Paleontologists have established the structure of the ear of a mammal with an age of 160 million years

Paleontologists have established the structure of the ear of a mammal with an age of 160 million years
Paleontologists have established the structure of the ear of a mammal with an age of 160 million years
Anonim

At Yunnan University, they found that the inner ear of the Haramiids consisted of three bones and was responsible only for hearing, unlike many representatives of the ancient fauna, in which sound perception was combined with chewing function

Researchers at Yunnan University in southwestern China have determined the structure of the inner ear of the haramids - ancient animals that lived on our planet about 160 million years ago. This was reported on Wednesday by the Xinhua news agency.

According to him, the hearing aid of a prehistoric herbivore, which outwardly resembled a squirrel, was significantly different from similar organs of reptiles and the first mammals. The auditory ossicles had an important feature: unlike other representatives of the fauna of that time, in the haramids they were separated from the lower jaw.

Thus, as noted by Chinese paleontologists, these animals have made a big step in the evolutionary process - they were able to hear better and respond faster to the appearance of predators.

Experts came to this conclusion after studying the fossil remains of this small animal. Detailed analysis confirmed that, unlike many representatives of the ancient fauna, in which sound perception was combined with chewing function, the inner ear of the haramids consisted of three bones and was responsible only for hearing.

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