The first vertebrates on Earth arose in shallow coastal waters

A new study answers an enduring question about where our earliest backboned ancestors lived

early vertebrate illustration

CLOSE TO SHORE  The earliest vertebrates, including this illustrated armored fish that lived 455 million years ago in what is now Colorado, evolved within a shallow, nearshore coastal zone.

Nobumichi Tamura

The cradle of vertebrate evolution was limited to a zone of shallow coastal waters, no more than 60 meters deep.