Albanerpeton

Albanerpeton; Temporal range:
	Albanerpeton inexpectatum
Scientific classification
Domain:	Eukaryota
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Amphibia
Order:	†Allocaudata
Family:	†Albanerpetontidae
Genus:	†Albanerpeton; Estes and Hoffstetter, 1976
Species
	†A. inexpectatum Estes and Hoffstetter, 1976. Re-described by Gardner, 1999. (type); †A. galaktion Fox and Naylor, 1981; †A. nexuosus Estes, 1981; †A. arthridion Fox and Naylor, 1982; †A. cifellii Gardner, 1999; †A. gracilis Gardner, 2000; †A. pannonicus Venczel and Gardner, 2005; †A. ektopistikon Carrano et al., 2022;

Albanerpeton is an extinct genus of salamander-like albanerpetontid amphibian found in North America, Europe and Asia first appearing in Cretaceous-aged strata. There are eight described members of the genus, and one undiagnosed species from the Paskapoo Formation, making it by far the most speciose genus in the family. Members of the genus had a robust head and neck which likely allowed them to actively burrow, characteristic of fossorial species, and they lived in a wide range of environments. This genus of amphibian was the last of its order, surviving until into the Early Pleistocene (Gelasian) of northern Italy, and possibly northern Spain, until around 2 million years ago. It likely became extinct when the region developed its present Mediterranean-type climate, having preferred one that was cold and humid. The monophyly of Albanerpeton has recently been questioned, with some authors regarding the genus as paraphyletic.

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