Paleontologists have discovered a unique fossil in which two animals were frozen forever in a deadly battle.
DailyMail writes that paleontologists have found a stunning fossil of a dinosaur and badger-like mammal clashing in a deadly battle.
The fossil depicts a struggle that occurred 125 million years ago when a predatory mammal attacked a large herbivorous dinosaur. The discovery is one of the first evidence that mammals attacked larger dinosaurs, not just babies.
According to scientists, the dinosaur fossils once belonged to a Psittacosaurus no bigger than a large dog. Its name translates as “parrot lizard”, which accurately reflects the appearance of the dinosaur.
At the same time, a representative of the repenomam species (Repenomamus robustus) turned out to be a badger-like mammal. Compared to dinosaurs, this mammal cannot boast of formidable size. However, repenomams were among the largest mammals of the Cretaceous period, when this species did not yet dominate the Earth.
A unique fossil has been found in China’s Liaoning province, where the skeletons of both creatures are almost completely preserved. A closer look at the fossil shows how a brave representative of mammals climbed onto a dinosaur’s back and tucked it between its jaws.
The predatory mammal burrows into the dinosaur’s ribs and uses its hind legs to cling more firmly to its prey.
Scientists believe that this couple could be buried under a landslide that could have occurred as a result of a volcanic eruption.
“Two animals engaged in a deadly fight, and this is one of the first evidences of a mammal’s predatory behavior against a dinosaur. The coexistence of two animal species is not new, but the predatory behavior demonstrated by the fossil is unique.” Says one of the study’s co-authors from the Canadian Museum of Nature Jordan Mallon.
Recall that the fossil of an ancient animal can change the history of some mammals. The fact is that egg-laying mammals have evolved on more than one continent.
Source: Focus
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