Amphibians and squamates from the Maastrichtian of Naskal, India

Abstract

The Maastrichtian intertrappean beds of Naskal, Andhra Pradesh, India, have yielded a diverse fauna of amphibians and squamates. Amphibians, represented by anurans only, comprise a discoglossid, a presumed hylid, and two or three indeterminate taxa. This is one of the most diverse assemblages of anurans from the Cretaceous. Lizards include one anguid and two indeterminate forms. Snakes are represented by a possible member of the Cholophidia and by the aquatic Indophis sahnii , which is tentatively referred to the Nigeropheidae. The hylid frog, if this allocation proves correct, is the oldest known. The anguid lizard is the oldest representative of this family in Eurasia. The fauna from Naskal confirms that India was connected to Laurasia by a terrestrial route as early as the latest Cretaceous.