''Tertrema'' is an extinct

genus Genus (; : genera ) is a taxonomic rank above species and below family (taxonomy), family as used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In bino ...

trematosauria Trematosauria is one of two major groups of temnospondyl amphibians that survived the Permian-Triassic extinction event, the other (according to Yates and Warren 2000) being the Capitosauria. The trematosaurs were a diverse and important group t ...

temnospondyl Temnospondyli (from Greek language, Greek τέμνειν, ''temnein'' 'to cut' and σπόνδυλος, ''spondylos'' 'vertebra') or temnospondyls is a diverse ancient order (biology), order of small to giant tetrapods—often considered Labyrinth ...

within the

family Family (from ) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). It forms the basis for social order. Ideally, families offer predictabili ...

Trematosauridae Trematosauridae is a family of large marine temnospondyls with several included genera. Appearance and lifestyle Trematosaurids are one of the most derived families of the Trematosauroidea superfamily in that they are the only family that hav ...

. It is known from skull material from the

Vikinghøgda Formation The Vikinghøgda Formation is a geologic formation in Svalbard, Norway. It preserves fossils dating back to the Early Triassic (Griesbachian- Spathian) period. It is split into three members, from oldest to youngest: the Deltadalen Member (Indua ...

on Spitsbergen Island in

Svalbard Svalbard ( , ), previously known as Spitsbergen or Spitzbergen, is a Norway, Norwegian archipelago that lies at the convergence of the Arctic Ocean with the Atlantic Ocean. North of continental Europe, mainland Europe, it lies about midway be ...

. Relative to most trematosaurids, ''Tertrema'' has a proportionally short snout and widely spaced

occipital condyle The occipital condyles are undersurface protuberances of the occipital bone in vertebrates, which function in articulation with the superior facets of the Atlas (anatomy), atlas vertebra. The condyles are oval or reniform (kidney-shaped) in shape ...

s. While typically placed in the subfamily

Trematosaurinae Trematosaurinae is a subfamily of temnospondyl amphibians within the family Trematosauridae. Like all trematosaurids, they were marine piscivores, resembling crocodiles in their general build. Unlike the long, almost gharial-like snouts of the Lo ...

, a 2021

phylogenetic analysis 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 data ...

suggested that it was actually nested among the long-snouted lonchorhynchine trematosaurids.

References

Trematosaurines Fossil taxa described in 1915 {{temnospondyli-stub

See also

References