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2nd Year: Vertebrate Palaeontology > Early tetrapods > Flashcards

Early tetrapods Flashcards

0
Q

How many digits did ichthyostega have?

A

7

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1
Q

How many digits did acanthostega have?

A

8

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2
Q

Why are limbs an example of exaptation?

A

They evolved in water for propulsion/digging and were then used for movement on land.

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3
Q

The aïstopods were early tetrapods. What were they like?

A

Limbless with around 200-300 vertebrae.

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4
Q

What are the 4 main synapomorphies of early tetrapods?

A
  1. Heavy ossified skeletons
  2. Distinct neck region
  3. Have sacrums
  4. Longer antorbital snout
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5
Q

The nectrideans were early tetrapods. What was characteristic about diplocallus and why?

A

It had a dorso-laterally flattened head with two horned prongs on either side. Was an aquatic ambush predator, the horns generated lift.

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6
Q

What are the 2 major features of temnospondyls?

A
  1. Palatal vacuities

2. Otic notches with the stapes projecting upwards into them

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7
Q

Which 2 groups are the only tetrapods to have a complete secondary palate?

A

Crocodiles and mammals.

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8
Q

Anthracosaurs were early tetrapods. What was unique about their skulls?

A

The tabular and par bones were in contact.

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10
Q

The Anthracosaurs gave rise to the embolomeres which resembled what?

A

Modern crocodiles.

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11
Q

How does the impedance-matching ear work? Give 4 steps.

A
  1. Sounds hits the tympanum causing it to vibrate
  2. Stapes transmits vibrations to the fenestra ovalis
  3. FO transfers vibrations to liquid-filled inner ear
  4. Vibrations in inner ear cause cilia to oscilate
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12
Q

What causes sound to be amplified by the impedance-matching ear?

A

A reduction in surface area between the tympanum and fenestra ovalis.

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13
Q

What are the 5 major radiations of early tetrapod?

A
  1. Aistopods
  2. Nectrideans
  3. Temnospondyls
  4. Anthracosaurs/embolomeres
  5. Seymouriamorphs
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14
Q

What is it in an aistopod skull that indicates they were tetrapods and not fish?

A

A symmetrical midline sutra

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15
Q

Temnospondyls were the most diverse tetrapod group. Their skulls indicate a range of lifestyles, give 2 examples.

A

Long-snouted fish eaters and broad-snouted gulping predators.

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16
Q

Which group of tetrapods dominated the coal swamps?

A

Anthracosaurs/embolomeres.

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17
Q

It was thought that seymouriamorphs were early amniotes. Which discovery disproved this?

A

That discosauriscids had a larval stage.

18
Q

Seymouriamorphs had pronounced zygapophyses. If these are in a horizontal plane, how does the body move?

A

Side to side.

19
Q

Seymouriamorphs had pronounced zygapophyses. If these are in a vertical plane, how does the body move?

A

Up and down.

20
Q

Why is it that only ectotherms have horizontal zygapophyses?

A

They do not have high metabolic rates as they do not generate their own heat, thus the lung compression from this movement is not an issue.

21
Q

Why is it that endotherms have zygapophyses in a vertical plane?

A

They have high metabolic rates as they generate their own body heat, thus their lungs cannot be compressed.

22
Q

How can we tell whales evolved from terrestrial mammals?

A

Their tails flukes are horizontal, meaning their zygapophyses are in a vertical plane as other mammals’ are.

23
Q

It is thought the temnospondyls gave rise to which modern group?

A

Lissamphibia.

24
Q

It is thought the seymouriamorphs and anthracosaurs gave rise to which modern group?

A

Amniota.

25
Q

In what period of geological time was there an explosion of tetrapod diversity?

A

The Carboniferous.

26
Q

What are the 4 main types of plant from the Carboniferous?

A
  1. Gymnosperms
  2. Lycopsids
  3. Ferns
  4. Horse tails
27
Q

When did herbivory among tetrapods appear?

A

The late Carboniferous.

28
Q

Where were the richest/most diverse forests in the Carboniferous?

A

In Euamerica, along the equator in the late Carboniferous.

29
Q

Where was Gondwana moving to in the Carboniferous?

A

Southwards to the equator.

30
Q

With regards to the continents, what happened at the end of the Carboniferous?

A

They collided to form Pangea.

31
Q

Define basal jaw articulation.

A

A peg and socket fit arrangement between the braincase and palatal bones respectively.

32
Q

When did colonisation of the land occur?

A

The late Devonian and early Carboniferous.

33
Q

What were the 7 main issues with land colonisation?

A
  1. Supporting the body without water
  2. Locomotion
  3. Dehydration
  4. Sensory organs do not function in air
  5. Respiration
  6. Feeding, can no longer suck prey into mouth
  7. Reproduction, species have aquatic larvae
34
Q

What adaptations occurred to help support the body on land? Give 3.

A
  1. Increased ossification
  2. Increased articulation
  3. Formation of the sacrum
35
Q

How was locomotion on land facilitated?

A

Formation of the sacrum and modification of the joints.

36
Q

How was dehydration reduced? Give 3 examples.

A
  1. Gills and lateral line lost
  2. Concentrated urine
  3. Eyelids and tearducts developed
37
Q

How were the sense organs modified?

A
  1. The lens in the eye adapated

2. The impedance-matching ear evolved

38
Q

How did tetrapods facilitate respiration when colonising the land?

A

Shifted a reliance on gills to lungs. Lungs already existed.

39
Q

How did tetrapods facilitate feeding on land? Give 3 examples.

A
  1. Development of the neck and musculature
  2. Development of the snout, sensory organs migrated
  3. Came back to water to feed
40
Q

How did early tetrapods reproduce?

A

They returned to water to lay their eggs.

2nd Year: Vertebrate Palaeontology (17 decks)

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