'A completely different story': 300 million-year-old fossils reveal the first vertebrate land dwellers weren't what we thought, researchers claim

'A completely different story': 300 million-year-old fossils reveal the first vertebrate land dwellers weren't what we thought, researchers claim — Live Feedhttps://www.live-feeds.com/feed/a-completely-different-story-300-million-year-old-fossils-reveal-the-first-vertebrate-land-dwellers-weren-t-what-we-thouContinuously updated, source-cited coverage. 300-Million-Year-Old Fossils Challenge Early Land Vertebrate Evolutionhttps://www.live-feeds.com/feed/a-completely-different-story-300-million-year-old-fossils-reveal-the-first-vertebrate-land-dwellers-weren-t-what-we-thouhttps://www.live-feeds.com/feed/a-completely-different-story-300-million-year-old-fossils-reveal-the-first-vertebrate-land-dwellers-weren-t-what-we-thou#u9697Tue, 23 Jun 2026 10:27:20 +0000Researchers studying fossils from Mazon Creek, Illinois, found that early tetrapods did not undergo an amphibian-like metamorphosis. These baby embolomeres, which were crocodile-like predators, suggest a different evolutionary path for the ancestors of mammals, birds, and reptiles. The discovery stems from a specimen originally mislabeled as a baby lamprey.What's confirmed:Fossils of baby embolomeres were discovered in Mazon Creek, Illinois.Embolomeres were crocodile-like predators that lived between 350 and 280 million years ago.The fossils indicate early tetrapods did not use an amphibian-li