Stegocephalia

9.9

Large extinct animals like frogs or salamanders with heavy armored skulls that lived long ago

noun
/ˌstɛɡoʊˈsɛfəliə/

Archaic

: estegocefalia

Some paleontologists use the term Stegocephalia to group primitive amphibians with heavily armored skulls.

Examples

The classification of Stegocephalia has changed as paleontologists learn more about amphibian evolution.
Many fossils of Stegocephalia have been discovered in early Carboniferous rock formations.
The Stegocephalia were remarkable creatures of the past.
Many fossils of Stegocephalia have been discovered in North America.
Many fossils of Stegocephalia have been discovered in early Carboniferous rock formations.
Some paleontologists use the term Stegocephalia to group primitive amphibians with heavily armored skulls.
The classification of Stegocephalia has changed as paleontologists learn more about amphibian evolution.

Synonyms

order Stegocephalia

vsStegocephalia

Archaic

9.9

A group of ancient amphibians with large bodies and bony skulls that lived before the Jurassic

has the same meaning but refers to the group without naming its taxonomic rank

Compounds

order Stegocephalia

Archaic

9.9

A group of ancient amphibians with large bodies and bony skulls that lived before the Jurassic

Surface Forms

Stegocephalia singular

Stegocephalias plural

Morphology

Stegocephalia = stego + cephal + ia

A technical taxonomic formation from Greek combining forms and the collective suffix '-ia' that is unlikely to be transparently understood by an average B1 learner.

Etymology

Stegocephalia comes from Greek parts stego- meaning 'cover' or 'roof' and -cephalia meaning 'head'. So it means 'covered head', which helps you remember these extinct amphibians had heavily armored skulls.