The Westphalian tetrapod fauna; some aspects of its geography and ecology

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Abstract
Fossil tetrapods (amphibians and reptiles) have been found in Westphalian Series beds at over 40 localities, seven of which have produced assemblages with a diversity of six or more genera. All tetrapod-bearing assemblages derive from the southern lowlands of Euramerica which correspond to the Westphalian equatorial belt. The preservational environments and the eight major tetrapod groups of the Westphalian are briefly reviewed and apparent associations are identified. There appear to be four overlapping tetrapod associations which may correspond to four communities, namely: (i) terrestrial, (ii) lowland open water body (fresh water or brackish), (iii) lowland restricted water body (fresh water or brackish), and (iv) intermontane basin restricted water body (fresh water). Factors which may determine the nature of the preserved assemblages include marine influence, openness of water-body and seasonal variation.

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