Early tetrapod evolution

Trends Ecol Evol. 2000 Mar;15(3):118-123. doi: 10.1016/s0169-5347(99)01780-2.

Abstract

Tetrapods include the only fully terrestrial vertebrates, but they also include many amphibious, aquatic and flying groups. They occupy the highest levels of the food chain on land and in aquatic environments. Tetrapod evolution has generated great interest, but the earliest phases of their history are poorly understood. Recent studies have questioned long-accepted hypotheses about the origin of the pentadactyl limb, the phylogeny of tetrapods and the environment in which the first tetrapods lived.