the group Lepospondyli as closer to amniotes than embolomeres were. Lepospondyls are a particularly unusual group of tetrapods, with some members (i.e. brachystelechids) very similar to lissamphibians and others (i.e. tuditanids) very similar to amniotes. If lepospondyls are both close relatives of amniotes and the ancestors of modern amphibians, then that means that crown-Tetrapoda (descendants of the common ancestor to all living tetrapods) is a much more restricted group than previously assumed. In this situation, various traditional orders of Tetrapoda such as Embolomeri and Temnospondyli actually would qualify as stem-tetrapods due to having evolved prior to the split between modern amphibians and amniotes. However, most authors consider temnospondyls to be the ancestors of modern amphibians. This would suggest that embolomeres are likely reptiliomorphs (closer to reptiles) and within the clade Tetrapoda. However, even this classification is not stable, as some analyses have found embolomeres to be more basal than temnospondyls. Below is a cladogram from Ruta et al. (2003): Genera References Mississippian first appearances Permian extinctions