Castorocauda lutrasimilis AKA The Jurassic Beaver
New Scientist is reporting on a new fossilized mammal species found in China. The article, ‘Jurassic beaver’ find stuns experts, explains that what makes this species special is that it is now the largest known mammal that lived during the Jurassic Period. Of course, it was still tiny (about 1.5+ ft) compared to the big dinosaurs of the time. It is also the oldest known mammal fossil found with fur. Short and dense underfur was carbonized in the fossil and longer gaurd hairs were left as impressions on the fossil slab.
The researchers’ full report published in Science can be found here: A Swimming Mammaliaform from the Middle Jurassic and Ecomorphological Diversification of Early Mammals [pdf]
Click on the thumbnails below to see the full size images.
Latin - Castor cauda lutra similis
English - beaver tail otter similar