Buxierophus

Buxierophus
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Clade:	Tetrapoda
Order:	† Temnospondyli
Family:	† Dissorophidae
Genus:	† Buxierophus Werneburg, Logghe, & Steyer, 2025
Species
Buxierophus pouilloniWerneburg, Logghe, & Steyer, 2025

Buxierophus is a genus of dissorophid temnospondyl from the early Permian of France. ^[1] It is the only dissorophid from the early Permian of Europe and represents a possibly semi-aquatic member of the group, which is otherwise thought to be highly terrestrial, based on the skeletal anatomy. It is named after the type locality, Buxières-les-Mines, and -orophe, Greek for 'roof' in reference to the osteoderms.

Discovery and description

Buxierophus is known from the type species, Buxierophus pouilloni, which is named after French geologist Jean-Marc Pouillon. The species is known only from the holotype (RH-D 20–03–99), a partial skull and articulated anterior postcranium. It was named by German paleontologist Ralf Werneburg and French paleontologists Antoine Logghe and Jean-Sébastien Steyer. The holotype was found at the Buxières-les-Mines locality in the Bourbon-l'Archambault Basin in Allier; this locality is an open coal mine that has produced extensive faunal and floral remains, including algae, stromatolites, palynomorphs, blattoid insects, elasmobranch sharks, acanthodians, palaeoniscoid actinopterygians, and other temnospondyl amphibians ('archegosaurid' stereospondylomorphs, branchiosaurids, and eryopids). ^{[2] [3] [4] [5] [6] [7] [8]}

Buxierophus pouilloni is diagnosed by a combination of postcranial features: dorsal midline series of osteoderms composed of two series of thin and unornamented osteoderms, some bearing conspicuous peaks dorsally; internal osteoderms with bi- or multi-lobed dorsal articulation surfaces; neural arches of the same length to that of the osteoderm. ^[1] The skull is more generic with many common features of dissorophids, being slightly longer than wide, with large, laterally facing orbits. Well-eveloped ridges are found in several parts of the skull. The interpterygoid vacuities are large on the palate, which is covered by a shagreen of denticles.

Paleobiology

Like other olsoniform dissorophoids, Buxierophus lacks lateral line grooves on the skull or postcranial elements and has a relatively well-ossified postcranial skeleton in addition to the osteoderms typical of dissorophids. However, the holotype includes a fully ossified ceratobranchial skeleton with grooved ceratobranchials that are interpreted as evidence for fish-like internal gills, which suggests a semi-aquatic lifestyle for this taxon and aligns with the paleo-lake environment of Buxières-les-Mines. ^{[1] [9]}

References

1. Werneburg, Ralf; Logghe, Antoine; Steyer, J.-Sébastien (2025-07-21). "Buxierophus pouilloni n. gen. n. sp., a new dissorophid temnospondyl from the Lower Permian of France (Allier)" . Journal of Paleontology: 1–21. doi:10.1017/jpa.2025.10112. ISSN   0022-3360.
2. Poplin, Cécile (1999). "Un paléoniscoïde (Pisces, Actinopterygii) de Buxières-les-Mines, témoin des affinités fauniques entre Massif central et Bohême au passage Carbonifère-Permien". Geodiversitas. 21 (2): 147–155.
3. Steyer, J. Sebastien; Escuillie, Francois; Pouillon, Jean-Marc; Broutin, Jean; Debriette, Pierre; Freytet, Pierre; Gand, Georges; Poplin, Cecile; Rage, Jean-Claude; Rival, Jacques; Schneider, Joerg W.; Stamberg, Stanislav; Werneburg, Ralf; Cuny, Gilles (2000-03-01). "New data on the flora and fauna from the ?uppermost Carboniferous-Lower Permian of Buxieres-les-Mines, Bourbon l'Archambault Basin (Allier, France); a preliminary report". Bulletin de la Société Géologique de France. 171 (2): 239–249. doi:10.2113/171.2.239. ISSN   0037-9409.
4. Werneburg, Ralf (2003-07-01). "The branchiosaurid amphibians from the Lower Permian of Buxières-les-Mines, Bourbon l'Archambault Basin (Allier, France) and their biostratigraphic significance". Bulletin de la Société Géologique de France. 174 (4): 343–349. doi:10.2113/174.4.343. ISSN   0037-9409.
5. Schultze, Hans-Peter; Soler-Gijón, Rodrigo (2004-07-09). "A xenacanth clasper from the ?uppermost Carboniferous - Lower Permian of Buxières-les-Mines (Massif Central, France) and the palaeoecology of the European Permo-Carboniferous basins" . Neues Jahrbuch für Geologie und Paläontologie - Abhandlungen. 232 (2–3): 325–363. Bibcode:2004NJGPA.232..325S. doi:10.1127/njgpa/232/2004/325.
6. Štamberg, Stanislav (2018-12-28). "Actinopterygians of The Permian Locality Buxières-Les-Mines (Bourbonl'archambault Basin, France) and Their Relationship to Other Early Actinopterygians". Fossil Imprint. 74 (3–4): 245–291. doi:10.2478/if-2018-0017. ISSN   2533-4069.
7. Luccisano, Vincent; Pradel, Alan; Amiot, Romain; Pouillon, Jean-Marc; Kindlimann, René; Steyer, Jean-Sébastien; Cuny, Gilles (2022). "Systematics, ontogeny and palaeobiogeography of the genus Orthacanthus (Diplodoselachidae, Xenacanthiformes) from the lower Permian of France". Papers in Palaeontology. 8 (6) e1470. Bibcode:2022PPal....8E1470L. doi:10.1002/spp2.1470. ISSN   2056-2802.
8. Luccisano, Vincent; Cuny, Gilles; Pradel, Alan; Fourel, François; Lécuyer, Christophe; Pouillon, Jean-Marc; Lachat, Kathleen; Amiot, Romain (2023-10-15). "Palaeoenvironmental and palaeoecological reconstructions based on oxygen, carbon and sulfur isotopes of Early Permian shark spines from the French Massif central". Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology. 628 111760. Bibcode:2023PPP...62811760L. doi:10.1016/j.palaeo.2023.111760. ISSN   0031-0182.
9. Witzmann, Florian (July 2013). "Phylogenetic patterns of character evolution in the hyobranchial apparatus of early tetrapods" . Earth and Environmental Science Transactions of the Royal Society of Edinburgh. 104 (2): 145–167. Bibcode:2013EESTR.104..145W. doi:10.1017/S1755691013000480. ISSN   1755-6910.