Scientists discover real life Saber-toothed Squirrel

So scientists have just found an animal that all but resembles the fictional species that the character Scrat from Ice Age belonged to, proving that sometimes Hollywood gets incredibly lucky:

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/45140510/ns/technology_and_science-science/t/saber-tooted-squirrel-looked-ice-age-scrat/

Imagine if these things were around today. The horror!

Awww, they're kinda cute!

My brother had a gerbil for a pet once. It bit right through his thumb with its incisors.

Now replace that gerbil with these little fellows.

Also, scientists are stupid - that thing's obviously the dominant predator of its time period. You don't need giant fangs half the size of your head for hunting bugs. And besides, it is clearly about to devour that sauropod.

edited 2nd Nov '11 9:25:49 PM by MyGodItsFullofStars

Ah, prehistoric times. When even the rodents were fucking hard core.

.........

I wonder if they found fossilized acorns nearby.

No acorns. Lots of dinosaur femurs with mysterious gnaw-marks, but no acorns.

It was not a rodent, though. It was a sister taxa to the Metatheria+Eutheria group.

I always did say there were predatory mammals during the dinosaur era. Now this proves it!

We already knew that since the wolverine like Repenomamus was found.

Yet another reason to invest in cloning research. I want one! Actually I want a horde of them that I can train to do my bidding.