UNSW, Australian Museum Identify 240-Million-Year-Old Amphibian Fossil Hidden in Garden Wall
Updated
Updated · ScienceDaily · May 15
UNSW, Australian Museum Identify 240-Million-Year-Old Amphibian Fossil Hidden in Garden Wall
2 articles · Updated · ScienceDaily · May 15
Scientists at UNSW Sydney and the Australian Museum formally identified a 240-million-year-old amphibian fossil as Arenaerpeton supinatus after it sat for decades inside a garden retaining wall.
The specimen is unusually complete—preserving almost the entire 1.2-meter skeleton plus faint skin traces—making it a rare example of a temnospondyl with head, body and soft tissue still associated.
The fossil was first spotted in the 1990s after a retired chicken farmer used quarry rocks to build the wall, then donated to the Australian Museum for study.
Arenaerpeton lived in Triassic freshwater habitats in what is now the Sydney Basin, likely hunted ancient fish, and had a heavy body and fang-like teeth despite its salamander-like head.
Researchers called it one of New South Wales' most important fossil finds in 30 years, adding evidence on Australia's long-lived temnospondyls, which persisted for another 120 million years.
What other prehistoric secrets might be hiding in Australian backyards?
How did this giant amphibian survive a mass extinction event?
When can the public see the 240-million-year-old 'sand creeper'?