http://www.sciencedaily.com/news/fossils_ruins/early_mammals/ Prehistoric Mammal News. From the first swimming mammals to a banana-jawed fossil mammal, read about all the news in paleontology. Current science articles and images. en-us Thu, 12 Nov 2009 02:05:01 EST Thu, 12 Nov 2009 02:05:01 EST 60 http://www.sciencedaily.com/images/logosmall.gif http://www.sciencedaily.com/news/fossils_ruins/early_mammals/ For more science articles, visit ScienceDaily. http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/11/091110202853.htm Were dinosaurs "warm-blooded" like present-day mammals and birds, or "cold-blooded" like present day lizards? The implications of this simple-sounding question go beyond deciding whether or not you'd snuggle up to a dinosaur on a cold winter's evening. In a new study, researchers have found strong evidence that many dinosaur species were probably warm-blooded. Wed, 11 Nov 2009 11:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/11/091110202853.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/11/091106103510.htm Remains of one of the oldest known marsupials have been recovered in Charente-Maritime, France, by palaeontologists. This discovery raises a new hypothesis about the dispersal route of the earliest marsupial mammals. Mon, 09 Nov 2009 05:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/11/091106103510.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/11/091102121449.htm Ever since the Falklands wolf was described by Darwin himself, the origin of this now-extinct canid found only on the Falkland Islands far off the east coast of Argentina has remained a mystery. Now, researchers who have compared DNA from four of the world's dozen or so known Falklands wolf museum specimens to that of living canids offer new insight into the evolutionary ancestry of these enigmatic carnivores. Tue, 03 Nov 2009 17:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/11/091102121449.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/07/090709132057.htm Europe's southern-most skeletal remains of a mammoth were unearthed in a moor on the 37 degree N latitude. This is considerably south of the inhospitable habitat than one usually imagines for mammoths, and for the characteristically dry and cold climate that prevailed during the ice ages in the north of Eurasia. Tue, 27 Oct 2009 02:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/07/090709132057.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/10/091008143001.htm An international team of paleontologists has discovered a new species of mammal that lived in China's Liaoning Province 123 million years ago. This remarkably well preserved fossil offers important insight into how the mammalian middle ear evolved. Such exquisite dinosaur-age mammals provide evidence of how developmental mechanisms have impacted the evolution of the earliest mammals. Fri, 09 Oct 2009 14:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/10/091008143001.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/09/090929194207.htm The origin of the "Celtic fringe" of genetically and culturally distinctive people in the Northern and Western British Isles is the source of fierce academic controversy. But new research into the movement of small mammals, such as voles and shrews, at the end of the last Ice Age, could provide important new clues to resolve the debate. Mon, 05 Oct 2009 02:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/09/090929194207.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/09/090927145354.htm The retroviruses which gave rise to HIV have been battling it out with mammal immune systems since mammals first evolved around 100 million years ago -- about 85 million years earlier than previously thought, scientists now believe. Mon, 28 Sep 2009 14:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/09/090927145354.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/09/090924185533.htm A comprehensive study that builds on previous phylogenetic research on cetaceans and that combines morphology, genetics, and behavior confirms that the closest living relative is the hippo and demonstrates that the closest fossil relative is Indohyus. These evolutionary relationships imply that stem whales adapted to water first, and then to carnivory. Fri, 25 Sep 2009 08:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/09/090924185533.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/09/090904071650.htm Biologists report new evidence for evolutionary change recorded in both the fossil record and the genomes (or genetic blueprints) of living organisms, providing fresh support for Charles Darwin's theory of evolution. The researchers were able to correlate the progressive loss of enamel in the fossil record with a simultaneous molecular decay of a gene, called the enamelin gene, that is involved in enamel formation in mammals. Mon, 07 Sep 2009 11:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/09/090904071650.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/07/090729092536.htm Mammals and many species of birds and fish are among "evolution's winners," while crocodiles, alligators and a reptile cousin of snakes known as the tuatara are among its losers, according to a new study. The study also shows new species emerge nearly as often as they die off. Mon, 24 Aug 2009 08:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/07/090729092536.