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Eryops
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==Paleobiology== ''Eryops'' were among the most formidable early Permian carnivores and perhaps the only ones capable of competing with the dominant [[synapsid]]s of the time, though because they were semi-aquatic, if not mostly aquatic, as suggested by long bone microanatomy,<ref name=Qu13>{{cite journal| last1=Quémeneur |first1=S. | last2=de Buffrénil |first2=V.| last3=Laurin |first3=M.|year=2013 |title=Microanatomy of the amniote femur and inference of lifestyle in limbed vertebrates |journal=Biological Journal of the Linnean Society |volume=109 |issue=3 |pages=644–655 |doi=10.1111/bij.12066 |doi-access=free }}</ref> they probably did not come into frequent competition with synapsids.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Van Valkenburgh, B. |last2=Jenkins, I. |year=2002 |title=Evolutionary patterns in the history of Permo-Triassic and Cenozoic synapsid predators |journal=Paleontological Society Papers |volume=8 |pages=267–288|doi=10.1017/S1089332600001121 }}</ref> ''Eryops'' lived in lowland habitats in and around ponds, streams, and rivers, and the arrangement and shape of their teeth suggests that they probably ate mostly large fish and aquatic tetrapods.<ref name=Schoch2009/> The torso of ''Eryops'' was relatively stiff and the tail stout, which would have made them poor swimmers. While they probably fed on fish, adult ''Eryops'' must have spent most of their time on land.<ref name=Schoch2009/> Like other large primitive temnospondyls, ''Eryops'' would have grown slowly and gradually from aquatic larvae, but they did not go through a major [[metamorphosis]] like many modern [[amphibian]]s. While adults probably lived in ponds and rivers, perhaps venturing onto their banks, juvenile ''Eryops'' may have lived in swamps, which possibly offered more shelter from predators.<ref name=Schoch2009/>
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