Life-like reconstruction of the opossum-sized mammal Adalatherium hui that lived 66 million years ago alongside dinosaurs on the island of Madagascar during the Cretaceous Period. Denver Museum of Nature & Science/Andrey Atuchin/Handout via REUTERS THIS IMAGE HAS BEEN SUPPLIED BY A THIRD PARTY. NO RESALES. NO ARCHIVES.
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A prehistoric opossum-sized critter dubbed the "crazy beast" that inhabited Madagascar at the end of the age of dinosaurs is providing scientists insight into early mammalian evolution even as they scratch their heads over its bewildering anatomy.
Researchers on Wednesday described an exquisitely preserved fossil of the plant-eating mammal named Adalatherium hui, which lived 66 million years ago during the Cretaceous Period and superficially resembled a badger with its long torso and stubby tail.
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