Most people have heard of woolly mammoths. But another group of giant animals called Megatherium once roamed the earth even before the Ice Age. Meet the giant ground sloth. Megatherium (which translates quite aptly to “great beast”) is one of the largest known land-based mammals, eclipsed only by mammoths and an ancient species of rhinoceros […] More
Among modern-day carnivores, dogs, wolves, and their relatives (known as canids) are unique. Their snouts are long and narrow—in contrast to the short, compact faces of cats and weasels—and many of them are pack-hunting, high-endurance “pursuit predators” that run their prey to exhaustion. But millions of years ago, the world was full of other groups […] More
Researchers in Myanmar have discovered specimens of Chimerarachne yingi, an ancient arachnid and cousin of the modern spider, perfectly preserved in amber. The little critters look a lot like spiders we’re familiar with today, with one big difference. The Chimerarachne yingi has a long tail, like an early version of the tail on modern scorpions. According to the research […] More
Early humans roamed the planet with a colossal shaggy rhinoceros that scientists have dubbed the “Siberian unicorn.” The so-called unicorn, officially known as Elasmotherium sibericum, was a large rhinoceros that wandered Eastern Europe and Central Asia from 2.6 million years ago until just around 39,000 years ago. The animals weighed a staggering 4 tons and were adorned […] More
If you thought crocodiles were intimidating, you might be horrified to know that an aggressive, 9-ft-long crocodilian predator once patrolled its North American hunting grounds on hind legs, snacking on small mammals and reptiles. Carnufex carolinensis — also known as the “Carolina Butcher” — existed long before the dinosaurs rose to dominance, roughly 230 million years ago. The […] More
In an extremely rare find, researchers have discovered the fossil of an extinct animal—considered to be an early relative of mammals—lying next to her 38 babies. The fossils, unearthed from sediments in the Kayenta Formation, are the only known fossils of babies from a mammal precursor. The extraordinary number of offspring (more than twice the […] More
Think of the mammals that lived during the Age of Dinosaurs and tiny, shrew-like creatures scurrying around and hiding from larger reptilian predators probably come to mind. But newly-uncovered fossil specimens described in the journal Nature Communications paint a much different picture of a fearsome, fighting creature that would have been a threat not only to those smaller, […] More
A giant amphibian that lived about 70 million years ago in Madagascar will forever change the way you think of frogs. The so-called “devil frog” had a bite so powerful, it may have been able to snack on small dinosaurs. Weighing about 10 pounds and growing up to 16 inches long, Beelzebufo ampinga was likely […] More
Artistic rendering by Robert Boessenecker. A novel species of ancient toothless dolphin was discovered in the southern United States. The skull fossil, which was unearthed in a river near Charleston, South Carolina, contains holes indicative of enlarged lips or whiskers. In contrast to modern-day dolphins that grasp and tear prey with sharp teeth, this species would […] More
More than 10 million years before true dinosaurs appeared, an ancient predecessor roamed the earth, but it looked nothing like the dinosaurs we know today. Teleocrater rhadinus, as the new species is named, sported a long neck and tail but walked on all fours and had ankles like a crocodile. The ancient carnivore was 7-10 […] More
When you think of T. Rex, you probably imagine the terrifying, blood-thirsty predator from “Jurassic Park”. But it turns out there may be more to these famous dinosaurs than their massive size and blade-like teeth — they were actually sensitive lovers who liked to snuggle (kind of). According to new research published in Scientific Reports, tyrannosaur […] More
What do birds, crocodiles, and dinosaurs have in common? They’re all part of a group of animals called archosauromorpha and they typically reproduce by laying eggs. But not so with their relative: an ancient marine reptile known as Dinocephalosaurus. The Loch Ness monster look-alike grew to a length of about 13 feet, with its long neck […] More
