The oldest articulated bony fish from the early Silurian period
Nature • • science
Key Points:
- The referenced works collectively explore the origin, early evolution, and phylogenetic history of jawed vertebrates (gnathostomes), with a focus on early bony fishes (Osteichthyes) and related taxa from the Silurian and Devonian periods.
- Key fossil discoveries, such as articulated osteichthyans, Silurian maxillate placoderms, and early actinopterygians, provide insight into the morphology, scale patterns, braincase structures, and jaw development that illuminate the evolutionary transition from jawless to jawed vertebrates.
- Recent studies employing advanced imaging techniques and phylogenetic analyses have refined the timing and relationships within early gnathostome lineages, revealing mosaic characters and crypt
