News by Levels · Level 2 · Student worksheet

Fossils Point to an Amphibian That Lived at Sea

Name: __________________________ Date: __________________

Read the story

Two nearly complete skeletons from China's Guizhou Province suggest that an ancient amphibian may have spent its life in the sea. Researchers named the animal Gerrothorax maritimus. Their study was published on October 26.

The fossils date back around 237 million years. The creature had a flat body protected by bony plates. The place where it was buried was far from land at the time, and chemical traces in the bones match ancient seawater.

The team says this could be the first known fully marine amphibian. How it dealt with salt is still an explanation based on evidence, not something scientists observed directly.

Source: University of California, Davis, 2026-10-26. https://www.ucdavis.edu/curiosity/news/researchers-unearth-fossil-evidence-first-fully-marine-amphibian

Read and practise

1. Which two details support the team's idea that the animal lived at sea?

   1. The burial place was far from land, and bone chemistry matches ancient seawater.
   2. The burial place was near an ancient shore, and bone chemistry matches seawater.
   3. The burial place was far from land, and bone chemistry matches freshwater.

2. What remains uncertain about the animal?

   1. Whether the bones show signs of ancient seawater
   2. Exactly how it dealt with salt
   3. Whether the creature's body had bony plates

Your turn

Explain one clue for a marine life and one question that remains open.

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Read online: https://newsbylevels.com/news/armoured-amphibian-fossils-ocean-china-october-2026/level-2/