00 Amphibians

[stemturtle]

Gifted member razh00 offers a dozen species of prehistoric amphibians on Shapeways: www.shapeways.com/shops/prehistoric
Extrapolating from 007 of the James Bond movies, we infer that the “double oh” designation for these models is the license to thrill and enchant us. We present these Shapeways models by geological period in group photos with amphibians from other makers. We conclude with comments about the 00 Amphibians classified into 5 categories.

PHOTOS BY GEOLOGICAL PERIOD
Manufacturers are listed after each genus. An asterisk* marks a figure not shown because I do not own it. My collection is roughly by type rather than completeist. Only plastic materials are included. No Cenozoic species. Panosh has no IDs.
00 = Razh00. PV = Play Visions.

DEVONIAN

(Tetrapodomorph) Eusthenopteron by Kaiyodo (1), Starlux*
(Tetrapodomorph) Tiktaalik by 00 (2)
Acanthostega by Kaiyodo (3), Yujin (4)
Ichthyostega by Prehistoric Panorama (5), Sega*, Starlux (6)

CARBONIFEROUS

Coal swamp. Safari might release new trees in 2013.
Crassigyrinus by 00 (1), PV (2)
Diadectes by 00 (3), Panosh* ?, spanned into the Permian.


Eryops by Diener (4), Kaiyodo (5), Panosh ? (6), PV (7), spanned into the Permian.
Limnoscelis by 00 (8), spanned into the Permian.
Ophiderpeton by 00 (9)
Pholiderpeton (= Eogyrinus) by PV (10)

PERMIAN

Cacops (= Labyrinthodont) by Starlux (1). Fossil leaves of seed fern Glossopteris.
Diplocaulus by Aurora*, Kaiyodo (2), PV (3), Prehistoric Panorama (4), Starlux (5)


Gerobatrachus by 00 (6)
Pantylus by 00 (7)
Peltobatrachus by PV (8)
Platyhystrix by PV (9)
Prionosuchus by 00 (10)
Seymouria by 00 (11), Panosh* ?, TimMee (12)

TRIASSIC

Deltasaurus by Yowie (1)
Gerrothorax by PV (2)
Mastondonsaurus by Bullyland (3), Starlux (4)
Metoposaurus by 00 (5)
Promastodonsaurus by Dawn of the Dinosaurs (6)
Triadobatrachus by PV (7)

JURASSIC & CRETACEOUS

Eocaecilia by 00 (1)
Karaurus larval stage by 00 (2), adult by 00 (3)
Siderops by Yowie (4)
&
Koolasuchus by 00 (5). Cretaceous chalk is from Kansas.

TAXONOMY
Below, the 00 Amphibians exemplify these 5 groups: Stem-Tetrapods, Temnospondyli, Lissamphibia, Reptilomorpha, and Lepospondyli. Each category ends with a summary of kindred genera from all manufacturers, as recorded above for the photos.

Originally, anamniotic tetrapods were divided into Labyrinthodontia, based on tooth structure, and Lepospondyli, for spool-shaped vertebrae. Discarding the obsolete term labyrithodont, we subsitute 3 groups: Stem-Tetrapods, Temnospondyli, and Reptilomorpha. An additional division, Lissamphibia, which includes living amphibians, probably evolved from the temnospondyls. Controversial hypotheses complicate the phylogeny for amphibians.

STEM-TETRAPODS may include tetrapodomorphs, which are 4-legged fish, ichthyostegalians, and primitive tetrapods. 375 MYA, Tiktaalik had traits of both fish and amphibians. Dar-winning. The discovery of tetrapod footprints in Poland challenged Tiktaalik’s fame as a transitional fossil. The trackway is dated 20 MY older, possibly relegating this sarcopterygian to relic status, but still anatomically enlightening. Crassigyrinus can be regarded as an early tetrapod that reverted to a fully aquatic niche.
Genera: Eusthenopteron, Tiktaalik, Acanthostega, Ichthyostega, Crassigyrinus.

TEMNOSPONDYLI is an enormous order that comprises the majority of Paleozoic and Mesozoic amphibians. In 2008 the press celebrated Gerobatrachus as a missing link to modern amphibians. At 10 meters, Prionosuchus was the largest amphibian known. Metoposaurus was gator size, as was typical, safe in the swamps from most predators. Living where it was too cold for competitors, Koolasuchus was one of the last surviving temnospondyls.
Genera: Eryops, Gerobatrachus, Platyhystrix, Cacops, Prionosuchus, Promastodonsaurus, Mastondonsaurus, Peltobatrachus, Deltasaurus, Gerrothorax, Metoposaurus, Siderops, Koolasuchus.

