There existed 210 million years ago, an armored amphibian that has one of the stranges bites of all the animals ever. pulcherrimus opened its mouth not by dropping its lower jaw but by lifting back its head. Scientists think that this creature may have lived at the bottom of lakes and when a fish or other food swam by, it snapped its head up like a toilet seat to snatch up a meal. Due to a special adaptation of the joint between the skull and first neck bone, Gerrothorax could lift its head about 50 degrees relative to its lower jaw.
Gerrothorax measured about 3 feet long, had a flat head and body, and was protected by body armor. The jaws had sharp teeth and the roof of its mouth had fangs to keep prey from slipping out of its grasp. It is a member of a family of ancient amphibians called plagiosaurs. Although they were fairly successful at the time, having had fossils found in Greenland, Scandinavia and Europe, there are no modern descendants. It is most likely that they dissapeared during the extinction at the end of the Triassic period 200 million years ago.
