An in-depth analysis of fossils, genes, and the anatomy of 73 different species of snakes and lizards has discovered that slithering serpents first evolved on land, not in the sea, and were actually nocturnal predators that had tiny hindlimbs, complete with ankles and toes.
The analysis, conducted by a team led by Yale University researchers and detailed in a paper published Wednesday in the journal BMC Evolutionary Biology, concluded that the creatures most likely emerged from the warm, forested ecosystems of the Southern Hemisphere around 128 million years ago, helping settle a longstanding debate about their origins.
While snakes are incredibly diverse, with more than 3,400 species currently living in an array of different types of habitats, the secrets of their evolution and the appearance of their ancestors had long remained a mystery, lead author Allison Hsiang, a postgraduate associate in the university’s department of geology and geophysics, explained in a statement.
More http://bit.ly/1LbnIyU
'via Blog this'
No comments:
Post a Comment