New study of fossil bone growth reveals the ancestry of mammalian 'warm-bloodness'
Thursday, October 22, 2015 - 06:40
in Paleontology & Archaeology
Most people know that 'warm-bloodedness' is a characteristic of mammals. This trait actually encompasses a suite of physiological processes that help to maintain a relatively high, constant body temperature using heat generated internally. A new study by Christen Don Shelton of the University of Cape Town, South Africa and his colleague, Martin Sander at the University of Bonn, Germany, presented at this year's Society of Vertebrate Paleontology meeting, shows that this character may have shown up in the ancestors of modern mammals far earlier than was previously thought.