Re: Fossil Snake with Legs Found

[chris brochu <cbrochu@fmnh.org>]

Ladies and Gentlemen,
    It is critical that you read the article available at the indicated web
site.  The paper in Science actually contradicts the last paragraph copied in
the initial e-mail quite strongly.



chris


Richard W Travsky wrote:

> Full article at
>
>  http://www.eurekalert.org:80/releases/aaas-nfs030900.html
>
>  Washington, D.C.- Appearing like the punchline to an evolutionary riddle,
>  a new fossil snake with legs has emerged from 95 million
>  year-old deposits near Jerusalem. Its sedimentary surroundings
>  suggest a seafaring lifestyle for this ancient reptile, but its advanced
>  anatomy could overturn a current theory about the marine origin of
>  snakes.
>
>  This intriguing new species, dubbed Haasiophis terrasanctus in the 17
>  March issue of Science, is the second limbed snake to
>  come from the site of Ein Yabrud, an ancient marine environment
>  broadly similar to the still, coastal waters of today's Bahamian
>  reef.
>
>  The first such species, Pachyrhachis problematicus, plays a pivotal
>  role in a scenario that places the ancestor of snakes in the sea.
>  In support of Pachyrhachis' position at the base of the serpent
>  family tree, some paleontologists have noted features in its skull that
>  they believe single it out as a transitional link between
>  mosasaurs--gigantic swimming lizards of the Cretaceous (144-65 million
>  years ago)--and true snakes. This view contrasts dramatically with the
>  traditional view of small terrestrial or burrowing lizards as snake
>  ancestors.
>

--
----------------------
Christopher A. Brochu
Department of Geology
Field Museum of Natural History
Roosevelt Road at Lake Shore Drive
Chicago, IL 60605

voice: 312-665-7633  (NEW)
fax: 312-665-7641 (NEW)
electronic:  cbrochu@fmppr.fmnh.org