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Weird skin-eating amphibians have no legs due to snake-like mutation

Worm-like amphibians called caecilians have a mutation in a genetic sequence that’s critical for limb development, which could explain how they became limbless

By Jake Buehler

23 April 2023

Mexican burrowing caecilian (Dermophis mexicanus)

Mexican burrowing caecilian (Dermophis mexicanus)

Shutterstock/reptiles4all

Worm-like amphibians known as caecilians may have lost their legs thanks to the same genetic tweaks that snakes have.

An analysis of the amphibians’ genomes suggests that caecilians and snakes – separated by hundreds of millions of years of evolution – converged on the same mutations when ditching their limbs. The findings provide insights into the genetic underpinnings of the evolution of limblessness.

The 200-some species of caecilian are totally limbless, and live secretive lives in tropical soils or waterways. They have small or nonexistent eyes and …

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