Neotropical freshwater fishes (NFFs) constitute the most diverse continental vertebrate fauna
on Earth, with more than 6,200 named species compressed into an aquatic footprint< 0.5 …

We review geological evidence on the origin of the modern transcontinental Amazon River,
and the paleogeographic history of riverine connections among the principal sedimentary …

The arrangement and morphology of the vertebrate skull reflect functional and ecological
demands, making it a highly adaptable structure. However, the fundamental developmental …

Modularity is a ubiquitous feature of organismal design that plays an important role in
structuring patterns of morphological diversification. Modularity can facilitate evolutionary …

Evolutionary innovations are scattered throughout the tree of life, and have allowed the
organisms that possess them to occupy novel adaptive zones. While the impacts of these …

The placental skull has evolved into myriad forms, from longirostrine whales to globular
primates, and with a diverse array of appendages from antlers to tusks. This disparity has …

Bonytongues (Osteoglossomorpha) constitute an ancient clade of teleost fishes distributed
in freshwater habitats throughout the world. The group includes well-known species such as …

With diverse mechanical and sensory functions, the vertebrate cranium is a complex
anatomical structure whose shifts between modularity and integration, especially in …

The modified pharyngeal jaw system of cichlid fishes is widely viewed as a key innovation
that substantially facilitated the evolutionary exuberance of this iconic evolutionary radiation …

In the last decade, studies integrating palaeontology, embryology and experimental
developmental biology have markedly altered our homological understanding of the …