Early Permian Bipedal Reptile article in Science 11-3-00

[Mark Perew <perew@freeshell.org>]

The follow abstract is for a paper in this week's edition of Science.

Early Permian Bipedal Reptile
David S. Berman, 1 Robert R. Reisz, 2 * Diane Scott, 2 Amy C. Henrici, 1
Stuart S. Sumida, 3 Thomas Martens 4

A 290-million-year-old reptilian skeleton from the Lower Permian (Asselian)
of Germany provides evidence of abilities for cursorial bipedal locomotion,
employing a parasagittal digitigrade posture. The skeleton is of a small
bolosaurid, Eudibamus cursoris, gen. et sp. nov., and conÞrms the widespread
distribution of Bolosauridae across Laurasia during this early stage of
amniote evolution.  Eudibamus cursoris is the oldest known representative of
Parareptilia, a major clade of reptiles.

1 Section of Vertebrate Paleontology, Carnegie Museum of Natural History,
4400 Forbes Avenue, Pittsburgh, PA 15213, USA. 2 Department of Zoology,
University of Toronto in Mississauga, Mississauga, Ontario, L5L 1C6, Canada.
3 Department of Biology, California State University, 5500 University
Parkway, San Bernardino, CA 92407, USA. 4 Museum der Natur Gotha, Abteilung
Palaeontologie, Parkallee 15, Postfach 217, 99853 Gotha, Germany.

-- 
Mark Perew  <perew@freeshell.org>
Celebrating the End of the Millennium:  Dec 31, 2000