On: Chernobyl black frogs reveal evolution in action

[samatman]

What's started?

We had fur at one point, and our still-furred cousins have pink skin, so our ancestors probably did as well.

It's generally believed to be the case that dark skin evolved with hairlessness, and was lost by some branches of the tree during the glacial period.

[vilhelm_s → samatman]

I think apes are generally black or brown under the fur, not pink. See e.g. https://www.reddit.com/r/pics/comments/bacdh/here_is_a_pic_o... https://twitter.com/gorillasdaily/status/1417126388281266185...

[BurningFrog → vilhelm_s]

Googling "shaved chimpanzee" (did something new today!) gives photos in the pink/gray range.

https://www.google.com/search?q=shaved+chimpanzee

[samatman → BurningFrog]

And are our closest cousins, yes.

Here's a popular-press citation for the consensus that our furred common ancestor was pink skinned: https://www.discovermagazine.com/planet-earth/why-did-darker...

[BurningFrog → samatman]

Nice. I was aware of the folate/vitamin D balance, but hadn't heard anything about sub-fur skin color.

[sdflhasjd → samatman]

If we go back far enough, we have ancestors without any skin at all. Boom, problem solved.