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Why Were There No Tiny Non-Avian Dinosaurs? Mammals May Have Been to Blame

10 August 2026 at 19:06
Torvosaurus gurneyi. Image credit: Β© Sergey Krasovskiy.

Dinosaurs evolved into some of the largest animals ever to walk the Earth, but a new mathematical model suggests that early mammals may have crowded them out of the ecological niches reserved for the smallest creatures.

The post Why Were There No Tiny Non-Avian Dinosaurs? Mammals May Have Been to Blame appeared first on Sci.News: Breaking Science News.

How Prehistoric Poop Changed Earth’s Ecosystems Forever

10 August 2026 at 15:46
Coprolite From a Museum Fossil CollectionAncient animal waste may have helped fuel the development and diversification of early marine ecosystems. Tiny pellets of fossilized waste may preserve evidence of a major transformation in early animal life. An international study led by Flinders University proposes that excrement helped reshape ancient oceans during one of evolution’s most important turning points. The researchers [...]

This Fossil Upends a Decades-Old Debate About Snake Evolution

10 August 2026 at 15:11
Early Snake Tametara mirimExceptionally preserved Brazilian fossil reveals early snakes explored several habitats. More than 4,000 snake species live today, yet the evolutionary path that produced their elongated, limbless bodies remains difficult to reconstruct. Snakes are highly modified lizards, but their limited fossil record has left one of evolutionary biology’s central questions unresolved. Scientists have long debated whether [...]
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