The origin of snakes: revealing the ecology, behavior, and evolutionary history
of early snakes using genomics, phenomics, and the fossil record
Allison Y Hsiang1*, Daniel J Field12, Timothy H Webster3, Adam DB Behlke1,
Matthew B Davis1, Rachel A Racicot1 and Jacques A Gauthier14
http://www.sci-news.com/paleontology/sc ... 02819.HTML
Study Provides New Insights into Origin, Evolution of Snakes
According to a new study published online in the journal BMC Evolutionary Biology,
the most recent common ancestor of all snakes was a nocturnal, stealth-hunting
predator that had tiny hindlimbs with ankles and toes.
The results strongly suggest that snakes originated on land, rather than in the seas,
as the oldest snake fossils currently known – Coniophis, Najash, and Dinilysia – are
all terrestrial.
I've just sent the PDF file of the article to Mario, so it's on him to add it to his/our
literature database and reveal the PDF number. But the paper can be downloaded
for free anyway, at least I managed do it.