''Ichthyosaura randeckensis'' is a fossil

newt A newt is a salamander in the subfamily Pleurodelinae. The terrestrial juvenile phase is called an eft. Unlike other members of the family Salamandridae, newts are semiaquatic, alternating between aquatic and terrestrial habitats. Not all aqua ...

species in the family

Salamandridae Salamandridae is a Family (biology), family of salamanders consisting of true salamanders and newts. Salamandrids are distinguished from other salamanders by the lack of rib or costal grooves along the sides of their bodies and by their rough ski ...

. It was described in 2013 from a

Miocene The Miocene ( ) is the first epoch (geology), geological epoch of the Neogene Period and extends from about (Ma). The Miocene was named by Scottish geologist Charles Lyell; the name comes from the Greek words (', "less") and (', "new") and mea ...

volcanic lake deposit, the Randeck Maar Formation, in Germany. The fossil specimen is fully articulated and long. A

phylogenetic In biology, phylogenetics () is the study of the evolutionary history of life using observable characteristics of organisms (or genes), which is known as phylogenetic inference. It infers the relationship among organisms based on empirical dat ...

analysis found the species to be the

sister species In phylogenetics, a sister group or sister taxon, also called an adelphotaxon, comprises the closest relative(s) of another given unit in an evolutionary tree. Definition The expression is most easily illustrated by a cladogram: Taxon A and ...

of the

extant Extant or Least-concern species, least concern is the opposite of the word extinct. It may refer to: * Extant hereditary titles * Extant literature, surviving literature, such as ''Beowulf'', the oldest extant manuscript written in English * Exta ...

alpine newt The alpine newt (''Ichthyosaura alpestris'') is a species of newt native to continental Europe and Introduced species, introduced to Great Britain and New Zealand. Adults measure and are usually dark grey to blue on the back and sides, with an ...

(''Ichthyosaura alpestris''), and the authors therefore placed it in the same genus. Later analysis by other authors did not confirm this, however; they suggested ''I. randeckensis'' may not belong to ''Ichthyosaura''. As ''Ichthyosaura'' is regarded a junior synnonym of ''

Salamandra ''Salamandra'' is a genus of six species of salamanders localized in central and southern Europe, Northern Africa, and western Asia. List of species References External links Salamandraat Fauna Europaea * Salamandraat Animal Diversity We ...

'' and the alpine newt is now placed in the genus ''Mesotriton'', the fossil species should be placed in the latter genus as well.

References

Newts Cenozoic salamanders Paleogene amphibians of Europe Fossil taxa described in 2013 {{paleo-salamander-stub

See also

References