Abstract
The earliest four-limbed vertebrates, or tetrapods, lived between 370 million and 354 million years ago, during the Late Devonian period, and typically had more than five digits (polydactyly)1. We have discovered that a preaxial form of polydactyly, in which extra digits are positioned anterior to the first digit, has unexpectedly re-emerged in a marine reptile from the Early Triassic period about 242 million years ago — the overall morphology of both the manus and pes closely resemble those of the earliest tetrapods. Until now, no post-Devonian tetrapod has been found with a comparative type of polydactyly, so the new amniote provides a striking example of convergent evolution.
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41586_2003_BF426516a_MOESM1_ESM.jpg
Supplementary Figure: Limbs of SSTM 5025. A, Right forelimb. B, Right hindlimb. C. A hypothesized pattern of developmental conectivities in the limbs of SSTM 5025 (after Shubin and Alberch10). Abbreviations: as, astragalus; ca, calcaneum; cen, centrale; cl, lateral centrale; cm, medial centrale; Fi, fibula; H, humerus; in, intermedium; R, radius; ra, radiale; U, ulna; ul, ulnare; I, II, III, V, metacarpals/metatarsals I, II, III and V; II’, second extra metacarpal; I’, an extra metatarsal anterior to metatarsal I; 3+4, fused distal carpals 3 and 4; 1, 4, distal tarsals 1 and 4. Further details are available as from X.-C. Wu (xcwu@mus-nature.ca). (JPG 82 kb)
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Wu, XC., Li, Z., Zhou, BC. et al. A polydactylous amniote from the Triassic period. Nature 426, 516 (2003). https://doi.org/10.1038/426516a
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/426516a
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