We haven't seen anything like it since the Great Chicken-or-Egg Debate. The accepted theory in snake evolution is that they came from a group of  sticky-tongued lizards (e.g. iguanas and chameleons). But Dr. Michael Caldwell, a professor in the Departments of Biological Sciences and Earth and Atmospheric Sciences at the University of Alberta, says no way. His research indicates snakes may have descended from an extinct group of marine lizards.

In the scientific community nothing gets its braniac citizens excited than a new theory that challenges a concept that's been around for so long it's accepted as the truth. Dr Caldwell says debates generated by his theory has been "mean, nasty, polemical, rhetorical and downright interesting." But he welcomes them and even enjoys being at the eye of the controversy.

"That's what keeps the science dynamic. Ideas and hypotheses should always be fluid and they should always be debated. Otherwise the cornerstone of what makes science science ceases to exist, the minute it becomes entrenched as dogma and no one questions it. Even if it seems to be a good idea, it should still be poked and prodded. Otherwise it sits there and rots."

Even outside Dr. Caldwell's circle, snakes have notorious reputations. While they are feared they are also held in awe, and depicted in art and mythology. Some species are dangerously venomous but snakes are important in nature. Humans, too, benefit from snakes which are major predators of rodents.  There are about 2,500 to 3,000 species of living snakes which are widely distributed throughout the world. Snakes can be found in almost all types of habitat except regions with perpetual snow.