Good tidings and well-wishes, ladies and gentlemen!
The recent discovery of a new and very unique ceratosaur Limusaurus inextricabilis has ignited a firestorm of articles and posts from the paleontological community. What’s so special about it?
For starters, as Dave Hone writes, it probably had strong herbivorous tendencies.
Perhaps more important, however, is its implications for the evolution of theropod and avian digits. The famed PZ Myers, author of the ever-popular (and controversial) “Pharyngula”, wrote an excellent post explaining the alterations of genetic mechanisms which assign digit identity during the evolution of birds back in 2002. The discovery of this animal has turned the evolutionary biologist’s statements into fulfilled prophecy, as he explains here.
To quote Jeff Martz, “Gee, it’s almost like that evolution stuff really works…”
May the fossil record continue to enchant us all!