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/08/090806121757.htm A period of global warming from 53 million to 47 million years ago strongly influenced plants and animals, spurring a biodiversity boom in western North America, researchers report. Mon, 10 Aug 2009 14:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/08/090806121757.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/07/090728083707.htm Scientists have discovered an extinct rodent species, based on fossil tooth remains found in Alborache, Valencia. Eomyops noeliae, from the Eomyidae family, represents the oldest find within this genus in the world. Thu, 06 Aug 2009 23:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/07/090728083707.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/06/090626084425.htm Paleontologists have discovered one of the oldest modern ungulates related to the elephant order. Thu, 30 Jul 2009 08:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/06/090626084425.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/07/090716093524.htm A new study of 30-million-year-old fossil 'mega-dung' from extinct giant South American mammals reveals evidence of complex ecological interactions and theft of dung-beetles' food stores by other animals. Mon, 20 Jul 2009 23:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/07/090716093524.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/06/090630215938.htm Scientists have performed the first DNA-based reconstruction of the giant extinct moa bird, using prehistoric feathers recovered from caves and rock shelters in New Zealand. Thu, 02 Jul 2009 23:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/06/090630215938.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/06/090629081131.htm When the ancestors of present marine mammals returned to the oceans, their physiology had to adapt radically. Scientists have been studying how myoglobin, the molecule responsible for delivering oxygen to the muscles during locomotion, has been modified in seals and whales to help them cope with the needs of a life at sea. Tue, 30 Jun 2009 20:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/06/090629081131.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/06/090617201758.htm Research finally proves that bones found in Shropshire, England, provide the most geologically recent evidence of woolly mammoths in Northwestern Europe. Analysis of both the bones and the surrounding environment suggests that some mammoths remained part of British wildlife long after they are conventionally believed to have become extinct. Thu, 18 Jun 2009 20:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/06/090617201758.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/06/090608131144.htm Sharktooth Hill near Bakersfield, Calif., is the home of the most extensive marine bone bed in the world, a 100-square-mile layer of shark, seal, ray, whale, turtle and fish bones. Researchers have analyzed the 15-million-year-old fossils to decipher the history of what used to be the California coastline, reconstructing a 700,000-year period of warming climate and teaming sea life. Wed, 10 Jun 2009 20:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/06/090608131144.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/06/090608182419.htm The woolly mammoth died out several thousand years ago, but the genetic material they left behind is yielding new clues about the evolution of mammals. Scientists have now analyzed the mammoth genome looking for mobile DNA elements, revealing new insights into how some of these elements arose in mammals and shaped the genome of an animal headed for extinction. Tue, 09 Jun 2009 14:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/06/090608182419.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/06/090602204255.htm A new study shows mammals change their dietary niches based on climate-driven environmental changes, contradicting a common assumption that species maintain their niches despite global warming. Wed, 03 Jun 2009 11:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/06/090602204255.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/06/090601140932.htm Ancestors of tapirs and ancient cousins of rhinos living above the Arctic Circle 53 million years ago endured six months of darkness each year in a far milder climate than today that featured lush, swampy forests, according to a new study. Mon, 01 Jun 2009 20:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/06/090601140932.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/05/090525173545.htm Packs of hunting dogs, troops of baboons, herds of antelope: when people observe social animals, they are often struck by how intelligent they seem, and recent studies suggest that sociality has played a key role in the evolution of larger brain size among several orders of mammals. But new research calls this hypothesis into question -- at least for carnivores. Tue, 26 May 2009 05:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/05/090525173545.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/05/090519104643.htm Scientists have found a 47-million-year-old human ancestor. Discovered in Germany, the fossil is 20 times older than most fossils that explain human evolution. Known as "Ida," the fossil is a transitional species -- it shows characteristics from the very primitive non-human evolutionary line (prosimians, such as lemurs), but is more related to the human evolutionary line (anthropoids, such as monkeys, apes and humans). At 95% complete, the fossil provides the most complete understanding of the paleobiology of any Eocene primate so far discovered. Tue, 19 May 2009 11:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/05/090519104643.