ArticleNature communications2018
The ecological origins of snakes as revealed by skull evolution.
Article in Nature communications, 2018. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 47 papers.
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Who cites it
47 citing papers in PubMed, 124 citations in OpenAlex.
- Genomic Investigation of Population Structure in a Secretive, Semi-Fossorial Snake (Colubridae:Ecology and evolution · 2026Article
- Comparative micro-ornamentation patterns of reptile skin: Phylogeny-ecology debate and species-specific variations.Anatomical record (Hoboken, N.J. : 2007) · 2026Article
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- The wide gape of snakes: A comparison of the developing mandibular symphysis in sauropsids.Journal of anatomy · 2026Article
- Inter- and intraspecific morphometric divergences in a Seychelles endemic gecko genus.BMC ecology and evolution · 2026Article
- Evolutionary Rate Incongruences in Squamates Reveal Contrasting Patterns of Evolutionary Novelties and Innovation.Systematic biology · 2026Article
- The Golden Lancehead Genome Reveals Distinct Selective Processes Acting on Venom Genes of an Island Endemic Snake.Genome biology and evolution · 2026Article
- Divergent Paths, Convergent Heads: Morphological Adaptation of Head Shape to Habitat Use and Diet in Snakes.Journal of morphology · 2025Article
- Cranial modularity drives phenotypic diversification and adaptive radiation of Antarctic icefishes.Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America · 2025Article
- The SmARTR pipeline: A modular workflow for the cinematic rendering of 3D scientific imaging data.iScience · 2024Article
- Ecological drivers of jaw morphological evolution in lepidosaurs.Proceedings. Biological sciences · 2024Article
- Evolutionary Links Between Skull Shape and Body Size Suggest Allometric Forces and Selection at Work in a Generalist Group of Lizards.Ecology and evolution · 2024Article
- Dynamic evolutionary interplay between ontogenetic skull patterning and whole-head integration.Nature ecology & evolution · 2024Article
- Reconstructing the origin and early evolution of the snake brain.Science advances · 2023Article
- Ecological correlates of cranial evolution in the megaradiation of dipsadine snakes.BMC ecology and evolution · 2023Article
- Evolutionary convergence of muscle architecture in relation to locomotor ecology in snakes.Journal of anatomy · 2023Article
- Head Shape Heritability in the Hungarian Meadow ViperAnimals : an open access journal from MDPI · 2023Article
- Timing of organogenesis underscores the evolution of neonatal life histories and powered flight in bats.Proceedings. Biological sciences · 2023Article
- Evolutionary origins of the prolonged extant squamate radiation.Nature communications · 2022Article
- Intraspecific variation in the cranial osteology of Diplometopon zarudnyi (Squamata: Amphisbaenia: Trogonophidae).Journal of morphology · 2022Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
8 authors at 3 institutions in 3 countries.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
The ecological origin of snakes remains amongst the most controversial topics in evolution, with three competing hypotheses: fossorial; marine; or terrestrial. Here we use a geometric morphometric approach integrating ecological, phylogenetic, paleontological, and developmental data for building models of skull shape and size evolution and developmental rate changes in squamates. Our large-scale data reveal that whereas the most recent common ancestor of crown snakes had a small skull with a shape undeniably adapted for fossoriality, all snakes plus their sister group derive from a surface-terrestrial form with non-fossorial behavior, thus redirecting the debate toward an underexplored evolutionary scenario. Our comprehensive heterochrony analyses further indicate that snakes later evolved novel craniofacial specializations through global acceleration of skull development. These results highlight the importance of the interplay between natural selection and developmental processes in snake origin and diversification, leading first to invasion of a new habitat and then to subsequent ecological radiations.
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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.