GoKawiilFossil study of Jurassic swimmer Megacauda reveals early mammal throat evolution
Researchers analyzing the Jurassic mammaliaform Megacauda identified a derived, therian-like pterygoid hamulus structure in its skull, contrasting with the more primitive configuration seen in Morganucodon. Comparisons with the modern marsupial Didelphis virginiana, including diceCT scans, show how this bony hook relates to muscles controlling the soft palate and pharynx.
GoKawiil's interpretation of the reporting above, not reported fact.
The findings suggest that key muscular arrangements supporting swallowing and the soft palate in modern mammals had already begun to evolve by the Jurassic period, earlier than previously documented. This could reshape understanding of when and how mammalian throat and palate anatomy diverged from earlier synapsid ancestors, according to the researchers' anatomical reconstructions.
- Megacauda shows an advanced, therian-like pterygoid hamulus compared to the more primitive Morganucodon
- The hamulus shape indicates muscle attachments for the tensor veli palatini, levator veli palatini, and pterygopharyngeus
- diceCT imaging of a living marsupial, Didelphis virginiana, helped interpret the fossil's soft-tissue anatomy
Source: nature.com — Li, 2026-10-07
Published there as: “A Jurassic mammaliaform swimmer and transformation of the mammalian pharynx”
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