Examination of a 57-million-year-old nearly complete fossil skeleton (selected bones pictured) has advanced a long debate over the place of the mammal Ernanodon antelios in evolutionary history.

Credit: P. KONDRASHOV

The fossil of the ancient mammal was discovered in rocks in Mongolia. Peter Kondrashov and Alexandre Agadjanian from the Borissiak Paleontological Institute of the Russian Academy of Sciences in Moscow describe E. antelios as having strong forelimbs and large claws, which it used to scratch and dig for food. Examination of the bones led the authors to suggest that the mammal is more closely related to pangolins than it is to armadillos and anteaters.

J. Vertebr. Paleontol. 32, 983–1001 (2012)