7.2" Discosauriscus (Early Permian Reptiliomorph)

This is a remarkably preserved, 7.2" long Discosauriscus from the Early Permian deposits of the Czech Republic. This is a phenomenal specimen, nicely articulated with three of the short limbs present. The collecting site near Boskovice in the Czech Republic has been closed for some time. There is a repaired crack in the rock and some restoration along the repaired crack.

Because the skeletons of Discosauriscus were lightly sclerotized, they are rarely as well preserved as the intact specimen found on this plate. This fossil clearly defines the wide jaws, short limbs and relatively long tail of this species. A well preserved lateral-line system has been described by researchers which suggests that Discosauriscus may have had electroreceptive organs.

Discosauricus was a small seymouriamorph that lived in Central Europe during the Lower Permian Period. Many seymouriamorphs were terrestrial or semi-aquatic. However, aquatic larvae bearing external gills and grooves from the lateral line system have been found, making them unquestionably amphibians. The adults were terrestrial. Some of the best fossils of Discosauricus species have been found in Boskovice basin in the Czech Republic.