A lamprey from the Devonian period of South Africa

@article{Gess2006ALF,
  title={A lamprey from the Devonian period of South Africa},
  author={Robert W. Gess and Michael I. Coates and Bruce S. Rubidge},
  journal={Nature},
  year={2006},
  volume={443},
  pages={981-984}
}
Lampreys are the most scientifically accessible of the remaining jawless vertebrates, but their evolutionary history is obscure. In contrast to the rich fossil record of armoured jawless fishes, all of which date from the Devonian period and earlier, only two Palaeozoic lampreys have been recorded, both from the Carboniferous period. In addition to these, the recent report of an exquisitely preserved Lower Cretaceous example demonstrates that anatomically modern lampreys were present by the… Expand
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The first comparative morphological analysis of hagfish embryos and Palaeospondylus is reported, and a hitherto overlooked resemblance in the chondrocranial elements of these animals is reported; i.e., congruence in the arrangement of the nasal capsule, neurocranium and mandibular arch-derived velar bar. Expand
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References

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