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Mammal ancestors laid eggs, and this 250-million-year-old fossil finally proves it
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reallykindasorta slrpnk.net reallykindasorta@slrpnk.net
Joined: 2024-04-19
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Summary:

In the aftermath of Earth’s most catastrophic extinction event, one unlikely survivor rose to dominate a shattered world: Lystrosaurus. Now, a stunning fossil discovery—an ancient egg containing a curled-up embryo—has finally answered a decades-old mystery about whether mammal ancestors laid eggs. Using advanced imaging technology, scientists confirmed that these resilient creatures did reproduce this way, likely producing large, soft-shelled eggs packed with nutrients.

Julien Benoit, Vincent Fernandez, Jennifer Botha. The first non-mammalian synapsid embryo from the Triassic of South Africa. PLOS One, 2026; 21 (4): e0345016 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0345016

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mika_mika lemmy.world mika_mika@lemmy.world
Joined: 2025-07-17
#2 · Quote Reply

Any mammalogist would know mammal ancestors laid eggs. This was never a fucking mystery.

"Researchers found preserved egg of mammal ancestor" I guess isn't as spicy.

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