Researchers Believe Chinese Fossil Shows Mammal Attacking Dinosaur

2023-08-03

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1
  • A new fossil study by researchers from China and Canada suggests that ancient mammals may have attacked and eaten larger dinosaurs.
  • 2
  • The scientists looked at a fossil found by a Chinese farmer in 2012.
  • 3
  • A fossil is the mineralized remains of an animal or plant left in an ancient rock.
  • 4
  • The scientists said the fossil is from 125 million years ago.
  • 5
  • They published their findings recently in the journal Scientific Reports.
  • 6
  • The scientists believe a mammal, similar to a badger, attacked a small, beaked dinosaur.
  • 7
  • During the attack, the animals were caught up in a lava flow from a nearby volcano.
  • 8
  • The moment was locked in time until it was found over 12 years ago.
  • 9
  • Researchers call the place where the fossil was found "China's Pompeii."
  • 10
  • Pompeii was a city in Italy that was caught in a volcanic eruption about 2000 years ago.
  • 11
  • Ash covered the city and preserved moments from daily life.
  • 12
  • Researchers discovered the ruins of the city about 500 years ago.
  • 13
  • In the past, dinosaur researchers believed small, scavenging mammals might have eaten dead dinosaurs.
  • 14
  • However, they were not sure that mammals attacked living dinosaurs.
  • 15
  • Jordan Mallon is a paleobiologist at the Canadian Museum of Nature in Ottawa, Ontario. He was one of the study's writers.
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  • "I've never seen a fossil like this before," he said.
  • 17
  • Steve Brusatte is a paleontologist at the University of Edinburgh in Scotland.
  • 18
  • He did not work on the study.
  • 19
  • He described the fossil as a "freeze frame" or something like a photograph.
  • 20
  • "It turns the old story on its head," he said.
  • 21
  • Brusatte said the old idea was that dinosaurs ruled the world with small mammals "in the shadows."
  • 22
  • Mallon said he would be happy for other scientists to examine the fossil if they are concerned that it might not be real.
  • 23
  • He described the mammal as about the size of a house cat.
  • 24
  • He said the dinosaur was about the size of an average dog.
  • 25
  • He said the species of dinosaur is Psittacosaurus and the mammal is called Repenomamus.
  • 26
  • The dinosaur ate plants, but other dinosaurs ate meat and hunted mammals.
  • 27
  • Mallon said it would have been more common for a dinosaur to hunt a mammal, but the fossil he studied shows something new.
  • 28
  • "We now know that the mammals were able to fight back, at least at times," he said.
  • 29
  • I'm Dan Friedell.
  • 1
  • A new fossil study by researchers from China and Canada suggests that ancient mammals may have attacked and eaten larger dinosaurs.
  • 2
  • The scientists looked at a fossil found by a Chinese farmer in 2012. A fossil is the mineralized remains of an animal or plant left in an ancient rock.
  • 3
  • The scientists said the fossil is from 125 million years ago. They published their findings recently in the journal Scientific Reports.
  • 4
  • The scientists believe a mammal, similar to a badger, attacked a small, beaked dinosaur. During the attack, the animals were caught up in a lava flow from a nearby volcano. The moment was locked in time until it was found over 12 years ago.
  • 5
  • Researchers call the place where the fossil was found "China's Pompeii." Pompeii was a city in Italy that was caught in a volcanic eruption about 2000 years ago. Ash covered the city and preserved moments from daily life. Researchers discovered the ruins of the city about 500 years ago.
  • 6
  • In the past, dinosaur researchers believed small, scavenging mammals might have eaten dead dinosaurs. However, they were not sure that mammals attacked living dinosaurs.
  • 7
  • Jordan Mallon is a paleobiologist at the Canadian Museum of Nature in Ottawa, Ontario. He was one of the study's writers.
  • 8
  • "I've never seen a fossil like this before," he said.
  • 9
  • Steve Brusatte is a paleontologist at the University of Edinburgh in Scotland. He did not work on the study. He described the fossil as a "freeze frame" or something like a photograph.
  • 10
  • "It turns the old story on its head," he said. Brusatte said the old idea was that dinosaurs ruled the world with small mammals "in the shadows."
  • 11
  • Mallon said he would be happy for other scientists to examine the fossil if they are concerned that it might not be real.
  • 12
  • He described the mammal as about the size of a house cat. He said the dinosaur was about the size of an average dog.
  • 13
  • He said the species of dinosaur is Psittacosaurus and the mammal is called Repenomamus. The dinosaur ate plants, but other dinosaurs ate meat and hunted mammals.
  • 14
  • Mallon said it would have been more common for a dinosaur to hunt a mammal, but the fossil he studied shows something new.
  • 15
  • "We now know that the mammals were able to fight back, at least at times," he said.
  • 16
  • I'm Dan Friedell.
  • 17
  • Dan Friedell adapted this story for Learning English based on a report by the Associated Press.
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  • ____________________________________________________
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  • Words in This Story
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  • beaked -adj. having a beak like a bird which is made of hard material
  • 21
  • lava -n. melted rock
  • 22
  • eruption -n. the explosion that results when pressure underneath a volcano bursts out
  • 23
  • scavenging -adj. something that does not hunt for live food but that looks for animals killed by other causes
  • 24
  • paleobiologist -n. a scientist who studies prehistoric life
  • 25
  • species -n. a kind of animal or plant that can reproduce with others of its kind
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  • ____________________________________________________
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  • We want to hear from you. What do you think of the new information about ancient mammals?
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