Affiliation:
1. School of Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of AdelaideSA 5005, Australia
2. Earth Sciences Section, South Australian MuseumNorth Terrace, Adelaide 5000, Australia
Abstract
A molecular phylogeny was used to refute the marine scenario for snake origins. Nuclear gene sequences suggested that snakes are not closely related to living varanid lizards, thus also apparently contradicting proposed relationships between snakes and marine mosasaurs (usually considered to be varanoids). However, mosasaurs share derived similarities with
both
snakes and living varanids. A reanalysis of the morphological data suggests that, if the relationships between living taxa are constrained to the proposed molecular tree, with fossil forms allowed to insert in their optimal positions within this framework, mosasaurs cluster with snakes rather than with varanids. Combined morphological and molecular analyses also still unite marine lizards with snakes. Thus, the molecular data do not refute the phylogenetic evidence for a marine origin of snakes.
Subject
General Agricultural and Biological Sciences,Agricultural and Biological Sciences (miscellaneous)
Cited by
51 articles.
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