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Ancient footprints rewrite the history of when animals began to live on land

An artist's illustration of the possible appearance of a reptile-like creature that lived around 350 million years ago in what's now Australia — An artist's illustration of the possible appearance of a reptile-like creature that lived around 350 million years ago in what's now Australia (Marcin Ambrozik/Prof. Per Erik Ahlberg via AP))

Newly discovered fossil footprints in Australia, dating back 350 million years, are the oldest evidence of reptile-like creatures walking on land.
This finding predates the previous oldest footprints by millions of years, suggesting a faster transition from aquatic to terrestrial life.
The footprints reveal a creature about 2.5 feet long with clawed feet, resembling a modern monitor lizard.
The presence of claws indicates a fully terrestrial animal, as claws are unique to land-dwellers.
This discovery challenges previous theories about the timeline of vertebrate evolution and the development of terrestrial locomotion.

A new discovery is rewriting the history of evolution by millions of years — In full