New Zealand Fossil Challenges Scientific Theory

A team of scientists has discovered a unique, primitive type of land mammal that lived at least 16 million years ago in New Zealand. The discovery of tiny fossilized bones of a mouse-like creature in the Central Otago region is the first hard evidence that New Zealand once had its own indigenous land mammals. The finding could prompt a major rewrite of pre-history textbooks.

Scientists have long believed that New Zealand had an unusual avian biota that lived on the ground because there were no mammals to impede or compete with birds. It appears that this little mouselike animal was part of the fauna on the ancient Gondwana supercontinent and it got stuck on New Zealand when it separated from the continent more than 80 million years ago. The discovery also challenges geological claims that New Zealand was entirely submerged beneath the sea from 25 to 30 million years ago and re-colonized by plant and animal species from nearby land masses like Australia once it re-emerged.