Evolution: early mammal (Introduction)

by David Turell , Sunday, December 07, 2014, 15:56 (3639 days ago) @ David Turell

More fossil findings. They coexisted with dinosaurs:-http://www.newscientist.com/article/dn26669-giant-fossil-hints-at-the-diversity-of-early-primates.html#.VIR5-2AtC1s-"Scott's new find, comprising teeth and jaw fragments, reveals a new species with teeth twice the size and width of those from Purgatorius. He named it Ursolestus perpetior, the genus name meaning plunderer of the Bear Formation, where it was discovered.-"Its body mass was some 4 to 10 times that of a typical Purgatorius, making Ursolestus a giant among early primates, but not exceptionally large among post-impact mammals.-"This find demonstrates that there is more variation in the size of the earliest primates than has been previously documented," says Chester. Their diets are likely to have consisted of a combination of insects and non-leafy plant products such as fruit, he says."