Acta Palaeontologica Polonica

New lissamphibians and squamates from the Maastrichtian of Haţeg Basin, Romania

Annelise Folie and Vlad Codrea

Acta Palaeontologica Polonica 50 (1), 2005: 57-71

Numerous remains of amphibians and squamates were discovered in the continental sediments of the Maastrichtian Sânpetru Formation, south of Pui Village (Haţeg Basin, western Romania). The lissamphibians are represented by a salamander-like allocaudatan (Albanerpeton sp.) and at least two discoglossid frogs (cf. Eodiscoglossus sp. and cf. Paradiscoglossus sp.). The numerous lizards are represented by, e.g., the teiid Bicuspidon hatzegiensis sp. nov., and for the first time in a Late Cretaceous site, by two species of the paramacellodid Becklesius (Becklesius nopcsai sp. nov. and Becklesius cf. B. hoffstetteri). Snakes are also present in this site by an indeterminante madtsoiid, which represents the first occurrence of this family in eastern Europe. The presence of Albanerpeton in this site confirms that this genus appeared in Europe by at least the Late Cretaceous instead of Miocene as previously thought. The presence of both Albanerpeton and Bicuspidon in Haţeg Basin suggests a North American influence on eastern European amphibian and lacertilian faunas by Maastrichtian times.

Key words: Allocaudata, Anura, Lacertilia, Serpentes, palaeobiogeography, Maastrichtian, Romania.

Annelise Folie [annelise.folie@naturalsciences.be], F.R.I.A. grant holder, Department of Palaeontology, Royal Belgian Institute of Natural Sciences, rue Vautier 29, B−1000 Brussels, Belgium (corresponding author); Vlad Codrea [vcodrea@bioge.ubbcluj.ro], Catedra de Geologie−Paleontologie, Universitatea Babeş−Bolyai, Str. Kogălniceanu 1, 3400 Cluj−Napoca, Romania.


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