Micropholis fossil map
Where fossils of Micropholis have been found, shown on the Earth as it looked about 252 million years ago and on today’s map.
Dots are fossil collections recorded in the Paleobiology Database. The “then” view moves today’s fossil sites back to their positions 252 million years ago (the time slice nearest the median age of the fossils) using the Merdith et al. (2021) plate model; positions are approximate. Open on the timeline map →
| Group | Early tetrapods & amphibians |
|---|---|
| Lived | 251.902–247 million years ago |
| Periods | Triassic |
| Family | Amphibamidae |
| Named by | Huxley 1859 |
| Fossil records | 13 occurrences at 9 locations (PBDB) |
| Found in | South Africa, Antarctica |
| Rock formations | Katberg, Normandien, Fremouw |
About Micropholis
Micropholis (Greek 'mikros' = small and 'pholis' = scale) is an extinct genus of dissorophoid temnospondyl. Fossils have been found from the Lystrosaurus Assemblage Zone of the Karoo Basin in South Africa and are dated to the Induan (Early Triassic). Fossils have also been found from the lower Fremouw of Antarctica. Micropholis is the only post-Permian dissorophoid and the only dissorophoid in what is presently the southern hemisphere and what would have been termed Gondwana during the amalgamation of Pangea.
Text in “About” is quoted from the Wikipedia article Micropholis (amphibian) (revision 1381349223), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0; introduction excerpted verbatim, formatting removed. Ages, family, authority and fossil records: Paleobiology Database, accessed 23 October 2026. Ages are those of the rock layers the fossils were found in. Wikidata: Q6839869.
