Basal amniotes are the earliest members of the amniote evolutionary tree, which includes reptiles and mammals. They evolved from reptiliomorphs and were the first animals to colonize the continental interior. Casineria, a small animal resembling a lizard, is one of the earliest known basal amniotes and pushed the known origin of amniotes back several million […]
Amniotes protect their embryos with extended membranes or by keeping them inside the body. They include mammals, reptiles, birds, and extinct mammal-like dinosaurs. Amniotes emerged 350-310 million years ago, creating large land animals that didn’t depend on water holes for reproduction. The Carboniferous period saw the emergence of the first amniotes, resembling small lizards. The […]
