[Taxacom] four-legged snake fossil

[Kenneth Kinman]

Hi all,      The recently described fossil snake (with four short legs) named Tetrapodophis isn't likely to make the nightly newscast as would a feathered dinosaur (or Archaeopteryx), but it is certainly more scientifically significant than a feathered velociraptor (which recently got more attention from the press).  Its significance isn't because of its four somewhat vestigial legs (as might have been expected), but because it shows that snakes no doubt evolved from burrowing terrestrial lizards, not swimming lizards.  This fossil pretty much solves the debate about a burrowing vs. a swmming ancestor for snakes, something which gene sequencing couldn't answer.                 ------------Ken
http://www.cnn.com/videos/intl_tv-shows/2015/07/27/four-legged-snake-fossil-found-orig.cnn/video/playlists/terrifying-snakes/