Source: TH
Context: A remarkable fossil discovered in north-eastern China sheds light on the complex interactions between mammals and dinosaurs during the Mesozoic Era, around 125 million years ago.
- The fossil shows a small badger-like mammal called Repenomamus robustus attacking a medium-sized, plant-eating dinosaur named Psittacosaurus lujiatunensis.
- The fossil provides evidence of a smaller mammal preying on a larger dinosaur, challenging the traditional belief that dinosaurs always ate smaller mammals.
The discovery suggests that Mesozoic food webs were more complex than previously thought, with some mammals being active predators rather than just prey. This find also challenges the idea that mammals only scavenged dinosaur carcasses. The interaction between Repenomamus and Psittacosaurus is a unique example of a mammal preying on a dinosaur.
