Anybody else have any ideas on this?
Out of my league Capt - at least using what I know about evolution (where I feel more comfortable than herpetology)
My first thought is that this would seem to be a "weakness in the blueprint", and so isn't likely.
It certainly isn't impossible though - evolution proceeds with random changes propagated into each individual, and those changes that lead to a greater probablility of survival until reproduction tend to be conserved, while those that lead to a lower probability of survival until reproduction tend to be eliminated.
But, (A) Those changes that are neutral with regard to survival can stick around, and (B) evolution isn't finished yet - it never will be - so long as you have a viable population moving forward through time with reproduction cycles, and that is subject to survival pressures, the blueprint will be improved. Although overall designs are excellent and sophisticated, there are many examples of useless (like our vestigial tail) and problematic (like our inflammatory/immune response) design features that remain today .
So, to make a short story long
- IMO, possible, but not likely.