What is the somite?

Somites are blocks of mesoderm that are located on either side of the neural tube in the developing vertebrate embryo. ... Somites also determine the migratory paths of neural crest cells and of the axons of spinal nerves.

What germ layer do somites come from?

The first somites appear in the anterior portion of the trunk, and new somites “bud off” from the rostral end of the paraxial mesoderm at regular intervals (Figures 14.2C,D and 14.3). Somite formation begins as paraxial mesoderm cells become organized into whorls of cells called somitomeres.