A hundred million years ago, in the steamy Cretaceous rainforests of Myanmar, dinosaurs and lizards scampered, birds and insects flitted, and — now we know — snakes slithered and coiled among the trees.
From that ancient forest, scientists have found the first ever fossilized baby snake, beautifully preserved in ancient amber.
An illustration shows baby snakes emerging from their eggs on the floor of the amber-producing forest of Myanmar 99 million years ago. (Yi Liu)
“It’s spectacular to have a baby snake in the fossil record because, of course, they’d be such tiny, delicate things,” said Michael Caldwell, a biology professor at the University of Alberta who called the discovery “beyond exciting.”
Caldwell co-authored a study published Wednesday in the
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