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Deltasaurus Temporal range: Triassic | |
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Scientific classification | |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Chordata |
Class: | Amphibia |
Order: | Temnospondyli |
Family: | Rhytidosteidae |
Genus: | Deltasaurus |
Species | |
Deltasaurus is an extinct genus of Carnian temnospondyl amphibian of the Rhytidosteidae family.
It is the most common animal fossil of the Blina Shale, a fossil deposit at the eastern end of the Erskine Range in the Kimberley region of Western Australia. A specimen has also been collected from the Knocklofty Sandstone deposit in Tasmania.
One species of Deltasaurus, D. kimberleyensis, grew to around 90 centimetres in length. It had four limbs and a tail, and numerous tiny teeth. It is thought to have been a predator of fish.
References
- Warren, Anne (1987). "An Ancient Amphibian from Western Australia". In Hand, Suzanne and Michael Archer (ed.). The Antipodean Ark. Angus & Robertson. ISBN 0 207 15664 6.
Further reading
- Cosgriff, J. W. (1965). "A new genus of Temnospondyli from the Triassic of Western Australia". Journal and Proceedings of the Royal Society of Western Australia. 48: 65–90.