A fish caught off South Africa in 1938 turned out to be a Coelacanth, a lobefin once thought extinct. Why is this group evolutionarily significant in the NCERT account?
A{'text': 'Coelacanths represent the direct ancestors of all modern bony fish lineages', 'label': 'A'}
B{'text': 'Lobefins gave rise to the first reptiles, bypassing any amphibian stage', 'label': 'B'}
C{'text': 'Lobefins evolved into the first amphibians, ancestral to frogs and salamanders', 'label': 'C'}
D{'text': 'Coelacanths represent the very first jawed vertebrates in the fossil record', 'label': 'D'}
Answer & Solution
Correct answer: C. {'text': 'Lobefins evolved into the first amphibians, ancestral to frogs and salamanders', 'label': 'C'}
The chapter states that fish with stout strong fins (lobefins) could move on land and return to water about 350 mya, and that lobefins evolved into the first amphibians. The 1938 Coelacanth catch showed that a lineage close to that transition still survived.
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