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A newly discovered 308 million-year-old finger-sized fossil provides tantalizing clues about tiny dinosaur-like creatures that may be the forerunners of modern reptiles.

The new species is a micro-dinosaur. They were small, lizard-like animals that roamed the Earth long before the appearance of real dinosaurs.

The discovery sheds light on the evolution of various groups of animals, including amphibians and reptiles.

Microsaurs lived in the Carboniferous period, when the ancestors of modern mammals and reptiles, called amniotes, first appeared.

"Microsaurs have recently become important for understanding the origin of amniotes," the researchers say. "Many of them are considered the ancestors of amphibians or the ancestors of reptiles."

The snake-like body of the discovered specimen, enclosed in a swamp in the territory of the modern central part of North America, measures about five centimeters in length.

The animal had four short, thick legs. Out of respect for its tiny size, the researchers named the new species Joermungander bolti (Jermungander) in honor of the giant sea serpent from Norse mythology, which fought with Thor.

Scientists were surprised to find that the fossil also contained the skin of an animal. "Previously, skin areas were known only from fragmentary fossils," paleontologists explain.

"This micro-dinosaur is very rare for such fossils. It's very rare for something 300 million years old to have skin!"

Contrary to previous ideas about microsaurs, which were classified as amphibians, scientists have discovered that Yermungander has scales.

"Modern amphibians ... are soft and slippery, this animal was not a soft and slippery creature," the scientists say. "This animal really looked like a reptile."

The study suggests not only that microsaurs may have been early relatives of reptiles, but also that the ability to dig may have played a greater role in the origin of amniotes than originally thought.

Surprisingly, the 300 million-year-old fossil also contained animal skin.
The researchers used a highly sensitive imaging technique called scanning electron microscopy (SEM) to take a closer look at the near-perfect fossil.

They found a pattern of ridges similar to those found on the scales of modern reptiles that break into the ground.

Along with other features, such as a strong skull and an elongated body, the shape of the scales led researchers to assume that Yermungander also dug the earth.

His limbs were probably not very functional. He could use them to stabilize himself when he was swinging. But its main way of movement would be to bend from side to side, as a snake does.

An article about the discovery was published in the journal Royal Society Open Science

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