Osteoderms are mineralised structures consisting mainly of calcium phosphate and
collagen. They form directly within the skin, with or without physical contact with the skeleton …

Elongated snake‐like bodies associated with limb reduction have evolved multiple times
throughout vertebrate history. Limb‐reduced squamates (lizards and snakes) account for the …

We present the first known fossilized snake embryo/neonate preserved in early Late
Cretaceous (Early Cenomanian) amber from Myanmar, which at the time, was an island arc …

Aim Limb‐reduced squamates are a convenient model system to investigate
macroevolutionary trends in morphology. Here, we provide morphological, ecological and …

The modern classification of skinks is based on a nomenclature that dates to the 1970s.
However, there are a number of earlier names in the family group that have been …

High-resolution X-ray microcomputed tomography, or microCT (μCT), enables the digital
imaging of whole objects in three dimensions. The power of μCT to visualize internal …

As lineages become separated in time, they are expected to accumulate mutational (or
developmental-genetic) differences that influence the macroevolutionary trajectories of …

The limbless skink Ophiomorus punctatissimus is a cryptozoic species found in the
Peloponnese region of Greece and on the Greek island Kythira. To provide the first thorough …

Limb-reduced and limbless scincid lizards pose problems in untangling their relationships
because of a strong tendency toward convergent evolution in which functional characters …

Trade-offs are thought to be important in constraining evolutionary divergence as they may
limit phenotypic diversification. The cranial system plays a vital role in many functions …