Overview
- Proceedings of the Royal Society B published the description on March 3, 2026, based on nine distinctive lower jaws from northeastern Brazil.
- The jaws are twisted so the main teeth point outward, and the inner surface bears dense denticles that would have created a grinding surface.
- The anatomy indicates at least partial herbivory, a rare diet among comparable stem tetrapods typically interpreted as carnivores.
- The fossils come from the Pedra de Fogo Formation and suggest a lake or slow‑moving water habitat in Gondwana about 275 million years ago.
- Authors place Tanyka within a long‑surviving stem tetrapod lineage, but no skull or associated skeleton has been found, making size and appearance estimates tentative as field searches continue.