What was the first poisonous animal on Earth

At the word "poisonous" we primarily represent a snake: open mouths, sharp teeth, a cobra's hood, a rattle of a rattlesnake. But the amazing thing is, the first poisonous vertebrates on Earth were not snakes, which appeared no earlier than 93 million years ago. And not dinosaurs, the earliest species of which developed about 230 million years ago. The first poisonous was the ancestor ... of mammals! And he lived long before the reptiles 260 million years ago, during the Permian period, not far from the center of present-day South Africa.

Do not put a finger in your mouth

The creature in question is Euchambersia mirabilis, which is the ancestor of modern mammals. It was about 50 centimeters in size. He had a blunt head with a wide, deep, round space in the upper jaw, which, according to scientists, contained a poisonous gland connected to the teeth and mouth with a thin network of bony grooves and canals.

In addition, the animal had two incisors and a pair of large fangs with sharp serrations. On the canine itself there is a groove and a crest for the drain of the secretion of the poisonous gland, and the groove goes along the front surface of the canine.

Unlike snakes, which with surgical precision inject poison through their fangs, Euchambersia mirabilis injected poison into the notches on their teeth, so that he had to bite the victim well in order to poison it. Researchers believe that the creature could use its poison for hunting or as self-defense.

Bite and wait

The study is complicated by the fact that so far only the upper parts of the skulls of two individuals of this species have been found, with the last finding made back in 1966. Neither the lower jaw, nor the skeletons have yet been discovered. However, even from the small fragments found, scientists draw certain conclusions about the lifestyle of this mysterious ancestor of modern mammals with a poisonous character.

Euchambersia mirabilis probably fed on relatively small prey, which it could swallow whole. Although, given the armament of the animal, he could well attack larger opponents: first he applied the victim a bite, and then patiently waited for her to die, pursuing the dying animal. True, such tactics might not always work because there were plenty of bigger predators around, who would gladly “cut” a tidbit.

By the way, today, there are also several species of small mammals that can produce and use poison.