Carboniferous tetrapods include amphibians and reptiles that lived during the Carboniferous Period. Though stem-tetrapods originated in the preceding

Devonian The Devonian ( ) is a geologic period and system of the Paleozoic era, spanning 60.3 million years from the end of the Silurian, million years ago (Mya), to the beginning of the Carboniferous, Mya. It is named after Devon, England, whe ...

, it was in the earliest

Carboniferous The Carboniferous ( ) is a geologic period and system of the Paleozoic that spans 60 million years from the end of the Devonian Period million years ago ( Mya), to the beginning of the Permian Period, million years ago. The name ''Carbonifero ...

that the first crown tetrapods appeared, with full scaleless skin and five digits. During this time,

amphibian Amphibians are tetrapod, four-limbed and ectothermic vertebrates of the Class (biology), class Amphibia. All living amphibians belong to the group Lissamphibia. They inhabit a wide variety of habitats, with most species living within terres ...

s (including many extinct groups unrelated to modern forms, referred to as "basal tetrapods") were the predominant tetrapods, and included the Temnospondyli, Lepospondyli, and Anthracosauria. The first

amniote Amniotes are a clade of tetrapod vertebrates that comprises sauropsids (including all reptiles and birds, and extinct parareptiles and non-avian dinosaurs) and synapsids (including pelycosaurs and therapsids such as mammals). They are disti ...

s appeared during the middle Carboniferous (

Early Pennsylvanian The Pennsylvanian ( , also known as Upper Carboniferous or Late Carboniferous) is, in the International Commission on Stratigraphy, ICS geologic timescale, the younger of two period (geology), subperiods (or upper of two system (stratigraphy), s ...

) from the lattermost group, and included both

sauropsid Sauropsida ("lizard faces") is a clade of amniotes, broadly equivalent to the class Reptilia. Sauropsida is the sister taxon to Synapsida, the other clade of amniotes which includes mammals as its only modern representatives. Although early syna ...

s and synapsids, but it was not until the very end of the Carboniferous, during a

rainforest collapse Ecological collapse refers to a situation where an ecosystem suffers a drastic, possibly permanent, reduction in carrying capacity for all organisms, often resulting in mass extinction. Usually, an ecological collapse is precipitated by a disastro ...

, and afterwards that they began to diversify.

Classification

The following list of families of Carboniferous tetrapods is based mostly on Benton ed. 1993. The classification follow
Benton 2004
Superclass Tetrapoda * Basal Tetrapods ** Family Whatcheeriidae ** Family Crassigyrinidae ** Family

Baphetidae Baphetidae is an extinct family of early tetrapods. Baphetids were large labyrinthodont predators of the Late Carboniferous period (Namurian through Westphalian) of Europe. Fragmentary remains from the Early Carboniferous of Canada have been ten ...

(Loxommatidae) ** Family Colosteidae ** Family Caerorhachidae * Class Amphibia ** Order Temnospondyli *** Family

Dendrerpetontidae Dendrerpetontidae is a family of Temnospondyli. Gallery Balanerpeton BW.jpg, ''Balanerpeton, Balanerpeton woodi'', of the early Carboniferous of Scotland Denderpeton DB.jpg, ''Dendrerpeton'', of the late Carboniferous of Nova Scotia and Ireland ...

*** Family

Cochleosauridae Cochleosauridae is a family of edopoid temnospondyl amphibians, among the most basal of temnospondyls. Most members of this family are known from the late Carboniferous ( Pennsylvanian) and early Permian ( Cisuralian) of Europe and North Americ ...

*** Family Trimerorhachidae *** Family Eugyrinidae *** Family Saurerpetontidae *** Family Eryopidae *** Family Trematopidae *** Family Dissorophidae *** Family Micromelerpetontidae *** Family Branchiosauridae *** Family Amphibamidae ** Superorder Lepospondyli *** '' Incertae Sedis'' **** Family Acherontiscidae **** Family Adelogyrinidae *** Order Aïstopoda **** Family

Ophiderpetontidae ''Ophiderpeton'' (from el, ὄφῐς , 'snake' and el, ἑρπετόν 'creeper') is an extinct genus of aistopod tetrapodomorphs from the early Carboniferous to the early Permian. Remains of this genus are widespread and were found in Ohio, ...

