New fossils found in China reveal prehistoric reptile platypus

<p>Chinese paleontologists in Central China&#39;s Hubei Province have recently uncovered fossils of a prehistoric marine reptile that closely resembles the modern duck-billed platypus.</p><p>Two new specimens of the reptile discovered reveal that the animal,&nbsp;eretmorhipis carrolldongi, lived about 248 million years ago and showed similar hunting methods to today&#39;s platypus by using its bill made of cartilage.</p><p>The animal, about 70 centimeters long, also had a small head, tiny eyes, four flippers for swimming and a long, rigid body with triangular bony blades protruding from the back.</p><p>The specimens represent the oldest record of reptiles and mammals with extremely reduced visual capacity and used non-visual cues for prey detection, according to the paper published in Nature in January.</p><p>Before the study,&nbsp;eretmorhipis&nbsp;was only known from partial fossils with missing skulls, said Ryosuke Motani, a paleontologist at the University of California, Davis and co-author of the study.</p><p><span style="color: rgb(127, 127, 127);">(With inputs from China Daily)</span></p><p><span style="color: rgb(127, 127, 127);">(Video source: CGTN, cover image: VCG)</span></p>