naa a22 4500 510780490 CHVBK 20180411083245.0 cr unu---uuuuu 180411e20131201xx s 000 0 eng 10.1007/s11692-013-9238-3 doi (NATIONALLICENCE)springer-10.1007/s11692-013-9238-3 Bone Histology Reveals a High Environmental and Metabolic Plasticity as a Successful Evolutionary Strategy in a Long-Lived Homeostatic Triassic Temnospondyl [Elektronische Daten] [S. Sanchez, R. Schoch] Evolutionary stasis (long-term stability of morphology in an evolving lineage) is a pattern for which explanations are usually elusive. The Triassic tetrapod Gerrothorax pulcherrimus, a gill-bearing temnospondyl, survived for 35million years in the Germanic Basin of Central Europe persisting throughout the dinosaur-dominated Late Triassic period. This evolutionary stasis coincides with the occurrence of this species in a wide range of habitats and environmental conditions. By the combination of palaeoecological and palaeohistological analyses, we found great ecological flexibility in G. pulcherrimus and present substantial evidence of developmental and metabolic plasticity despite the morphological stasis. We conclude that G. pulcherrimus could show the capacity to settle in water bodies too harsh or unpredictable for most other tetrapods. This would have been made possible by a unique life history strategy that involved a wide reaction norm, permitting adjustment to fluctuating conditions such as salinity and level of nutrients. Growth rate, duration of juvenile period, age at maturity, and life span were all subject to broad variation within specimens of G. pulcherrimus in one single lake and in between different lakes. In addition to providing a better understanding of fossil ecosystems, this study shows the potential of such a methodology to encourage palaeobiologists and evolutionary biologists to consider the mechanisms of variation in extant and fossil organisms by using a similar time-scope reference. The Author(s), 2013 Morphological stasis nationallicence Developmental plasticity nationallicence Reaction norm nationallicence Environmental canalization nationallicence Sanchez S. Subdepartment of Evolutionary Organismal Biology, Department of Physiology and Developmental Biology, Evolutionary Biology Centre, Uppsala University, Norbyvägen 18A, 752 36, Uppsala, Sweden aut Schoch R. Staatliches Museum für Naturkunde, Rosenstein 1, 70191, Stuttgart, Germany aut Evolutionary Biology Springer US; http://www.springer-ny.com 40/4(2013-12-01), 627-647 0071-3260 40:4<627 2013 40 11692 https://doi.org/10.1007/s11692-013-9238-3 text/html Onlinezugriff via DOI 1 research-article jats NATIONALLICENCE 856 40 https://doi.org/10.1007/s11692-013-9238-3 text/html Onlinezugriff via DOI NATIONALLICENCE 700 1- Sanchez S. Subdepartment of Evolutionary Organismal Biology, Department of Physiology and Developmental Biology, Evolutionary Biology Centre, Uppsala University, Norbyvägen 18A, 752 36, Uppsala, Sweden aut NATIONALLICENCE 700 1- Schoch R. Staatliches Museum für Naturkunde, Rosenstein 1, 70191, Stuttgart, Germany aut NATIONALLICENCE 773 0- Evolutionary Biology Springer US; http://www.springer-ny.com 40/4(2013-12-01), 627-647 0071-3260 40:4<627 2013 40 11692 Metadata rights reserved Springer special CC-BY-NC licence nationallicence BK010053 XK010053 XK010000 NATIONALLICENCE NATIONALLICENCE NL-springer