Oldest fossil snakes?

Voodoo · #1 (**permalink**) 01-21-2003, 06:52 AM

Okay, what're the first two fossils of snakes found, both from 100-150 million years ago?
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JuliusSqueezer · #2 (**permalink**) 01-21-2003, 03:51 PM

There are a few different theorys and claims....the one discovered and named by George Haas but not classified as a snake until after his death is the one that I buy into the most...It was Pachyrhachis problematicus ...the first known link between Mosasaurs and the snakes we know and love today. I think they have found older fossils since then though....but I think the one Haas had was the first. It was about 90 something million years old I think...just shy of 100 million.

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BWSmith · #3 (**permalink**) 01-21-2003, 03:56 PM

Just going from memory here, so i may be way off.

I am not sure about the oldest snake. But the oldest Rattlesnake fossil was Crotalus giganticus (I think) a releative of the eastern diamondback and was found in FL. I believe that it was from between 2-5 million years old.

Then again, i could be having a college flashback and am imagining the whole thing. [img]modules/Forum/images/smiles/icon_confused.gif[/img]
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JuliusSqueezer · #4 (**permalink**) 01-21-2003, 06:48 PM

It's kinda funny that you bring up fossil snakes right now because I thought it would be really cool to buy a nice snake fossil for my reptile room and have been searching and researching for some time now....but real snake fossils that are display worthy are very rare and almost non-existant because they just tend not to leave much behind after they die. This has made research about their evolution historically very difficult. I have about decided to give up on any real snake fossil and collect a few lizard fossils. There are plenty of them and they are afordable. I have found a few "might be snake" fossils on ebay....but they looked like rocks with a rib sticking out to me. nothing worth showing off.

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