Ancient sea-dwelling amphibians spread across the globe, new Australian fossils reveal
Newly studied 250-million-year-old fossils from Western Australia reveal two temnospondyl species—Erythrobatrachus noonkanbahensis and Aphaneramma—coexisted in a brackish-marine habitat. Trematosauria fossils show these “sea-salamanders” dispersed globally in the Early Triassic, with Aphaneramma later found in Russia, Svalbard, Pakistan and Madagascar, illustrating their remarkable adaptability and wide distribution after the Permian extinction.