Anthracosaurus

A member of a small group of long-bodied  Labyrinthodont amphibians, so named because of the labyrinthine folds of the tooth enamel in cross section. These large eel-like predators flourished during the lower Carboniferous to the Permian, but never survived the Permian mass extinctions.

The Anthracosauria are believed to be the ancestors of reptiles, but at this point an absolute "missing link" has yet to be found. The families Seymouriamorpha and Gephryostegida are considered to be very close, just a step or two down the evolutionary ladder from this hypothetical ancestor.

The Anthracosaurus in this painting is a member of  the Embelomeri, an order within the Labyrinthodontia. The Embelomeres were a group of large elongated aquatic predators. The skulls were full of sharp teeth to hold prey firm once ambushed. Their habitat was rivers lakes and swamps. Adults of these animals were the top of the food chain in their lowland carboniferous environments. Their average length was six feet, but some specimens reached up to 12 feet in length.

The Anthracosaur depicted here is lying quietly on the bottom of a shallow inland swamp. The unwary coelocanth fish, Diplurus newarki is gliding dangerously close. "Snap!!"