Turtles have long been considered the most primitive of all living reptiles, in large part because their skulls lack temporal openings, which all later reptiles possess. The fossil history of turtles begins in the late Triassic. The first turtles were fairly large, terrestrial or semi-aquatic animals. They were thickly built and had armored tails. Anatomically, turtles have changed little since the late Triassic. Perhaps the most significant difference between primitive and modern turtles is that primitive turtles had teeth. Imagine a scientist makes a discovery that calls into question the theory presented above. What could this discovery be?

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Geography

Damaris Beltran

27 March, 18:06

Turtles have long been considered the most primitive of all living reptiles, in large part because their skulls lack temporal openings, which all later reptiles possess. The fossil history of turtles begins in the late Triassic. The first turtles were fairly large, terrestrial or semi-aquatic animals. They were thickly built and had armored tails. Anatomically, turtles have changed little since the late Triassic. Perhaps the most significant difference between primitive and modern turtles is that primitive turtles had teeth. Imagine a scientist makes a discovery that calls into question the theory presented above. What could this discovery be?

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Karen Murphy · Answer 1

This is an example of how the study of prehistory is constantly changing. Sometimes, it is difficult to know whether something we believe to be right is actually the case. While we have theories, new information can always come to life, making us question our past assumptions.

In this case, there are several discoveries that could lead to the questioning of this conclusion. For example, the scientist could make a discovery of a turtle fossil much older than the late Triassic. The scientist could also make a discovery of a primitive turtle that had no teeth.