A joint Mongolian-American expedition has unearthed the near-complete skeleton of a 75-million-year-old armored mammal in the Nemegt Formation of the Gobi Desert. Dubbed the 'Gobi-Armadillo' (Nemegtotherium), the species is the first of its kind to show evidence of specialized bony plates, or osteoderms, integrated into its skeletal structure for defense against small theropod predators.
This find challenges the traditional view of Cretaceous mammals as primarily small, vulnerable scurriers. The specimen shows advanced dental adaptations for herbivory and powerful forelimbs suited for digging, indicating a diverse and specialized ecological niche for mammals during the height of the dinosaur era in Central Asia.