Devonian lungfish larva
Dunk
Nature 426, 833 - 834 (18 December 2003); doi:10.1038/nature02175
A larval Devonian lungfish
KEITH S. THOMSON, MARK SUTTON & BETHIA THOMAS
Perhaps the most enduring of puzzles in palaeontology has been the
identity of Palaeospondylus gunni Traquair, a tiny (5–60-mm)
vertebrate fossil from the Middle Devonian period ( 385 Myr ago) of
Scotland, first discovered in 1890 (refs 1–3). It is known principally
from a single site (Achanarras Quarry, Caithness) where,
paradoxically, it is extremely abundant, preserved in varved
lacustrine deposits along with 13 other genera of fishes. Here we show
that Palaeospondylus is the larval stage of a lungfish, most probably
Dipterus valenciennesi Sedgwick and Murchison 1828 (ref. 5), and that
development of the adult form requires a distinct metamorphosis.
Palaeospondylus is the oldest known true larva of a vertebrate.
/quote
dunk
mel turner
wrote...
>http://www.nature.com/cgi-taf/DynaPage.taf?file=/nature/journal/v426/n6968/abs/n
Dang! There goes another unbridgeable paleontological gap.
Paleospondylus was discussed in t.o. before:
http://groups.google.com/groups?selm=7ufi48%24bal%241%40news.duke.edu
http://groups.google.com/groups?selm=199910271640.MAA14712%40milo.math.sc.edu
http://groups.google.com/groups?selm=7ugvrk%242fsd%40drn.newsguy.com
http://groups.google.com/groups?selm=199910281614.JAA38357%40cx33978-a.dt1.sdca.home.com
http://groups.google.com/groups?selm=380C3C86.C97DA879%40earthlink.net
Neat. Thanks for posting this.
cheers
Todd A. Farmerie
> http://www.nature.com/cgi-taf/DynaPage.taf?file=/nature/journal/v426/n6968/abs/nature02175_fs.html
>
> Nature 426, 833 - 834 (18 December 2003); doi:10.1038/nature02175
>
> A larval Devonian lungfish
>
> KEITH S. THOMSON, MARK SUTTON & BETHIA THOMAS
[snip]
> Here we show
> that Palaeospondylus is the larval stage of a lungfish, most probably
> Dipterus valenciennesi Sedgwick and Murchison 1828 (ref. 5), and that
> development of the adult form requires a distinct metamorphosis.
> Palaeospondylus is the oldest known true larva of a vertebrate.
A lungfish with a distinct larval stage that undergoes
metamorphosis? That sounds almost like an amphibian. What an
imaginative Designer.
taf
mel turner
farm...@nospam.interfold.com wrote...
>
>Dunk wrote:
>>
http://www.nature.com/cgi-taf/DynaPage.taf?file=/nature/journal/v426/n6968/abs
>/nature02175_fs.html
>>
>> Nature 426, 833 - 834 (18 December 2003); doi:10.1038/nature02175
>>
>> A larval Devonian lungfish
>>
>> KEITH S. THOMSON, MARK SUTTON & BETHIA THOMAS
>
>[snip]
>
>> Here we show
>> that Palaeospondylus is the larval stage of a lungfish, most probably
>> Dipterus valenciennesi Sedgwick and Murchison 1828 (ref. 5), and that
>> development of the adult form requires a distinct metamorphosis.
>> Palaeospondylus is the oldest known true larva of a vertebrate.
>
>A lungfish with a distinct larval stage that undergoes
>metamorphosis? That sounds almost like an amphibian. What an
>imaginative Designer.
I recall that modern lungfish larvae can be remarkably similar to
amphibian larvae. [feathery external gills like salamander larvae]
cheers
rich hammett
häntä, mel turner yllätti tuomarin todistamalla:
> Dang! There goes another unbridgeable paleontological gap.
> Paleospondylus was discussed in t.o. before:
Oh ye of little faith! Remember, for those who have eyes to
truly see, this just creates two MORE unbridgeable gaps!
rich
> http://groups.google.com/groups?selm=7ufi48%24bal%241%40news.duke.edu
> http://groups.google.com/groups?selm=199910271640.MAA14712%40milo.math.sc.edu
> http://groups.google.com/groups?selm=7ugvrk%242fsd%40drn.newsguy.com
> http://groups.google.com/groups?selm=199910281614.JAA38357%40cx33978-a.dt1.sdca.home.com
> http://groups.google.com/groups?selm=380C3C86.C97DA879%40earthlink.net
> Neat. Thanks for posting this.
> cheers
--
-to reply, it's hot not warm
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