(Photo :Oldest Evolutionary Mammal Fossil Unearthed in China)

The said mammal that lived with the dinosaurs 170 million years ago looked like a rat with a resemblance of a chipmunk in nature according to its bone structure.

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Both Chinese and American researchers were amazed to discover that the fossil managed to stay intact and almost very completely upon its discovery. Through the completeness level of the fossils found, researchers confirmed that this oldest mammal to live on earth did possess a structure of a chipmunk and a rat in nature, that's why researchers named it as "Rugosodon Eurasiaticus."

This mammal type had been identified as a member of the multituberculates, according to researcher Xinhua. They are a group of mammals who lived with the earth giants - the Dinosaurs 170 million years ago. But habitat competition between their race and the modern rodents drove Rugosodon Eurasiaticus underground which led to their extinction, as believed by researchers.  

This newly discovered mammal was actually named after its fossil structure. Its teeth formation was like those of corals in texture or "rugose" in nature. From there, researchers declared that this mammal was an omnivore. It feeds on ferns, gymnosperm plants, leaves, seeds, insects and worms. Its classification to be an omnivore was officially confirmed by two reliable sources, the Chinese Academy of Geological Sciences and University of Chicago.

One extra special discovery about this newest mammal was its ability to rotate its ankle bones in "hyper-back-rotation" and still posses such strong ankles to run fast while surviving nocturnally.

This new mammal found in Chinese grounds is very similar to the one found in the western part of Europe, Portugal. This made researchers conclude about a balanced paleogeographic distribution of this specie, took place along the Eurasian continents 100-160 years ago, as stated by researcher Luo.