The key is in some 270-280 million year old fossils, of the oldest gorgonopsian on the known planet. It is the lineage of saber teeth that would eventually give rise to mammals. It appeared in Mallorca. And it is the oldest ancestor of mammals.
Gorgonopsians are a group that lived during the Permian between 270 and 250 million years ago. They are the evolutionary line that will give rise to the first mammals 50 million years later. They were warm-blooded animals like today’s mammals. Unlike most of these, they laid eggs. They were carnivores and were the first to develop the characteristic saber teeth. They were the super predators of the ecosystems where they lived and their appearance would be similar to that of a dog, but without ears or hair.
Excellent remains
The remains in Mallorca belong to an animal measuring one meter in length. They are in a site located in the municipality of Banyalbufar (Serra de Tramuntana). A large amount of material was recovered.
The oldest ancestor of mammals was almost complete. «The large number of bone remains is surprising. Fragments of skull, vertebrae, ribs, even a very well preserved femur. “We never thought we would find so many remains of an animal of this type in Mallorca.” explains it in a statement Rafel Matamales, from the Balearic Museum of Natural Sciences.
Its location in the Balearic Islands is an unusual fact in itself. The remains known before the discovery were in Russia or South Africa. Its age has also surprised the researchers who developed the study.
saber teeth
«It is the oldest on the planet. Among the excavated fossil remains, an almost complete leg stands out. It allowed us to study how the animal moved. They had their legs arranged vertically. They moved in a way that would be halfway between that of reptiles and that of mammals. This system is more efficient for walking and especially running.
The recovered saber teeth confirm their diet. «We know that it is a carnivorous animal. Saber teeth are a common feature in large ecosystem predators. The one we have found was surely the same in the environment in which he lived,” they highlight. The research has been published in the journal Nature Communications.
