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Compound osteoderms preserved in amber reveal the oldest known skink

Daza JD 1 , Stanley EL 2 , Heinicke MP 3 , Leah C 4 , Doucet DS 5 , Fenner KL 6 Show all authors , Arias JS 7 , Smith RDA 8 , Peretti AM 9 , Aung NN 9 , Bauer AM 10

Affiliations 

  • 1 Department of Biological Sciences, Sam Houston State University, Huntsville, TX, 77341, USA. juand.daza@gmail.com
  • 2 Florida Museum of Natural History, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, 32611, USA. elstanley@flmnh.ufl.edu
  • 3 University of Michigan-Dearborn, Dearborn, MI, 48128, USA
  • 4 Houston Museum of Natural Sciences, Houston, TX, 77030, USA
  • 5 Department of Biological Sciences, Sam Houston State University, Huntsville, TX, 77341, USA
  • 6 Department of Biology, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, 32611, USA
  • 7 Laboratorio de Genética Evolutiva, Instituto de Biología Subtropical, CONICET-Universidad Nacional de Misiones, and Facultad de Ciencias Exactas, Químicas y Naturales, 3300, Posadas, Misiones, Argentina
  • 8 Jabatan Geologi, University Malaya, 50603, Kuala Lumpur, Wilayah Persekutuan Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
  • 9 Peretti Museum Foundation, Baumschulweg, 13, 6045, Meggen, Switzerland
  • 10 Department of Biology and Center for Biodiversity and Ecosystem Stewardship, Villanova University, Villanova, PA, 19085, USA
Sci Rep, 2024 Jul 08;14(1):15662.
PMID: 38977836 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-024-66451-w

Abstract

Scincidae is one of the most species-rich and cosmopolitan clades of squamate reptiles. Abundant disarticulated fossil material has also been attributed to this group, however, no complete pre-Cenozoic crown-scincid specimens have been found. A specimen in Burmite (99 MYA) is the first fossil that can be unambiguously referred to this clade. Our analyses place it as nested within extant skinks, supported by the presence of compound osteoderms formed by articulated small ostedermites. The specimen has a combination of dorsal and ventral compound osteoderms and overlapping cycloid scales that is limited to skinks. We propose that this type of osteoderm evolved as a response to an increased overlap of scales, and to reduced stiffness of the dermal armour. Compound osteoderms could be a key innovation that facilitated diversification in this megadiverse family.

* Title and MeSH Headings from MEDLINE®/PubMed®, a database of the U.S. National Library of Medicine.

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