Stories by John A. Long

is strategic professor in paleontology at Flinders University in South Australia. His research focuses on the early evolution of vertebrates, including the three-dimensionally preserved Devonian-age fossil fishes found in the Gogo formation in Western Australia. In 2020 he received the prestigious Bettison and James Award for lifelong achievement for his work as both a scientist and an author. Credit: Nick Higgins

Evolution

How a 380-Million-Year-Old Fish Gave Us Fingers

A remarkable fossil reveals that the digits in our hands evolved before vertebrates emerged from the water to colonize land

June 17, 2020 — John A. Long and Richard Cloutier

Evolution

Dawn of the Deed: The Origin of Sex

Fish fossils push back the origin of copulation in backboned animals and suggest that it was a key turning point in our evolution

December 22, 2010 — John A. Long