A new elpistostegalian from the Late Devonian of the Canadian Arctic

Thomas A. Stewart, Justin B. Lemberg, Ailis Daly, Edward B. Daeschler and Neil H. Shubin ()
Additional contact information
Thomas A. Stewart: University of Chicago
Justin B. Lemberg: University of Chicago
Ailis Daly: University of Chicago
Edward B. Daeschler: Academy of Natural Sciences of Drexel University
Neil H. Shubin: University of Chicago

Nature, 2022, vol. 608, issue 7923, 563-568

Abstract: Abstract A fundamental gap in the study of the origin of limbed vertebrates lies in understanding the morphological and functional diversity of their closest relatives. Whereas analyses of the elpistostegalians Panderichthys rhombolepis, Tiktaalik roseae and Elpistostege watsoni have revealed a sequence of changes in locomotor, feeding and respiratory structures during the transition1–9, an isolated bone, a putative humerus, has controversially hinted at a wider range in form and function than now recognized10–14. Here we report the discovery of a new elpistostegalian from the Late Devonian period of the Canadian Arctic that shows surprising disparity in the group. The specimen includes partial upper and lower jaws, pharyngeal elements, a pectoral fin and scalation. This new genus is phylogenetically proximate to T. roseae and E. watsoni but evinces notable differences from both taxa and, indeed, other described tetrapodomorphs. Lacking processes, joint orientations and muscle scars indicative of appendage-based support on a hard substrate13, its pectoral fin shows specializations for swimming that are unlike those known from other sarcopterygians. This unexpected morphological and functional diversity represents a previously hidden ecological expansion, a secondary return to open water, near the origin of limbed vertebrates.

Date: 2022
References: Add references at CitEc
Citations:

Downloads: (external link)
https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-022-04990-w Abstract (text/html)
Access to the full text of the articles in this series is restricted.

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:nat:nature:v:608:y:2022:i:7923:d:10.1038_s41586-022-04990-w

Ordering information: This journal article can be ordered from
https://www.nature.com/

DOI: 10.1038/s41586-022-04990-w

Access Statistics for this article

Nature is currently edited by Magdalena Skipper

More articles in Nature from Nature
Bibliographic data for series maintained by Sonal Shukla () and Springer Nature Abstracting and Indexing ().