''Wantzosaurus'' was a genus of

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 ...

amphibian of the Trematosauridae family. Fossils have been found in the

Early Triassic The Early Triassic is the first of three epochs of the Triassic Period of the geologic timescale. It spans the time between 251.9 Ma and Ma (million years ago). Rocks from this epoch are collectively known as the Lower Triassic Series, which ...

Middle Sakamena Formation ( Sakamena Group) of what is now

Madagascar Madagascar, officially the Republic of Madagascar, is an island country that includes the island of Madagascar and numerous smaller peripheral islands. Lying off the southeastern coast of Africa, it is the world's List of islands by area, f ...

. It showed adaptations for an almost completely aquatic lifestyle, having the ability to swim by lateral undulation. A

pelagic The pelagic zone consists of the water column of the open ocean and can be further divided into regions by depth. The word ''pelagic'' is derived . The pelagic zone can be thought of as an imaginary cylinder or water column between the sur ...

lifestyle for this animal has been proposed.

References

Lonchorhynchines Triassic temnospondyls of Africa Early Triassic amphibians of Africa Induan life Fossils of Madagascar Fossil taxa described in 1961 {{temnospondyli-stub