Fossil Specimen of <i>Phosphotriton sigei</i> (IMAGE)
Caption
Fossil specimen of Phosphotriton sigei, an exceptionally preserved 40-35 million years old salamander (left part) and its internal organs conserved within it (right part). The skeleton, in grey, is perfectly preserved, as well as several soft organs such as the gut and lung. Within the stomach, the last meal of the animal is also preserved. Surprisingly, it fed on a frog, an extremely rare kind of prey for salamanders. Accessing the internal anatomy of this fossil without destroying it could only be achieved through modern synchrotron technology.
Credit
Jérémy Tissier
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