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Fossil Shows Poison-Biting Small Mammal
Edmonton, Canada (UPI) Jun 24, 2005 A Canadian university student has discovered a fossil of a 60 million-year-old mouse-like mammal that had a rare, poisonous bite. Doctoral student Craig Scott was sorting through a box of fossils at the University of Alberta in Edmonton when he made the find, the Chicago Tribune said. Scott and a lab technician first noticed a groove along the upper front canine teeth on the recovered jaw of a Bisonalveus browni. Scott said he first thought the groove was a cavity, but then realized it was a system for delivering venom. "The groove in these teeth would have acted as a gutter, conducting fluid from its source in glandular tissues in the upper jaw down the height of the crown to its tip," he said. His professor, vertebrate paleontologist Richard Fox agreed. "Our discovery shows that mammals have been much more flexible in the evolution of venom delivery systems than previously believed," Fox said. The discovery is described in the Thursday issue of the research journal Nature. All rights reserved. Copyright 2004 by United Press International. Sections of the information displayed on this page (dispatches, photographs, logos) are protected by intellectual property rights owned by United Press International. As a consequence, you may not copy, reproduce, modify, transmit, publish, display or in any way commercially exploit any of the content of this section without the prior written consent of by United Press International. Community Email This Article Comment On This Article Related Links SpaceDaily Search SpaceDaily Subscribe To SpaceDaily Express Darwin Today At TerraDaily.com
Panda Paparrazi Swoons Over Cub Tai Shan At Washington Zoo
Washington (AFP) Nov 29, 2005There was 'panda-monium' at Washington's National Zoo on Tuesday as fluffy giant panda cub Tai Shan cavorted for the cameras, in his first encounter with the media pack. |
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