法國(guó)科學(xué)家日前在一個(gè)有1億年歷史的琥珀中發(fā)現(xiàn)了哺乳動(dòng)物的毛發(fā),。由于琥珀中這些毛發(fā)被完整地保存下來，在顯微鏡下,，毛發(fā)內(nèi)部結(jié)構(gòu)清晰可見,。
法國(guó)國(guó)家科研中心23日發(fā)表公告說，法國(guó)雷恩大學(xué)科學(xué)家在法國(guó)夏朗德省發(fā)現(xiàn)了這個(gè)琥珀,，其中含有的早期哺乳動(dòng)物毛發(fā)與今天的哺乳動(dòng)物毛發(fā)非常相似,。
科學(xué)家認(rèn)為，擁有這種毛發(fā)的哺乳動(dòng)物應(yīng)該只有老鼠大小，因?yàn)樵?億年前的白堊紀(jì)中期,，哺乳動(dòng)物形體都很小,，其種類并不十分多樣化,。它可能是一種普通哺乳動(dòng)物或有袋類哺乳動(dòng)物,。后者的胚胎會(huì)在保育袋內(nèi)發(fā)育，比如今天的袋鼠就是此類動(dòng)物,。
科學(xué)家說,，發(fā)現(xiàn)琥珀的地方1億年前的氣候是亞熱帶氣候，當(dāng)時(shí)到處是針葉樹林,，樹脂經(jīng)常會(huì)從樹上掉下來,，包裹住一些動(dòng)植物，經(jīng)過歲月的洗禮最終變成琥珀,。（生物谷Bioon.com）
生物谷推薦原文出處：
Naturwissenschaften doi：10.1007/s00114-010-0677-8
Mammalian hairs in Early Cretaceous amber
Romain Vullo1 , Vincent Girard2 , Dany Azar3 and Didier Néraudeau1
(1) Université de Rennes 1, UMR CNRS 6118, Campus de Beaulieu, avenue du général Leclerc, 35042 Rennes, France
(2) Senckenberg Forschungsinstitut und Naturmuseum, Senckenberganlage 25, 60325 Frankfurt am Main, Germany
(3) Faculty of Sciences II, Department of Biology, Lebanese University, P.O. Box 26110217, Fanar-Matn, Lebanon
Two mammalian hairs have been found in association with an empty puparium in a ～100-million-year-old amber (Early Cretaceous) from France. Although hair is known to be an ancestral, ubiquitous feature in the crown Mammalia, the structure of Mesozoic hair has never been described. In contrast to fur and hair of some Jurassic and Cretaceous mammals preserved as carbonized filaments, the exceptional preservation of the fossils described here allows for the study of the cuticular structure. Results show the oldest direct evidence of hair with a modern scale pattern. This discovery implies that the morphology of hair cuticula may have remained unchanged throughout most of mammalian evolution. The association of these hairs with a possible fly puparium provides paleoecological information and indicates peculiar taphonomic conditions.
