The Evolution of Vertebrate Hearing

Abstract

The origin of the vertebrate ear is shrouded in the mystery of the origin of the vertebrates themselves. As with any problem of evolution, a consideration of vertebrate ancestry follows two procedures: the tracing among animals now living of likely lines of relationship, and an examination of the fossil record for evidence to verify and extend the living history. Here, however, we are faced with special difficulties, for the ancestors of the vertebrates were softbodied marine creatures that have left insignificant fossil remains and that have had few survivors.