Triassic lungfish from Frick

PUBLICATION — Pawlak W, Rytel A, Carrillo-Briceño JD, Bachmann U, Pabst B (2026) First dipnoan remains from the Late Triassic of Frick (Switzerland) and the re-evaluation of lungfish palaeobiogeography controls in the Late Triassic. Swiss Journal of Palaeontology 145: 655-663. doi.org/10.3897/sjp.145.186528

Figure: The dentary plate of the dipnoan fish Ptychoceratodus from Frick, after preparation (close-up) and at the site where it was found (in the background), alongside the ribs of terrestrial reptiles.

Lungfish were common in Late Triassic freshwater ecosystems but remain surprisingly understudied. New fossils from Frick (Switzerland), a locality that has also previously yielded remains of dinosaurs, allow for the first description of lungfish material from this site. The first georeferenced dataset of Triassic lungfish fossils indicates that different lungfish groups occupied different environments across north-western Pangea, which probably reflects differences in climate preferences.