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A Mississippian (early Carboniferous) tetrapod showing early diversification of the hindlimbs.

Published version
Peer-reviewed

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Authors

Clack, Jennifer A 

Abstract

The taxonomically diverse terrestrial tetrapod fauna from the late Mississippian East Kirkton Limestone includes the earliest known members of stem Amphibia and stem Amniota. Here we name and describe a new East Kirkton tetrapod with an unusual hindlimb morphology reminiscent of that of several stem- and primitive crown amniotes. It displays a unique ilium with two slender and elongate processes and a 5-digit pes with a long, stout metatarsal IV and a greatly elongate digit IV. The new taxon broadens our knowledge of East Kirkton tetrapods, adding to the remarkable diversity of their hindlimb constructions, functional specializations, locomotory modes, and adaptations to a wide variety of substrates. An unweighted character parsimony analysis places the new taxon in a polytomy alongside some other Carboniferous groups. Conversely, weighted parsimony and Bayesian analyses retrieve it among the earliest diverging stem amniotes, either as the basalmost anthracosaur or within a clade that includes also Eldeceeon and Silvanerpeton, crownward of an array of chroniosaurs plus anthracosaurs.

Description

Keywords

Article, /631/181, /631/158, article

Journal Title

Commun Biol

Conference Name

Journal ISSN

2399-3642
2399-3642

Volume Title

5

Publisher

Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Sponsorship
John Templeton Foundation (JTF) (61408)