Thaumastosaurus bottii de Stefano, 1903, an anuran with Gondwanan affinities from the Eocene of Europe

ABSTRACT

Thaumastosaurus bottii De Stefano, 1903 is an anuran from the phosphorites of Quercy (upper Eocene, SW France). It was originally described as a saurian reptile, on the basis of the posterior part of the skull. The type material was lost and the original description was insufficient. In the present paper, description of new material from the locality La Bouffie is given, which made it possible to define the genus as well as to designate the neotype and paratypes. Revision of its taxonomic assignment confirmed Rage's conclusion that it has Gondwanan affinities. The possible paleogeographic connections between Gondwana and Laurasia in the Eocene and pre-Eocene times are briefly summarized; the Late Cretaceous terrestrial route between North and South America appears as the most probable.