A Jurassic world of salamanders
Tuesday, May 10, 2016 - 07:00
in Paleontology & Archaeology
Salamanders are fairly adorable, but often forgotten, animals. Because their skeletons are pretty delicate, the fossil record for this group is spotty, with many ancient forms known only from vertebrae or jaw bones. As has happened for many other vertebrate groups (including birds, mammals, and small dinosaurs), exquisitely preserved fossils from the Mesozoic of China are filling previous gaps in evolutionary history. The latest such salamander discovery was announced today in PLOS ONE.