During the Late Permian, increasing aridity and the diversification of reptiles contributed into a decline in terrestrial temnospondyls, but semiaquatic and fully aquatic temnospondyls continued to flourish, including the large Melosaurus of Eastern Europe.
As temnospondyls continued to flourish and diversify in the Late Permian (260.4 - 251.0 Mya), a major group called Stereospondyli became more dependent on life in the water.