Fossil offers a glimpse into mammals' past
Zimmer, C.
Science 283(5410): 1989-1990
1999
ISSN/ISBN: 0036-8075 PMID: 10206896 Document Number: 507626
In the current Nature, Ji Qiang of the National Geological Museum of China and colleagues report the discovery of the world's oldest complete mammal fossil. Dating back at least 120 million years, the fossil--a rat-size chimera that walked on mammalian front legs and splayed reptilian hind legs--is a close relative of the common ancestor of all mammals living today. According to John Wible of the Carnegie Museum of Natural History in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, the completeness of the fossil is very surprising.