LISSAMPHIBIA features the orders Salientia, Caudata, and Gymnophiona: frogs, salamanders, and caecilians. The origin of lissamphibians is debated. The amphibamid Gerobatrachus shared traits with both frogs and salamanders. Most researchers consider Lissamphibia monophyletic, but some favor a lepospondyl origin for caecilians. No resolution of this puzzle is imminent. Karaurus was an early salamander. Eocaecilia was a caecilian that still had tiny legs.
Genera: Triadobatrachus, Karaurus, Eocaecilia.

REPTILOMORPHA and Antracosauria are terms used synonymously by some paleontologists. Despite the tendency toward terrestrial adaptations, an aquatic larval stage was likely required. Examples are Limnoscelis, Diadectes, and Seymouria. Diadectormorphs shared characteristics with the cotylosaur progenitor of all the amniotes, from Hylonomus through Homo.
Genera: Pholiderpeton (= Eogyrinus), Limnoscelis, Diadectes, Seymouria.

LEPOSPONDYLI, a sister group to Reptilomorpha, tended to be small. Two of the orders are Microsauria, represented by Pantylus, and Aïstopoda, with the snake-like Ophiderpeton. Lepospondyls have been proposed as ancestors of modern amphibians and of amniotes, but many of the shared traits may be due to small size. The fossil record is too incomplete to resolve the origins mystery.
Genera: Pantylus, Diplocaulus, Ophiderpeton.

Members are encouraged to report additional figures. Thanks to Mrs. stemturtle for her expertise with Photoshop. The next time a new model is released, we will be stirred, not shaken.

LINKS:
Some of the missing images can seen at Randy Knol’s Dinosaur Collector Site:
www.dinosaurcollector.150m.com/carboniferous.html

For the Aurora Diplocaulus, see “my collection” by ichthyostega:
dinotoyforum.proboards.com/index.cgi?board=collections&action=display&thread=4438

Panosh photos from sbell are in “My Prehistoric Amphibian collection!” by bokisaurus:
dinotoyforum.proboards.com/index.cgi?board=collections&action=display&thread=1054&page=1

[Gorgonopsid]

i'd love some of these some day.

[sbell]

That's very thorough (it feels like some are missing, but I can't see which--other than the other Deiner amphibian).

Have you written for PT before? There is a familiar style to your writing.

[stemturtle]

Sept 7, 2011 2:41:26 GMT sbell said:

That's very thorough (it feels like some are missing, but I can't see which--other than the other Deiner amphibian).

Have you written for PT before? There is a familiar style to your writing.

Is there another species besides Eryops? I misspelled Diener, but corrected it. Thanks for bringing it to my attention, especially since their location is Winona, MN, I believe. No articles in PT.

[ichthyostega]

My dream is to get a collection of amphibians like that....
.
Amphibians are my favourite group of prehistoric animals.

Hey.. now I see you don't have the Diplocaulus from the aurora/revell kits. It came with the Dimetrodon. I have it. I will se it I can place a pic of it
EDIT; oh, I see you already noticed it .

[sbell]

Sept 7, 2011 11:14:27 GMT stemturtle said:

Sept 7, 2011 2:41:26 GMT sbell said:

That's very thorough (it feels like some are missing, but I can't see which--other than the other Deiner amphibian).

Have you written for PT before? There is a familiar style to your writing.

Is there another species besides Eryops? I misspelled Diener, but corrected it. Thanks for bringing it to my intention, especially since their location is Winona, MN, I believe. No articles in PT.

It's actually my mistake--the spelling is Deiner, originally a German company.

And there are two different sizes of figure (I am guessing yours is the larger) but they look pretty much the same.

And the only others I could think of that youwere missing are metal ones--Primaeval Designs has some nice Eryops and Diplocaulaus. And there is an older Ral Partha large amphibian.

[stemturtle]

My Eryops is stamped "Diener" on the belly.

[bowheadwhale]

What material did 00 use to make his figures?

[paleoferroequine]

Sept 7, 2011 19:10:16 GMT bowheadwhale said:

What material did 00 use to make his figures?

If you go to the first post, there is a link to Shapeways(if you didn't go already). These are printed with a vinyl powder from a 3D program and solidified with a laser. The default is white, strong and flexible but there are others with better detail such as frosted detail and white detail or frosted ultra detail. You have to paint them yourself.

[bowheadwhale]

Wow! Do you think they would accept to ship to Canada?

[sbell]

Sept 7, 2011 19:39:33 GMT bowheadwhale said:

Wow! Do you think they would accept to ship to Canada?

I have some so...yes.

[stemturtle]

Sept 7, 2011 19:10:16 GMT bowheadwhale said:

What material did 00 use to make his figures?

The models I ordered are White Strong & Flexible (nylon), which is the best value. There are other choices, but some are expensive. I did my own painting. See the Shapeways link at the beginning of the posting. The home page has information about the materials and about ordering. Minimum order is $25 (about 17 Euros), free shipping, PayPal is OK.

P.S. Oops, sorry paleoferroequine, our postings crossed paths.

[bowheadwhale]

Thank you for the info.