Chinese scientists discover ancient fossils of new rodent species

Based on the analysis of the teeth of the new species of rodents, it is believed that they lived in the late Eocene, about 38 million to 34 million years ago.

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BEIJING: A team of Chinese scientists has discovered ancient fossils of new rodent species in the country’s northwest region. According to the CGTN report, the discovery has been made in China's Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region.

The new species of rodent has been named Yuomys robustus. It is the largest in build and has the strongest teeth among all known species of rodents.

Gong Hao, a scientist working with the Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology affiliated to the Chinese Academy of Sciences, was the first to publish the finding of the discovery made by the group.

The scientists believe that the new rodent species may have weighed between 485 to 880 grams - about two to three times as much as rats.

Based on the 3D analysis of the teeth of the new species, the researchers estimated that the new species of rodents lived in the late Eocene, about 38 million to 34 million years ago.

Between the middle Eocene to the late Eocene, the cheek teeth of Yuomys gradually enlarged while the species' tooth crown height and body mass increased, the study said.