Palatinerpeton

Palatinerpeton Temporal range: Asselian ~
Scientific classification
Domain:	Eukaryota
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Order:	†Temnospondyli
Clade:	†Stereospondylomorpha (?)
Genus:	†Palatinerpeton Boy, 1996
Type species
†Palatinerpeton kraetschmeri Boy, 1996

Palatinerpeton is an extinct genus of temnospondyl amphibian. Fossils have been found in the Lauterecken-Odernheim Formation of Germany.

Phylogeny

Palatinerpeton is one of several Late Carboniferous and Early Permian European temnospondyls with uncertain affinities; the others include Iberospondylus, Sclerocephalus, and Cheliderpeton. Phylogenetic studies have placed them as either early representatives of a group called Stereospondylomorpha, or close relatives of a group called Eryopidae. Stereospondylomorpha is a large clade mostly made up of Mesozoic taxa, while Eryopidae is a small family consisting of several Carboniferous and Permian temnospondyls. These two groups are usually considered distantly related. Schoch & Witzmann (2009) conducted a phylogenetic analysis in which Eryopidae and Stereospondylomorpha were found to be closely related, both members of a clade called Eryopoidea. Palatinerpeton was found to be the sister taxon of Eryopoidea. Below is a cladogram from their study:

Temnospondyli	Capetus palustris Dendrerpeton acadianum Trimerorhachis insignis Dissorophoidea Acanthostomatops vorax Ecolsonia cutlerensis Micropholis stowi Iberospondylus schultzei Palatinerpeton kraetschmeri Eryopoidea Eryopidae "Onchiodon" frossardi Onchiodon labyrinthicus Eryops megacephalus Stereospondylomorpha Sclerocephalus spp. Cheliderpeton latirostre Archegosaurus decheni