Explore this animal in Size of Extinct Animals ↗
560 / Paleozoic
Capetus
Capetus palustris
A broad flat skull and dense pointed teeth belonged to a large aquatic temnospondyl.
View original image · 1600 × 1067- Time range
- About 308 million years ago
- Final stage
- Late Carboniferous
- Geographic range
- Coal-swamp lakes and channels · Czechia
01 / DEFINITION & ECOLOGY
What was Capetus?
Capetus (Capetus palustris) was an extinct organism known from About 308 million years ago, with a range in Coal-swamp lakes and channels · Czechia.
Life and ecology
It waited in swamp channels for fish and smaller tetrapods.
02 / DISAPPEARANCE
Why did Capetus disappear?
Shrinking coal wetlands and turnover among freshwater predators are possible context; a specific cause is not established.
03 / EVIDENCE
How do scientists know about Capetus?
Skulls and partial skeletons preserve teeth, palate and sensory grooves; trunk proportions follow related temnospondyls.
04 / SOURCES & FURTHER READING
Check the source record
Use the scientific name to compare taxonomy, occurrence records and the fossil record. Database coverage and classifications may differ.
05 / REVISION HISTORY
How has this record changed?
- Rewrote an extinction cause that presented environmental or faunal turnover as established; it is now given as context the record does not prove.
- Verified authoritative entity sources and added three responsive reconstruction sizes.
- Initial bilingual species record published.
06 / CORRECTIONS & ADDITIONS