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From: chappell@galton.uchicago.edu (Chappell)
Newsgroups: sci.bio
Subject: Re: Further Evolving Eyebrows
Message-ID: <1990Nov5.195339.29498@midway.uchicago.edu>
Date: 5 Nov 90 19:53:39 GMT
References: <2431@anaxagoras.ils.nwu.edu> <4278@lib.tmc.edu> <26540.27343d31@kuhub.cc.ukans.edu>
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In article <26540.27343d31@kuhub.cc.ukans.edu> kuento@kuhub.cc.ukans.edu writes:
>... There are numerous other examples of neoteny in nature, perhaps two of the
>most obvious being the "gilled" salamanders (axolotls, mudpuppies),
>and a vast array of "puppy-like" dog breeds. Neoteny is also typified
>by very small genetic divergence between groups with large differences
>in morphology - precisely as we see between ourselves and the great
>apes. I seem to recall an article about all this by Stephen Jay Gould
>not too long ago. It's always made sense to me...
>----------------------------------------------------------------
>Doug Yanega        (Snow Museum, Univ. of KS, Lawrence, KS 66045)
>My card: 0 The Fool         "UT!"          Bitnet: Beeman@ukanvm
>"This is my theory, such as it is....which is mine. AAH-HEM!"

The giant axolotls of Mexico, at least, owe their neotenic condition to
iodine deficiency.   Feed them iodine, and they will lose their gills
and otherwise become land-dwellers (although I am not denying that
this "deficiency" may have evolutionary implications).

Re. "puppy-like" dog breeds, Konrad Lorenz (the duck-mama) has a chapter on
this in his interesting book, "King Solomon's Ring".  


Rick Chappell.