Amphibians
Diversity of life
Recovering small animals from the sediment
Amphibians contributed to ancient ecosystem diversity, but their small remains can go unnoticed during excavation of large fossils. Sorting sediment reveals a different scale of life.
The method in practice
Jaw fragments, vertebrae and limb bones are extracted from screen-washing residues and examined. Specialists use comparative anatomy to identify the groups represented. Stratigraphic provenance and collection methods remain associated with each specimen throughout its study.
At Angeac and in regional comparisons
Salamanders, frogs and albanerpetontids occur in the Charente fossil assemblages. Albanerpetontids are an extinct group resembling some living amphibians. Their small bones and jaw fragments require screen-washing and sorting.
What this research reveals
This research complements the evidence from large vertebrates and plants. Its value extends beyond the fossils’ small size: it reveals organisms absent from inventories limited to bones visible during excavation.
Specimens and data
Angeac’s amphibians at the millimetre scale
Jaws, limb elements and vertebrae add to the small vertebrate inventory. Some identifications remain tentative: an isolated bone does not always allow a species to be identified.
Enlarge each plate to examine labels, specimen identifiers and scale bars.
People and expertise
Romain Vullo contributes to identifying small fossil vertebrates from the Charente region. Screen-washing and sorting teams recover the small amphibian remains.
Further reading
Overview reference: Dinosaures, les géants du vignoble (2017), p. 166–169.
Publications and results → · The book and its authors →