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/05/090518103229.htm Analyses of the fossilized remains of the jaws and teeth of a shrew discovered in Spain have shown this to be a new species. The extinct animal had red teeth, was large in size compared with mammals of the same family, and was more closely related to Asian than European shrews. Mon, 18 May 2009 20:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/05/090518103229.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/05/090507185535.htm Ancient Madagascan hippos have shed light on the origins of the small brain of the 1-metre-tall human, known as the hobbit. By examining the skulls of extinct Madagascan hippos, scientists discovered that dwarfed mammals on islands evolved much smaller brains in relation to their body size. Fri, 08 May 2009 11:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/05/090507185535.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/04/090428171004.htm Paleontologists have completed a rigorous study that has culminated in a new approach to reconciling the conflict between fossil and molecular data in evolutionary studies. Thu, 30 Apr 2009 17:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/04/090428171004.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/04/090428171006.htm A limestone countertop, a practiced eye and Google Earth all played roles in the discovery of a trove of fossils that may shed light on the origins of African wildlife. Wed, 29 Apr 2009 20:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/04/090428171006.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/04/090408170815.htm By comparing the craniodental morphology of modern bear species to that of two extinct species, researchers have discovered that the expired plantigrades were not so different from their current counterparts. The cave bear, regarded as the great herbivore of the carnivores, was actually more omnivorous than first thought. The short-faced bear, a hypercarnivore, also ate plants depending on their availability. The work offers key insights into the evolution of the carnivore niches during the Ice Age. Mon, 13 Apr 2009 11:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/04/090408170815.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/03/090319224524.htm A retrovirus related to HIV became stably integrated into the genome of several lemurs around 4.2 million years ago, according to new research. The analysis of prosimian immunodeficiency virus offers new insights into the evolution of lentiviruses. Tue, 24 Mar 2009 23:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/03/090319224524.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/03/090312174733.htm A new study could help resolve a long-standing debate in shark paleontology: From which line of species did the modern great white shark evolve? Fri, 13 Mar 2009 17:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/03/090312174733.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/03/090305204321.htm Researchers have discovered that a long-defunct gene was resurrected during the course of human evolution. This is believed to be the first evidence of a doomed gene -- infection-fighting human IRGM -- making a comeback in the human/great ape lineage. Wed, 11 Mar 2009 17:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/03/090305204321.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/02/090225161508.htm A pregnant fossil fish at the Natural History Museum in London has shed light on the possible origin of sex, according to a new study. Dating from the Upper Devonian period 365 million years ago, the adult placoderm fish Incisoscutum ritchiei is one of the earliest examples of a pregnant vertebrate and contains a five-centimetre-long embryo. Thu, 26 Feb 2009 14:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/02/090225161508.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/02/090225132355.htm More than 80 stone implements were discovered together in Boulder city limits by landscapers. A biochemical analysis of a rare Clovis-era stone tool cache recently unearthed in the city limits of Boulder, Colo., indicates some of the implements were used to butcher ice-age camels and horses that roamed North America until their extinction about 13,000 years ago, according to a new study. Thu, 26 Feb 2009 08:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/02/090225132355.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/02/090213114309.htm The recent developments of noninvasive techniques such as tracking mammals to gather feces, and sensitive assays for fecal hormone metabolites, have allowed the formulation of a more complete picture of the relationships among behavior, social systems and hormone function in mammals in the wild -- sometimes contradicting findings in the lab. Mon, 23 Feb 2009 20:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/02/090213114309.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/02/090218090539.htm The Page Museum at the La Brea Tar Pits in Los Angeles has announced an endeavor of discovery and research so enormous that it could potentially rewrite the scientific account of the world-famous La Brea Tar Pits and their surrounding area -- one of the richest sources of life in the last Ice Age, approximately 40,000 to 10,000 years ago. Thu, 19 Feb 2009 11:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/02/090218090539.