Odd Saber-Toothed Beast Discovered
Thriving long before the dinosaur age, Tiarajudens eccentricus was armed
with an incredible arsenal of teeth for grinding, tearing, and even
scaring. But the newly discovered saber-toothed mammal ancestor was a
vegetarian, a new study says.
Not only did the big-dog-size animal have huge canines--each as large as
a crayon--but the roof of the animal's mouth appears to have been
studded with teeth, which allowed for rapid replacement of lost teeth,
as in sharks, researchers say.
Part of the Anomodontia suborder within the Therapsida order--often
called mammal-like reptiles--the 260-million-year-old fossil vegetarian
"looks like a combination of different animals, and it takes some time
to believe it when you see this animal in front of you," said
paleontologist Juan Carlos Cisneros, who discovered the fossil in
Brazil.
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