Anthracosauria refers to a group of extinct reptile-like, amphibian-like tetrapods that flourished during the Carboniferous and early Permian periods, although precisely which species are included depends on one's definition of the taxon. Groups See text. ... The Carboniferous is a major division of the geologic timescale that extends from the end of the Devonian period, about 359. ... Cisuralian is the first of the three epoches of the Permian. ...

As originally defined by Säve-Söderbergh in 1934, the anthracosaurs, are a group of usually large aquatic Amphibia from the Carboniferous and lower Permian. As defined by Alfred Sherwood Romer however, the anthracosaurs include all non-amniote "Labyrinthodont" reptile-like amphibians, and Säve-Söderbergh's definition is more equivalent to Romer's suborder Embolomeri. This definition was also used by Edwin H. Colbert Robert L. Carroll in their textbooks of Vertebrate Palaeontology (Colbert 1969, Carroll 1988). Dr A. L. Panchen however restored the anthracosaurs to Säve-Söderbergh's original definition (Panchen 1970). 1934 (MCMXXXIV) was a common year starting on Monday (link will take you to calendar). ... Alfred Sherwood Romer (December 28, 1894 _ November 5, 1973) was an American paleontologist and comparative anatomist and a specialist in vertebrate evolution. ... A Labyrinthodont (Greek, maze-toothed) is any member of an extinct suborder (Labyrinthodontia) or subclass of amphibians that constituted the dominant animals of Late Paleozoic and Early Mesozoic times (about 350 to 210 million years ago). ... Groups Amniota Anthracosauria Batrachosauria Chroniosuchidae Diadectomorpha Embolomeri Gephyrostegidae Seymouriamorpha Solenodonsauridae Tokosauridae Westlothiana lizziae Reptiliomorpha is a name given either to reptile-like amphibians, or to amniotes and those amphibians related to them. ... Edwin H. Colbert (1905 – 2001) was a distinguished vertebrate paleontologist and prolific researcher and author. ... Robert L. Carroll (b. ...

With the cladistic revolution things have changed again. Michel Laurin (1996) uses the term in a cladistic sense to refer to only the most reptile-like tetrapods (no longer considered true amphibians) (Diadectomorpha and Solenodonsauridae) and the Amniotes. But Michael Benton (2000, 2004) makes the Anthracosaurs a paraphyletic order within the superorder Reptiliomorpha, along with the orders Seymouriamorpha and Diadectomorpha. This cladogram shows the relationship among various insect groups. ... Genera Limnoscelidae Diadectidae Tseajaiidae Diadectomorpha are a clade of large reptile-like amphibians that lived in Euramerica during the Carboniferous and Early Permian periods, and are very close to the ancestry of the Amniota. ... Extant subgroups Synapsida     Mammalia (mammals) Sauropsida    Anapsida        Testudines (turtles)    Diapsida        Lepidosauria           Squamata (lizards and snakes)           Sphenodontida (tuatara)        Archosauria           Crocodilia (crocodiles and alligators)           Aves (birds) The amniotes are a group of vertebrates, comprising the mammals, birds, and various other groups collectively referred to as reptiles. ... Michael J. Benton is a professor of vertebrate palaeontology in the Department of Earth Sciences at the University of Bristol. ... Paraphyletic - Wikipedia /**/ @import /skins-1. ... Groups Amniota Anthracosauria Batrachosauria Chroniosuchidae Diadectomorpha Embolomeri Gephyrostegidae Seymouriamorpha Solenodonsauridae Tokosauridae Westlothiana lizziae Reptiliomorpha is a name given either to reptile-like amphibians, or to amniotes and those amphibians related to them. ... Clades & Species See Taxonomy Seymouriamorpha are a small but widespread group of reptiliomorphs. ... Genera Limnoscelidae Diadectidae Tseajaiidae Diadectomorpha are a clade of large reptile-like amphibians that lived in Euramerica during the Carboniferous and Early Permian periods, and are very close to the ancestry of the Amniota. ...

References and External links

• Benton, M. J. (2004), Vertebrate Paleontology, Blackwell Science Ltd 3rd ed. - see also taxonomic hierarchy of the vertebrates, according to Benton 2004
• Carroll, R. L., 1988: Vertebrate paleontology and evolution. W. H. Freeman and company, New York
• Clack, J. A. (2002), Gaining Ground: the Origin and Evolution of Tetrapods Indiana Univ. Press, 369 pp.
• Colbert, E. H. (1969), Evolution of the Vertebrates, John Wiley & Sons Inc (2nd ed.)
• Laurin, Michel (1996) Terrestrial Vertebrates - Stegocephalians: Tetrapods and other digit-bearing vertebrates
• Palaeos Anthracosauroidea
• Panchen, A. L. (1970) Handbuch der Paläoherpetologie - Encyclopedia of Paleoherpetology Part 5a - Batrachosauria (Anthracosauria), Gutsav Fischer Verlag - Stuttgart & Portland, 83 pp., ISBN 3-89937-021-X web page
• Systema Naturae 2000 / Classification Order Anthracosauria