Scientists explain how skink lizards “lost” their legs and then gained new ones

One of the rules of thumb of evolutionary theory is that when a creature loses its complex structure

(for example, legs) for many years,it is very unlikely that it will “return” to the descendants of the species. Now scientists have found a possible reason for this exception to the rule - Brachymeles lizards, better known as skinks, lost their legs and then grew them back.

Previous research has shown that someThe skinks living in the Philippines once lost their legs as a result of evolution, and then, for unknown reasons, their legs returned many years later. Other skinks living nearby also lost their legs, but did not grow them back. In this new work, the researchers sought to understand why this happened to one group and not the other.

Captured skinks (those withlegs reappeared, and those that didn't) performed various physical tasks, such as running in a tiny "hippodrome." The idea was to find out which conditions are best for using legs and which ones are best for snake-style locomotion.

Researchers found that skinks without legsmove better in dry conditions - for example, without legs they dig holes better. On the other hand, skinks with legs (and feet) did better in wetter conditions. Their feet allowed them to move on wet ground. The researchers speculate that the skink's legs appeared during a prolonged period of high humidity and disappeared during a drought.

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