The bones of 2-metre-long tetrapod Whatcheeria reveal that it had an early development spurt – a trait that was thought to have advanced later
Life
28 November 2022
The early tetrapod Whatcheeria was a big predator Courtesy the FIeld Museum of Natural History
A big, crocodile-like animal that lived greater than 340 million years in the past was one of many earliest vertebrates to have a fast-growing section in its youth.
Whatcheeria was an early tetrapod – one of many first vertebrates to have legs and arms as an alternative of fins. At 2 metres lengthy, it was one of many largest carnivores of the period, and its anatomy hints that it snatched prey from the water by ambush, identical to fashionable crocodiles. But how Whatcheeria reached such a powerful …