''Waggoneria'' is a

genus Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms as well as viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus comes above species and below family. In binomial nom ...

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 Early Permian of

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2020, it is the second-largest U.S. state by ...

. It was named by American paleontologist Everett C. Olson in 1951 on the basis of a

holotype A holotype is a single physical example (or illustration) of an organism, known to have been used when the species (or lower-ranked taxon) was formally described. It is either the single such physical example (or illustration) or one of sever ...

fossil that included a weathered skull, lower jaws, vertebrae, and part of the

pectoral girdle The shoulder girdle or pectoral girdle is the set of bones in the appendicular skeleton which connects to the arm on each side. In humans it consists of the clavicle and scapula; in those species with three bones in the shoulder, it consists of ...

. The type and only species is ''W. knoxensis''. A new

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

, Waggoneriidae, was also erected for the specimen. The fossil was discovered in a conglomerated deposit of the Early Permian

Vale Formation The Vale Formation is a geologic formation in Texas. It preserves fossils dating back to the Permian period. Diplocaulus recurvatus is one of the creatures discovered there. See also * List of fossiliferous stratigraphic units in Texas * Paleo ...

near the town of Vera in

Knox County, Texas Knox County is a county located in the U.S. state of Texas. As of the 2020 census, its population was 3,353. Its county seat is Benjamin. The county was created in 1858 and later organized in 1886. It is named for Henry Knox, an American Revolu ...

. The specimen was found in a nodule of rock that had broken, and much of the surface of the skull had weathered away. Because ''Waggoneria'' is known from a single fragmentary fossil, few features distinguish it from other reptiliomorphs. One distinction can be seen in the structure of the jaws. The surfaces of the upper and lower jaws are plate-like and contain several rows of teeth. The lower jaw is deep, possibly associated with the crushing function of the teeth. Olson only tentatively assigned ''Waggoneria'' to Seymouriamorpha, noting other similarities with diadectomorphs and

procolophonia The Procolophonia are a suborder of herbivorous reptiles that lived from the Middle Permian till the end of the Triassic period. They were originally included as a suborder of the Cotylosauria (later renamed Captorhinida Carroll 1988) but are ...

ns. Several other fossils found from the Vale Formation share similar features with ''Waggoneria'' but differ slightly in size and morphological detail. Olson suggested that they may represent additional genera within Waggoneriidae.

References

Seymouriamorphs Permian tetrapods Permian tetrapods of North America {{permian-animal-stub