Endothermic Crocodiles - Naked Mole Rats?

[Stang1996@aol.com]

In a message dated 96-01-26 03:42:57 EST, you write:

>I'm also not convinced that ectotherms would need or could use "long, 
>erect limbs and tall bodies," hence my suspicion that these features 
>evolved in endothermic crocodilian predecessors (and that all other 
>animals which show these feautures--other thecodontians, all dinosaurs, 
>and all therapsids, including mammals--were/are also endothermic to one 
>degree or another).
>
>Nick Pharris

I've been thinking about this for the past couple of days, and it is a very
interesting idea.  I've got a question.  Are there any fossils of the
ancestors of naked mole rats?  Do the closest relatives of naked mole rats
have erect limbs?  For those of you who don't know, Naked Mole Rats are
ectothermic mammals (I'm not sure if they really are rats though) that live
in burrows in Somalia, have no hair, and have a hive-syyle society almost
like bees (no joke).  What I'm getting at is, that if you could show that one
group that was endothermic and then went to be ectothermic and thus lost its
erect posture and so forth like Naked Mole Rats did; you would have some
pretty good evidence for your argument about crocodiles being secondarily
ectothermic if they showed the same trends that the Mole Rats did.
If anyone wants to see some Naked Mole Rats there is a really cool exhibit of
them at The Pacific Science Center in Seattle.
Cold-blooded mammal, who'd've thunk it?  Crocodiles evolving from
warm-blooded ancestors, who'd've thunk it?
NO MORE FINALS!!!!  WOO-HOO!!!

Peter Buchholz
Stang1996@aol.com