Scientists confirm osteoderms evolved independently in reptiles, debunking 320-year old theory
A new study published May 12, 2026, resolves a 320-million-year debate over reptile skin armor by confirming that bony scales evolved independently in multiple lizard lineages, contradicting the long-held assumption of a single ancestral origin. Researchers used fossil evidence and computational modeling to trace the evolutionary history of osteoderms—bony plates embedded in reptile skin—back to … Read more