Beasts Before Us: The Untold Story of Mammal Origins and Evolution

by Elsa Panciroli

Overview

For most of us, the story of mammal evolution starts after the asteroid impact that killed the dinosaurs, but over the last 20 years scientists have uncovered new fossils and used new technologies that have upended this story.

In Beasts Before Us, palaeontologist Elsa Panciroli charts the emergence of the mammal lineage, Synapsida, beginning at their murky split from the reptiles in the Carboniferous period, over three hundred million years ago. They made the world theirs long before the rise of dinosaurs. Travelling forward into the Permian and then Triassic periods, we learn how our ancient mammal ancestors evolved from large hairy beasts with accelerating metabolisms to exploit miniaturisation, which was key to unlocking the traits that define mammals as we now know them.

Elsa criss-crosses the globe to explore the sites where discoveries are being made and meet the people who make them. In Scotland, she traverses the desert dunes of prehistoric Moray, where quarry workers unearthed the footprints of Permian creatures from before the time of dinosaurs. In South Africa, she introduces us to animals, once called ‘mammal-like reptiles’, that gave scientists the first hints that our furry kin evolved from a lineage of egg-laying burrowers. In China, new, complete fossilised skeletons reveal mammals that were gliders, shovel-pawed Jurassic moles, and flat-tailed swimmers.

This book radically reframes the narrative of our mammalian ancestors and provides a counterpoint to the stereotypes of mighty dinosaur overlords and cowering little mammals. It turns out the earliest mammals weren’t just precursors, they were pioneers.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781472983824
Publisher:	Bloomsbury USA
Publication date:	09/07/2021
Pages:	320
Sales rank:	715,420
Product dimensions:	5.50(w) x 9.30(h) x 1.20(d)

About the Author

Dr Elsa Panciroli is a palaeontologist who studies the evolution and ecology of extinct animals. She is a researcher based at the University of Oxford and associate researcher at the National Museums of Scotland. Elsa is a keen science speaker and communicator. She has contributed to the Guardian and Biological Sciences Review, as well as to radio and podcast programmes such as Crowdscience, The John Beatty Show and Our Lives.

Table of Contents

Introduction 9

Chapter 1 Isle of Mists and Lagoons 13

Chapter 2 A Thoroughly Modern Platypus 25

Chapter 3 Like a Hole in the Head 49

Chapter 4 The First Age of Mammals 69

Chapter 5 Hot-blooded Hunters 93

Chapter 6 A Total Disaster 123

Chapter 7 Milk Tooth 145

Chapter 8 Digital Bones 173

Chapter 9 Chinese Revelations 201

Chapter 10 Time of Revolt 235

Chapter 11 The Journey Home 273

Epilogue: Triumph of the Little Guy 291

Acknowledgements 299

Notes 301

Bibliography 310

Index 314

Editorial Reviews

★ 07/12/2021

Panciroli, a research fellow at the Oxford University Museum of Natural History, debuts with a fascinating survey of recent discoveries in evolution. Making use of findings from big data and CT scans of fossils, Panciroli explains how much of what’s generally believed about the origin of mammals has been wrong. Contrary to popular belief, she writes, mammals did not come into their own after the extinction of the dinosaurs—“they ‘ruled the Earth’ when dinosaurs weren’t even a twinkle in the planet’s eye”—and the notion that mammals that coexisted with T. rexes “merely scooted underfoot like terrified snacks” is “dead wrong.” Also, mammals didn’t evolve from reptiles, she writes, though they do share a common ancestor with them: amniote tetrapods, which were neither mammal nor reptile. Panciroli’s passion for her subject is palpable, and as she shares her globe-trotting finds, she argues that paleontology is more than a curiosity: it provides a framework for understanding “how life has responded to extinction events in the past, and most crucially, how it has recovered,” which is especially relevant in the face of climate change. Her eye-opening study offers just the right level of detail and plenty of wit. This impressive study hits the mark. (Sept.)

Publishers Weekly

Smart, passionate and seditious” —The New York Times Book Review

“A pioneering study … If you thought it all began with the extinction of the non-bird dinosaurs – think again.” —Nature

“Under Ms. Panciroli's adroit tutelage, the Carboniferous and Permian (pre-dinosaur) periods are brought to life … she regularly enlivens this surprisingly readable book with quick and often humorous observations.” —The Wall Street Journal

“Fascinating ... filled with as many weird and wonderful creatures as any reptilian tale ... there's much here to intrigue.” —Geographical

From the Publisher

Our understanding of mammal evolution is still, well, evolving. Researcher Elsa Panciroli has been directly involved in cutting-edge work in this field, and her audiobook is enlivened by anecdotes and first-person stories. She is articulate and witty, and Ruth Urquhart’s narration highlights these qualities. Like the author, Urquhart is Scottish, and her expressive brogue adds authenticity to her performance. But although the work is ostensibly aimed at a lay audience, it includes a lot of jargon that will be difficult for a listener without a background in paleontology: Terms that pertain to geological eras and taxonomy fill almost every paragraph, often without being clearly defined. In the end, this is likely to appeal to specialists more than the general science listener. D.B. © AudioFile 2021, Portland, Maine

OCTOBER 2021 - AudioFile

Our understanding of mammal evolution is still, well, evolving. Researcher Elsa Panciroli has been directly involved in cutting-edge work in this field, and her audiobook is enlivened by anecdotes and first-person stories. She is articulate and witty, and Ruth Urquhart’s narration highlights these qualities. Like the author, Urquhart is Scottish, and her expressive brogue adds authenticity to her performance. But although the work is ostensibly aimed at a lay audience, it includes a lot of jargon that will be difficult for a listener without a background in paleontology: Terms that pertain to geological eras and taxonomy fill almost every paragraph, often without being clearly defined. In the end, this is likely to appeal to specialists more than the general science listener. D.B. © AudioFile 2021, Portland, Maine

OCTOBER 2021 - AudioFile