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/02/090209075822.htm In just four years one palaeontologist has discovered 48 new species from the age of the dinosaurs using a systematic search method. The new discoveries, found hidden in mud on the Isle of Wight, are around 130 million years old and shed valuable light on the poorly understood world in which well known dinosaurs roamed. Mon, 09 Feb 2009 14:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/02/090209075822.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/02/090204085133.htm Two newly described fossil whales -- a pregnant female and a male of the same species -- reveal how primitive whales gave birth and provide new insights into how whales made the transition from land to sea. Wed, 04 Feb 2009 17:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/02/090204085133.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/01/090126082351.htm A recent study by researchers in England has found that scientists' knowledge of the evolution of dinosaurs is remarkably complete. Fri, 30 Jan 2009 17:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/01/090126082351.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/01/090121092403.htm The fossil of a lizard-like New Zealand reptile has been identified by a team of scientists. The fossil, dating back 18 million years, has triggered fresh arguments over whether the continent was fully submerged some 25 million years ago. Thu, 29 Jan 2009 08:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/01/090121092403.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/01/090127165505.htm The Cretaceous--Tertiary mass extinction 65 million years ago may have wiped out the dinosaurs, but those that survived -- the ancestors of today's birds -- may have done so because of their bird brains. Wed, 28 Jan 2009 17:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/01/090127165505.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/01/090112201131.htm All the genes that the exotic Tasmanian Tiger inherited only from its mother will be revealed in a new article. The research marks the first successful sequencing of genes from this carnivorous marsupial, which looked like a large tiger-striped dog and became extinct in 1936. The research also opens the door to the widespread, nondestructive use of museum specimens to learn why mammals become extinct and how extinctions might be prevented. Tue, 13 Jan 2009 11:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/01/090112201131.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/12/081216205707.htm For years, scientists have wondered why only males of the rarely seen family of beaked whales have "tusks," since they are squid-eaters and in many of the species, these elaborately modified teeth seem to actually interfere with feeding. Thu, 18 Dec 2008 05:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/12/081216205707.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/11/081111093919.htm The newly described skull of the oldest woolly rhinoceros in Europe shows that these giant creatures -- with two impressively large horns on the bridge of their noses -- once roamed across central Germany. The large shaggy mammals grazed at the foot of the Kyffhäuser range, whose unforested, rocky slopes loomed out of the broad, bleak plains of northern Thuringia 460,000 years ago. The climate at this time was icy cold and far drier than today. Wed, 12 Nov 2008 08:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/11/081111093919.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/11/081105081955.htm A new ancient DNA study published in PLoS One is the first to demonstrate that disease can cause extinction in mammals, supporting the "hyperdisease" hypothesis. This study found rat-specific trypanosomes in museum specimens of native Christmas Island rats collected after but not before contact with black rats. It is assumed that black rats brought the pathogen to these immunologically naïve species; both Rattus macleari and R. nativitatis went extinct within a decade, by 1908. Thu, 06 Nov 2008 08:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/11/081105081955.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/10/081031102304.htm The sabertooth cat, one of the most iconic extinct mammal species, was likely to be a social animal, living and hunting like lions today, according to new scientific research. The species is famous for its extremely long canine teeth, which reached up to seven inches in length and extended below the lower jaw of the cat. Fri, 31 Oct 2008 17:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/10/081031102304.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/09/080918171155.htm Researchers have shown that the origin and evolution of the placenta and uterus in mammals is associated with evolutionary changes in a single regulatory protein, according to new report. Tue, 23 Sep 2008 14:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/09/080918171155.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/09/080904145058.htm In a surprising reversal of conventional wisdom, a DNA-based study has revealed that the last of the woolly mammoths--which lived between 40,000 and 4,000 years ago--had roots that were exclusively North American. Fri, 05 Sep 2008 11:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/09/080904145058.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/09/080904102756.htm Echolocation may have evolved more than once in bats, according to new research from the University of Bristol. Thu, 04 Sep 2008 23:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/09/080904102756.htm