Scientists unearth fossils of two ancient burrowing mammal-like animals

[Prehistory Resurrection]

Paleontologists have unearthed two new species of burrowing mammal-like animals that existed around 120 million years ago in what is now known as northeastern China.The fossil of the mammaliamorph species, which are predecessors to mammals, were found in the Jehol Biota and identified to represent the Early Cretaceous era about 100 to 145 million years ago. One is the mammal-like reptile called a tritylodontid, which is the first of its kind to be retrieved in this biota. Around a foot in length, it was assigned the name Fossiomanus sinensis (Fossio means "digging," manus "hand," and sinensis "from China.") The other discovered fossil, measuring seven inches long, was given the name Juecondon cheni ("Jue" or digging from Chinese pinyin, the system of Romanized spelling for transliterating Chinese, and conodon or "cuspate tooth" and cheni for Y. Chen, who found the fossil). It is categorized as a eutriconodontan, a far-off cousin of modern placental mammals and marsupials, which was widespread in the habitat.

[Halichoeres]

These are such cool fossils. I wonder if we'll ever find specimens of these with soft tissue preserved, which could tell us for sure whether tritylodontids had fur (probably) or pinnae (probably not). And this artwork from Zhao Chuang['s workshop], phenomenal! It's surely wishful thinking, but I'd love to have these as PNSO miniatures.

[Shonisaurus]

These are such cool fossils. I wonder if we'll ever find specimens of these with soft tissue preserved, which could tell us for sure whether tritylodontids had fur (probably) or pinnae (probably not). And this artwork from Zhao Chuang['s workshop], phenomenal! It's surely wishful thinking, but I'd love to have these as PNSO miniatures.

What a cool illustration, not only could PNSO represent those species of prehistoric mammals from the time of the dinosaurs, companies like Safari or Collecta could also be encouraged to give two examples.