Paleontologists working in northern Alaska have discovered a tiny fossil mammal that thrived in what may have been among the coldest conditions on Earth about 73 million years ago. The researchers, led by Jaelyn Eberle of the University of Colorado Boulder, described the Late Cretaceous animal in
  • blackbrook@mander.xyzEnglish
    2·
    1 year ago

    This blows my mind:

    The researchers identified the new species from only a handful of tiny teeth, each about the size of a grain of sand.

    Unlike dinosaurs from the same time period, which left behind large bones, the only fossils remaining from the region’s mammals are a few teeth and fragments of jaws. To recover these precious specimens, the group collects buckets of dirt from the riverbanks. In the lab, the researchers wash away the mud and sort what remains under a microscope.

    “You look under the microscope and see this perfect little tooth,” Eberle said. “It’s so tiny.”