.A. | year = 2000 | title = The phylogeny of the 'higher' temnospondyls (Vertebrata: Choanata) and its implications for the monophyly and origins of the Sterospondyli | url = | journal = Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society | volume = 128 | issue = | pages = 77–121 | doi=10.1111/j.1096-3642.2000.tb00650.x}}

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