Yaksha perettii
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| Yaksha perettii Temporal range: Early Cenomanian | |
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| Holotype skull of Yaksha perettii, dark grey represents preserved soft tissue | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Amphibia |
| Order: | †Allocaudata |
| Family: | †Albanerpetontidae |
| Genus: | †Yaksha Daza et al., 2020 |
| Species: | †Y. perettii |
| Binomial name | |
| †Yaksha perettii Daza et al., 2020 | |
Yaksha perettii is an extinct species of albanerpetontid amphibian, and the only species in the genus Yaksha. It is known from three specimens found in Cenomanian aged Burmese amber from Myanmar. The remains of Yaksha perettii are the best preserved of all albanerpetontids, which usually consist of isolated fragments or flattened skeletons, and have provided significant insights in the morphology and lifestyle of the group.
The generic epithet is named after the Yaksha, a class of nature and guardian spirits in Indian religions, while the specific epithet honors Dr. Adolf Peretti, who provided some of the specimens, including the holotype.[1]
Discovery
The paratype specimen was originally described in 2016 amongst a collection of fossil lizard species from Burmese amber, and was initially identified as a stem-chameleon.[2] However Professor Susan E. Evans, a researcher who has extensively worked on albanerpetontids, recognised the specimen as belonging to the group.[3] Subsequently, another specimen was discovered in the collection of gemologist Dr. Adolf Peretti, which would later become the holotype specimen.[4] The paper describing Yaksha perettii was published in November 2020 in the journal Science.[1]
