Fossil Mystery: The Snake That Could Walk - http://clapway.com/2015/07/24/fossil-mystery-the-snake-that-could-walk468/

Snakes Today as We Know them

Today, we are surrounded by thousands of different species, and several new ones that are discovered every other day but take a while to get classified and released officially. At the moment, there are more than 3,000 species of snake, some venomous and some not.

However, what you don’t expect to make the list, even among snakes that can swim, fly, etc., is the snake that could walk.

Oh yes, on the 16th of June this year, an article was accepted for publication in the Science journal detailing the fossil that was found in Brazil. The fossil was dated to be from the Early Cretaceous Crato Formation of Brazil.

The Find and the science world’s Reactions

You have to wonder when you find something like this if you are not really mistaken—maybe it could be a really long lizard. But, upon further examination, it was discovered that the remains are more serpentine the movement and body type than before. This finding suggests that snakes would have evolved not from marine creatures, but rather from burrowing ones.

A follow-up article was written with this discovery yesterday in Science mag as well. There, the writing goes into a bit more detail about the find, and how well-preserved it was for an early fossil.

However, what’s garnering attention isn’t the scientific research that’s been done thus far. No, instead it’s the past of the fossil that’s pulling in readers.

The Mysterious Circumstances of the Snake that could walk

According to the data provided by the team, the fossil came from northeastern Brazil, However, the question of when the fossil was unearthed is a pressing one, as well as how it ended up in the German museum today. Concerns such as this are important to get some sort of closure on, as in Brazil, it’s been illegal to export fossils since the forties.

However not all are concerned with the illegality of the situation. One of the authors remarked in the article that the discovery was more important, and other concerns not relevant to the study were immaterial.

So, we’ll just have to see what news the snake that could walk brings us, but also whether or not the past of its fossil is resolved.

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Fossil Mystery: The Snake That Could Walk

Shipwreck from the Late 18th Century Found - http://clapway.com/2015/07/18/shipwreck-from-the-late-18th-century-found678/

an accidental find

It’s not every day that you find a piece of history. In fact, artifacts are usually uncovered by accident. The odds of finding something purposefully are slim enough as is. Even carefully planned expeditions can turn up nothing for years. If you do find something, there’s also the chance of damaging or destroying the item.

The Odds of Finding a Shipwreck

For aforementioned reasons, it’s rather lucky then that a team of researchers found something unusual in the waters of North Carolina while exploring the sea with a sonar. The find came about on the 12th of July when researchers from three universities aboard the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution research ship found the shipwreck.

What they had been looking for was something that was left behind previously in 2012, a mooring. Instead, they found the ship’s wreckage. Based on the items uncovered, it’s estimated that the shipwreck could be from the late 1700s, around the time of the American Revolution.

Because of the nature of the various artifacts and items seen with the AUV, the shipwreck appears to be a trade ship. The find, as with every find in science, is a reminder to the scientists, the science community, and the public that there are things that we still don’t know about our world and the ocean.

Cindy Van Dover, director of the Duke University Marine Laboratory and deep sea biologist said in Duke Today, “It’s ironic to think we were exploring within 100 meters of the wreck site without an inkling it was there,” about the previous exploration in 2012.

Next on the agenda

What is next for the shipwreck you ask? Well after the find and initial awe and lucky happenstance, the team alerted the NOAA Marine Heritage Program of the discovery to see if they could identify what the shipwreck is, what time period it is from, and what it was used for. This can be done by examining the various artifacts found with the wreck.

Despite this amazing find, however, the original intent of the search was in vain, as the mooring was never found.

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Shipwreck from the Late 18th Century Found