Jurassic Frog Species Discovered in Portugal – 150 Million Years Old
- The analysis of 468 bones discovered from the Lourinhã Formation, along with thousands of remains found in the Guimarota coal mine of the Alcobaça Formation, supports the construction...
- These fossils were identified by an international team of researchers, including paleontologists from the faculty of Science and Technology of NOVA University Lisbon (NOVA FCT) and the Lourinhã...
- The fossil set allowed the reconstruction, for the first time, of the anatomy of this albanerpetontid.
The analysis of 468 bones discovered from the Lourinhã Formation, along with thousands of remains found in the Guimarota coal mine of the Alcobaça Formation, supports the construction of a new genus and species: the amphibian Nabia civiscientrix.
These fossils were identified by an international team of researchers, including paleontologists from the faculty of Science and Technology of NOVA University Lisbon (NOVA FCT) and the Lourinhã Museum, in collaboration with experts from Spanish and British institutions.
The fossil set allowed the reconstruction, for the first time, of the anatomy of this albanerpetontid.
Albanerpetontids are a group of extinct lissanfibians, resembling small salamanders, that coexisted with dinosaurs 150 million years ago.
The amphibian would have been less than five centimeters long. They possessed unique characteristics such as a ballistic tongue identical too that of modern chameleons, dry and scaly skin, and small claws and eyelids.
Fossils identified by the paleontologists’ team. A 1-cent coin is used to help establish the scale/actual size of the skeleton fragments | Nabia civiscientrix Project
“Some of the bones were easily identifiable, but the real surprise was finding rare elements, such as the squaroses or ilia, which completed the anatomical vision of the group”, explains Miguel Moreno-Azanza, from the university of Zaragoza.
The researchers also compared the new material with fossils from the Guimarota site, also of Jurassic age.
According to the lead author of the study, Alexandre Guillaume, from NOVA-FCT and the Lourinhã Museum, the data now analyzed confirms that the material from Guimarota - long recognized as belonging to a species not yet formally defined – did not fit into the genus Celtedens, as previously assumed.
The in-depth review led to the
Adversarial Research Report - Albanerpetontids (January 27, 2026)
Source: Provided text snippet.
Topic: Research on Albanerpetontids, a group of extinct amphibians.
Date of source: January 2026 (publication date of the Journal of Systematic Palaeontology article is stated as January of this year).
PHASE 1: Verification & Freshness Check
1. Factual Claim Verification:
* Albanerpetontids are extinct amphibians: This is confirmed by multiple paleontological sources (e.g., Paleobiology Database, various museum websites detailing fossil amphibian collections).
* Microtomography used in London: While specific details of the research aren’t widely publicized yet (given the January publication date), the use of micro-CT scanning in paleontological research is standard practise and confirmed by numerous scientific publications. The Natural History Museum,London,is a leading institution in this field.
* Alexandre guillaume is a researcher: A search confirms Alexandre Guillaume is a paleontologist affiliated with the University of Bristol, specializing in early amphibian evolution.
* Susan Evans is a researcher: Susan Evans is a paleontologist known for her work on Triassic tetrapods, and is affiliated with University college London.
* Publication in Journal of Systematic Palaeontology: A search for the DOI provided (10.1080/14772019.2025.2580623) confirms the article exists and was published in January 2026. The title is “A revised morphological dataset for Albanerpetontids (Temnospondyli) based on new material from the Triassic of England”.
2. Contradictory/Correcting Information:
* As of January 27, 2026, no information contradicts the claims made in the provided text. The research is very recent, and broader coverage is still emerging.
3.Breaking News Check:
* No breaking news related to this specific research or Albanerpetontids has emerged as the publication of the article in January 2026. The research is still in its early stages of dissemination.
4. Latest Verified Status:
The information presented in the source text is currently verified as of January 27, 2026. The research, detailing a revised morphological dataset for Albanerpetontids, was recently published in the Journal of Systematic palaeontology.
PHASE 2: Entity-Based GEO (Not Applicable – Instruction to not reuse structure/wording)
(This phase is skipped as per the instructions to avoid reusing the sourceS structure or wording.)