''Ariekanerpeton'' is an extinct genus of

seymouriamorph Seymouriamorpha were a small but widespread group of limbed vertebrates (tetrapods). They have long been considered reptiliomorphs, and most paleontologists may still accept this point of view, but some analyses suggest that seymouriamorphs are s ...

from the lower

Permian The Permian ( ) is a geologic period and stratigraphic system which spans 47 million years from the end of the Carboniferous Period million years ago (Mya), to the beginning of the Triassic Period 251.9 Mya. It is the last period of the Paleoz ...

Fossil A fossil (from Classical Latin , ) is any preserved remains, impression, or trace of any once-living thing from a past geological age. Examples include bones, shells, exoskeletons, stone imprints of animals or microbes, objects preserved ...

s have been found from

Tajikistan Tajikistan (, ; tg, Тоҷикистон, Tojikiston; russian: Таджикистан, Tadzhikistan), officially the Republic of Tajikistan ( tg, Ҷумҳурии Тоҷикистон, Jumhurii Tojikiston), is a landlocked country in Centr ...

representing over 900 individuals of various stages of ontogenic development. However, it is thought that none of these specimens are of fully mature animals as poor bone ossification is present and the neural arches are paired and disarticulated from the pleurocentra. ''Ariekanerpeton'' is thought to have been more closely related to ''

Discosauriscus ''Discosauriscus'' was a small seymouriamorph which lived in what is now Central and Western Europe in the Early Permian Period. Its best fossils have been found in the Broumov and Bačov Formations of Boskovice Furrow, in the Czech Republic. ...

'' and ''

Seymouria ''Seymouria'' is an extinct genus of seymouriamorpha, seymouriamorph from the Early Permian of North America and Europe. Although they were amphibians (in a biological sense), ''Seymouria'' were well-adapted to life on land, with many reptile, re ...

'' than to ''

Utegenia ''Utegenia'' is a genus of early tetrapod. It is usually regarded as a Basal (phylogenetics), basal Seymouriamorpha, seymouriamorph, but sometimes included in the Discosauriscidae or as a sister taxon of the latter. Only one species, ''Utegenia ...

'' due to the absence of

gastralia Gastralia (singular gastralium) are dermal bones found in the ventral body wall of modern crocodilians and tuatara, and many prehistoric tetrapods. They are found between the sternum and pelvis, and do not articulate with the vertebrae. In thes ...

or a

postorbital The ''postorbital'' is one of the bones in vertebrate skulls which forms a portion of the dermal skull roof and, sometimes, a ring about the orbit. Generally, it is located behind the postfrontal and posteriorly to the orbital fenestra. In some ...

supratemporal The supratemporal bone is a paired cranial bone present in many tetrapods and tetrapodomorph fish. It is part of the temporal region (the portion of the skull roof behind the eyes), usually lying medial (inwards) relative to the squamosal and latera ...

contact. However, it is not a member of the

family Family (from la, familia) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its ...

Discosauriscidae Discosauriscidae is a family of stegocephalians from the early Permian. They belong to the Seymouriamorpha, but their affinites to extant tetrapods are debated. They have long been considered reptiliomorph Reptiliomorpha (meaning reptile-shap ...

or the family

Seymouriidae ''Seymouria'' is an extinct genus of seymouriamorph from the Early Permian of North America and Europe. Although they were amphibians (in a biological sense), ''Seymouria'' were well-adapted to life on land, with many reptilian features—so man ...

. There are no dermal scales present on post-metamorphic specimens as there are on ''Discosauriscus''. Lateral lines are present in the skulls of larval individuals but are lost soon after metamorphosis. Unlike ''Utegenia'' and ''Discosauriscus'', ''Ariekanerpeton'' is thought to have inhabited relatively arid environments.Malakhov, D. M. (200). The topography of the lateral line organs on the skull of ''Utegenia shpinari''. ''Biota'' 1(2):21-26.

References

* The Age of Dinosaurs in Russia and Mongolia by Michael J. Benton, Mikhail A. Shishkin, David M. Unwin, and Evgenii N. Kurochkin * Chinese Fossil Vertebrates by Spencer G. Lucas * Amniote Origins: Completing the Transition to Land by Stuart Sumida and Karen L.M Martin Seymouriamorphs Permian tetrapods of Asia {{paleo-amphibian-stub