**** Family

Phlegethontiidae Phlegethontiidae is a family of extinct aistopod amphibians including the genera ''Phlegethontia'' and ''Sillerpeton ''Sillerpeton'' is an extinct genus of aïstopod tetrapodomorphs within the family Phlegethontiidae. It contains a single sp ...

*** Order Nectridea **** Family Diplocaulidae **** Family Scincosauridae **** Family

Urocordylidae The Urocordylidae are an extinct family (biology), family of nectridean lepospondyl amphibians. Urocordylids lived during the Late Carboniferous and Early Permian in what is now Europe and North America and are characterized by their very long, p ...

*** Order Microsauria **** ''

Utaherpeton ''Utaherpeton'' is an extinct genus of lepospondyl amphibian from the Carboniferous of Utah. It is one of the oldest and possibly one of the most basal ("primitive") known lepospondyls. The genus is monotypic, including only the type species ''U ...

'' **** Family

Microbrachidae ''Microbrachis'' is an extinct genus of lepospondyl amphibian from the Carboniferous Kladno Formation of the Czech Republic. Description ''Microbrachis'' was an elongated, salamander-like creature, about long, with over 40 vertebrae in ...

**** Family Hyloplesiontidae **** Family Odonterpetontidae **** Family Tuditanidae **** Family Pantylidae **** Family Gymnarthridae **** Family Trihecatontidae **** Family

Cocytinidae Lysorophia is an order of fossorial Carboniferous and Permian tetrapods within the Recumbirostra. Lysorophians resembled small snakes, as their bodies are extremely elongate. There is a single family, the Molgophidae (previously known as Lysorop ...

*** Superorder Reptiliomorpha **** Order/suborder uncertain (''incerti (sub)ordinis'') ***** Family Solenodonsauridae ***** '' Westlothiana'' **** Order Anthracosauria ***** Family Eoherpetontidae ***** Family

Proterogyrinidae Embolomeri is an order of tetrapods or stem-tetrapods, possibly members of Reptiliomorpha. Embolomeres first evolved in the Early Carboniferous (Mississippian) Period and were the largest and most successful predatory tetrapods of the Late Carb ...

***** Family

Anthracosauridae ''Anthracosaurus'' is an extinct genus of embolomere Embolomeri is an Order (biology), order of Tetrapod, tetrapods or Stem-group, stem-tetrapods, possibly members of Reptiliomorpha. Embolomeres first evolution, evolved in the Early Carbonifero ...

***** Family

Eogyrinidae Eogyrinidae is an extinct family of large, long-bodied tetrapods that lived in the rivers of the Late Carboniferous period. Gallery image:Eogyrinus BW.jpg, ''Eogyrinus''. image:Pteroplax DB.jpg, ''Pteroplax''. image:Diplovertebron BW.jpg, ''Dip ...

***** Family Archeriidae **** Order Gephyrostegida ***** Family

Gephyrostegidae Gephyrostegidae is an extinct family of reptiliomorph tetrapods from the Late Carboniferous including the genera '' Gephyrostegus'', '' Bruktererpeton'', and '' Eusauropleura''. ''Gephyrostegus'' is from the Czech Republic, ''Brukterepeton'' is f ...

**** Order Seymouriamorpha ***** Family Discosauriscidae **** Order Diadectomorpha ***** Family Limnoscelididae ***** Family Diadectidae Series Amniota * Class

Sauropsida Sauropsida ("lizard faces") is a clade of amniotes, broadly equivalent to the class Reptilia. Sauropsida is the sister taxon to Synapsida, the other clade of amniotes which includes mammals as its only modern representatives. Although early syna ...

** Basal Eureptilia *** Family Captorhinidae *** Family Protorothyrididae ** Subclass Diapsida *** Order Araeoscelidia **** Family Petrolacosauridae * Class Synapsida ** Order Pelycosauria *** Family Varanopidae *** Family Ophiacodontidae *** Family Edaphosauridae *** Family Sphenacodontidae

References

{{reflist * Benton, M. J. (2004), ''Vertebrate Paleontology'', 3rd ed. Blackwell Science Ltd * ----- (editor), (1993) The fossil record II. London: Chapman and Hall. *

Classification

See also

References