Original paper
An unusual tetrapod assemblage from the latest Triassic of the South Eifel region (Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany)
Numberger-Thuy, Lea D.; Delsate, Dominique; Hanker, Pia; Kronfeld, Andrea; Brockmann, Marc A.; Thuy, Ben
Neues Jahrbuch für Geologie und Paläontologie - Abhandlungen (2026)
133 references
published online: Mar 30, 2026
manuscript accepted: Feb 25, 2026
manuscript received: Jan 5, 2026
DOI: 10.1127/njgpa/1307
Open Access (paper may be downloaded free of charge)
Abstract
Tetrapod vertebrates underwent a major turnover by the end of the Triassic, yet their fossil record from strata close to the Triassic-Jurassic boundary is sparse. Here, we describe new tetrapod fossils from the uppermost Triassic Exter Formation of the recently discovered Irrel section in the south Eifel area, Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. The material consists of isolated teeth and bones from a richly fossiliferous, conglomeratic bonebed, palynologically dated to the upper middle Rhaetian, and deposited in an intertidal channel. The assemblage is remarkably diverse and includes the assumed thalattosaur Pachystropheus, kuehneosaurid archosauromorphs, theropod dinosaurs, pterosaurs, and late-surviving phytosaurs, plagiosaurs and aetosaurs, the latter representing the youngest known to date. The material furthermore includes osteoderms and a fragmentary tooth of an unknown archosaur, possibly a small crocodylomorph, and a fragmentary tooth of an unknown lepidosauromorph or archosauriform with deep longitudinal grooves assumedly for venom delivery. The assemblage is among the most diverse from the latest Triassic and adds to the sparse Rhaetian fossil record of terrestrial tetrapods in general, and more specifically theropod dinosaurs and pterosaurs.
Keywords
Exter Formation • Irrel • aetosaur • theropod • Rhaetian