Found in: Maoming, Guangdong, China

Species: Megalocephalus Pachycephalus

Dimensions: Fossil is about 8”" long

The baphetids, or loxommatids as they were formerly called, were large aquatic predators of the Carboniferous period.  Not only are they included among the very early tetrapodomorphs, but they were also among the first of the Carboniferous fossil tetrapods to be found and were originally described in 1850 by William Dawson.  They are known mainly from skulls, very little skeletal material.  But even from this quite a lot can be deduced.  The presence of lateral lines and the long rows of needle-like teeth show that they were fish-eaters.  The curious keyhole-shaped orbit indicates the presence either of a gland or, it has been suggested, some sort of electrosensory organ.  It may even represent an early form of skull fenestration for jaw muscles. It is not clear whether the four genera assigned to this group are really closely related

Rare specemen was named after north American equivlent. This Chinese equivilent has a slightly broader snout

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