Animals called caecilians may have been among the first vertebrates on land to lace their bites with venom.

Bagging a caecilian specimen, he said, often takes hours of laborious digging, carefully executed so a poorly aimed shovel doesn’t cleave the creature in two.

The discovery would mark the first time venom glands have been found in the mouth of an amphibian — one whose evolutionary history predates the appearance of snakes by more than 100 million years.

Jared, was baffled when he discovered a series of fluid-filled ducts lining the teeth of a ringed caecilian specimen in the lab.

Dental tissue also happens to be the point of origin for venom glands in snakes, which could help explain the purpose of the newfound ducts, Dr.

Without legs or arms to parry with predators or prey, animals like snakes and caecilians must rely heavily on their heads.

Caecilians, like some snakes, are equipped with impressive teeth, and can get pretty “bitey,” said Emma Sherratt, an evolutionary biologist at the University of Adelaide who wasn’t involved in the study.

The researchers are also unsure how widespread venom glands are among caecilian species, which currently number more than 200 (with many more likely unknown).

If the ducts are found in ancient lineages, it could indicate that caecilians were among the first land-living vertebrates to lace their bites with venom.