Friday 13 June 2014

Parade of Creatures Colonized Land After Dinosaur Demise

By Charles Q. Choi, Live Science Contributor | June 10, 2014 07:05pm ET

The cataclysm that ended the Age of Dinosaurs not only drove land animals to migrate into the water, but also pushed aquatic creatures to colonize the land, a new study reveals.

The shifts between land and water in the animal kingdom are among the most pivotal in evolution. The most famous example is that of fish that made the switch from water to land — the first tetrapods, or four-legged animals, which gave rise to amphibians, reptiles, birds and mammals. Animals also moved from land to water — for example, the ancestors of seafaring whales appear to have been deerlike ungulates, or hoofed mammals.

Scientists reason the shifts between the aquatic and terrestrial realms might relate to environmental upheaval. For instance, mass extinctions usually leave many open roles within ecosystems, niches that survivors might evolve to fill. 

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