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Watching Nova’s “What Darwin Never Knew” I learned that Paleontologist Neil Shubin was part of a team that noted the gap in the fossil record between fish and land animals. In a wonderfully standard application of the scientific method they predicted the location and time that a transitional form probably existed. They used those predictions to determine where to look for fossil evidence and the result was the discovery of Tiktaalik.

In 2004, a field crew digging in the Canadian Arctic unearthed the fossil remains of a half-fish, half-amphibian that would all but confirm paleontologists’ theories about how land-dwelling tetrapods (four-limbed animals, including us) evolved from their fish ancestors.

Tiktaalik lived approximately 375 million years ago. It represents one of the earliest creatures that could bear weight on front limbs. The anatomy of these limbs combines a fin with an arm. This structure is found today in every 4 limbed animal.

It also had eyes that were forward facing and on the top of its head. Good for looking around on land.