Protoclepsydrops Fossil range: Late Carboniferous (Middle Pennsylvanian)
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
(unranked):	Amniota
Class:	?Synapsida
Order:	?Pelycosauria
Family:	?Ophiacodontidae
Genus:	Protoclepsydrops
Species:	P. haplous
Binomial name
Protoclepsydrops haplous Carroll, 1964

Protoclepsydrops was an early amniote, and its skeletal remains indicate that it may have been more closely related to synapsids than to sauropsids, making it a possible synapsid member. If so, it is the oldest synapsid known, though its status is unconfirmed because its remains were fragmentary. Protoclepsydrops lived slightly earlier than Archaeothyris. Like Archaeothyris, Protoclepsydrops resembled modern lizards. However, Protoclepsydrops still had primitive vertebrae with tiny neural processes typical of the first (stem-) amniotes.

[edit] See also

• List of synapsids

• Evolution of mammals
• List of transitional fossils
• Carboniferous tetrapods
• Clepsydrops

[edit] Sources

• Ophiacodontids

This Synapsid-related article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. v • d • e