Researchers in England have discovered the fossilized teeth of humanity's earliest mammalian ancestors — and the creatures were not what you might think. The teeth belonged to small, furry, rat-like animals that shared the planet with the dinosaurs, 145 million years ago. Researchers were able to determine that one creature was likely a nocturnal burrower that ate insects. The fossilized teeth were found in southern England, on the coast of Dorset. "These are the ancestors of placentals, and therefore the ancestors of us, and creatures as diverse as the pygmy shrew and the blue whale," Sweetman said.

Source: CBC News November 08, 2017 09:59 UTC