At the end of the Devonian period (), the seas, rivers and lakes were teeming with life but the land was the realm of early plants and devoid of vertebrates though some, such as Ichthyostega, may have sometimes hauled themselves out of the water.

A 2012 study using 3d reconstructions of Ichthyostega concluded that it was incapable of typical quadrupedal gaits.

Ichthyostega was a fairly large animal, broadly built and about 1. 5 m long.

The Late Devonian was home to many species of Sarcopterygii | lobe-finned fish like Eusthenopteron, Panderichthys, Tiktaalik and the first tetrapod s, such as Acanthostega whose forelimbs had eight digits, and Ichthyostega which had seven.

In 1932 Gunnar Säve-Söderbergh described four Ichthyostega species from the Upper Devonian of East Greenland and one species belonging to the genus Ichthyostegopsis, I. wimani.

It does however show that Ichthyostega clearly ventured onto land on occasions, unlike the very first tetrapods like Elginerpeton and Obruchevichthys.

The labyrinthodonts were divided into the Ichthyostegalia ( another paraphyletic assemblage of primitive tetrapods and kin, such as Ichthyostega ), the Temnospondyli ( possibly members of Amphibia ), and the Anthracosauria ( close relatives of amniotes ).

In Devonian | Late Devonian vertebrate speciation, descendants of Pelagic zone | pelagic Sarcopterygii | lobe-finned fish – like Eusthenopteron – exhibited a sequence of adaptations: * Panderichthys, suited to muddy shallows ; * Tiktaalik with limb-like fins that could take it up onto land ; * Tetrapod | Early tetrapods in weed-filled swamps, such as: ** Acanthostega which had feet with eight digits, ** Ichthyostega with limbs.

In Devonian | Late Devonian vertebrate speciation, descendants of Pelagic zone | pelagic Sarcopterygii | lobe-finned fish — like Eusthenopteron — exhibited a sequence of adaptations: • Panderichthys, suited to muddy shallows ; • Tiktaalik with limb-like fins that could take it onto land ; • Early tetrapods in weed-filled swamps, such as ; • Acanthostega, which had feet with eight digits, • Ichthyostega with limbs.

In Devonian | Late Devonian vertebrate speciation, descendants of Pelagic zone | pelagic lobe-finned fish — like Eusthenopteron — exhibited a sequence of adaptations: * Panderichthys, suited to muddy shallows ; * Tiktaalik with limb-like fins that could take it onto land ; * Early tetrapod s in weed-filled swamps, such as: ** Acanthostega, which had feet with eight digits, ** Ichthyostega with limbs.

Until finds of other early tetrapods and closely related fishes in the late 20th century, Ichthyostega stood alone as the transitional fossil between fish and tetrapods, combining a fishlike tail and gills with an amphibian skull and limbs.

Ichthyostega also had more supportive ribs and stronger vertebrae with more developed zygapophyses.

In Devonian | Late Devonian vertebrate speciation, descendants of Pelagic zone | pelagic Sarcopterygii | lobe-finned fish – like Eusthenopteron – exhibited a sequence of adaptations :< ul > < li > Panderichthys, suited to muddy shallows ; < li > Tiktaalik with limb-like fins that could take it onto land ; < li > Tetrapod | Early tetrapods in weed-filled swamps, such as :< ul > < li > Acanthostega which had feet with eight digits, < li > Ichthyostega with limbs .</ ul ></ ul > Descendants also included pelagic lobe-finned fish such as coelacanth species.

Finally, Jarvik investigated the anatomy of Ichthyostega, resulting in a monograph with an extensive photographic documentation of the material collected in 1929-1955.

In Devonian | Late Devonian vertebrate speciation, descendants of Pelagic zone | pelagic Sarcopterygii | lobe-finned fish – like Eusthenopteron – exhibited a sequence of adaptations :< ul > < li > Panderichthys, suited to muddy shallows ; < li > Tiktaalik with limb-like fins that could take it onto land ; < li > Tetrapod | Early tetrapods in weed-filled swamps, such as :< ul > < li > Acanthostega which had feet with eight digits, < li > Ichthyostega with limbs .</ ul ></ ul > Descendants also included pelagic lobe-finned fish such as coelacanth species.

It shares a similar pattern of skull rooting bones with forms such as Ichthyostega and Acanthostega.

In Devonian | Late Devonian vertebrate speciation, descendants of Pelagic zone | pelagic Sarcopterygii | lobe-finned fish – like Eusthenopteron – exhibited a sequence of adaptations: * Panderichthys, suited to muddy shallows ; * Tiktaalik with limb-like fins that could take it onto land ; * Tetrapod | Early tetrapods in weed-filled swamps, such as: * Acanthostega which had feet with eight digits, * Ichthyostega with limbs.

New studies suggests that the juveniles were more aquatic than the adults, and the possibility that Ichthyostega came out of the water only as a fully mature adult.

Ichthyostega possessed lungs and limbs that helped it navigate through shallow water in swamps.

Though Crossopterygians possessed lungs, they used gills as their primary means of acquiring oxygen ; Ichthyostega appears to have relied on its lungs as its primary apparatus for breathing.

It is also possible that the adults started to spend some time on land ( as the skeletal modifications in early tetrapods such as Ichthyostega suggests ) but only to bask in the sun close to the water's edge, not to hunt or move around.

Whether these traits were independently evolved in Ichthyostega is debated.

Size of Ichthyostega, compared to a human.

Early tetrapods like Ichthyostega and Acanthostega differed from animals like Crossopterygians ( for instance Eusthenopteron or Panderichthys ) in their increased adaptations for life on land.

Crossopterygians used their body and tail for locomotion and their fins for balance ; Ichthyostega used its fore limbs for locomotion and its tail for balance.

The size of an adult Ichthyostega ( 1. 5 m ) would have made terrestrial locomotion difficult.

Jennifer A. Clack suggests that Ichthyostega and its relatives spent time basking in the sun to raise their body temperatures, much as some animals do today: the Marine Iguanas on the Galapagos Island or the Gharial.

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Next to him was a young boy I was sure had sat near me at one of the trading sessions.

He grabbed her by the shoulders and went down on one knee, taking her weight so that some of the wind was driven out of him.

There was only one place where Jake Carwood's description had gone badly awry: the peace and quiet.

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In the mornings, I was informed, fluorescent tubes, similar to the one above the counter, illuminated the entire hall.

No one was behind it, but in the rear wall of the office I noticed, for the first time, a door which had been left partially open.

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