Fossils help us give free rein to our imagination when talking about the past. These are resources that can transform thoughts about what life, or some animal, would have been like into scientific answers. They have been studied for a long time. In addition, you can find parts of the body, such as bones and teeth, and even footprints that they left in different parts of the world. Some fossils seem to have been frozen in time for being so well preserved.

Archaeologists are always finding new fossils and discovering ancient animals that once lived on Earth. Like, for example, this jaw of a bat that was around 100,000 years ago. It was confirmed that she belonged to a species of giant vampire bat.

Found

The jaw of the Desmodus draculae species was located in a cave in Argentina. She is helping to fill in the gaps in the history of these animals. In addition, the jaw may give some clues as to why these bats died .

After exploding onto the scene about 50 million years ago, bats are now very diverse. They are 20% of all known mammal species. A percentage that is really considerable.

Because of all this diversity, it can be thought that there are several fossil records of bats to be studied. However, the reality is the opposite. The fossil record of this species is quite poor and irregular. That’s why this discovery is very valuable. Mainly the fossil being a vampire bat.

“They are the only family of bats in the world that arouse the curiosity of the legends of Transylvania and its frightening Count Dracula. But in reality they are peaceful animals that feed on the blood of animals, and sometimes humans, for a few minutes without causing discomfort. The only bad thing is that they can transmit rabies or other illnesses if they are infected. Prehistoric representatives behaved similarly,” said paleontologist Mariano Magnussen, from the Paleontological Laboratory of the Miramar Museum of Natural Sciences in Argentina.

Bats

Today only three of approximately 1,400 species of this family of animals are vampire bats. They are located in Central and South America. They are: the common vampire bat ( Desmodus rotundus ), the furry-legged vampire bat ( Diphylla ecaudata ) and the white-winged vampire bat ( Diaemus youngi  ).

They all seem to be closely related. This suggests that hematophagy only evolved once in these bats . And that all species of vampire bats, whether existing or extinct, came from a common ancestor.

So fossils of extinct species of vampire bats may help researchers unravel why the species seen today managed to survive. Because of this, the discovery made of the jaw bone has a lot of significance.

“The meanings of fossils are many. To start with, fossil remains of bats are rare in Argentina. It also confirms the presence of the species in mid-latitudes and during the Pleistocene. The other material of the species in Argentina is isolated, however, much younger. This is one of the oldest records. It is unknown in the Pliocene,” said paleontologist Santiago Brizuela, from the National University of Mar del Plata, in Argentina.

Comments

Researchers knew a few things about  D. draculae , but the discovery of the mandible was actually quite special. Pleistocene sediments were recovered in a cave not far from the city of Miramar, in Buenos Aires. The location is important because, at the time, the cave was a giant sloth’s lair.

The discovery could be a big clue as to how bats lived. It can also reveal something about the region’s climate. This vampire bat made its home approximately 400 kilometers north of where the remains were located. Which suggests to researchers that the climate was different 100,000 years ago.

And the decline of this species probably had several factors that contributed to it happening.

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We’ve all heard that curiosity killed the cat and that ignorance is a blessing, especially when the subject won’t add anything to your life. As true as these maxims are, over time it has become increasingly difficult to avoid certain subjects or images. In short, in the past, if someone wanted to avoid the news, it was enough not to turn on the television or read in the newspapers.

However, times have changed. We live in a digital age. Of course, it is recognized that Google has completely changed the way information is accessed. However, a lot of searches that are done routinely in the search engine can yield results that no one was expecting or wanted to see. Here are some things to avoid googled.

1 – Symptoms

When we are sick we usually go to Google “Doctor” to search for symptoms to be diagnosed. But whenever you Google the symptoms, a bad flu can turn into a terminal illness or a rare illness that you somehow caught. And paranoia is sure to settle in your head.

2 – How to make a bomb

Some searches are not recommended because of what they may entail. In 2013, a man researched the words “backpack” and “pressure cooker”. After that, the police knocked on his door. The story even seems like a lie, but the fact actually happened on Long Island, USA.

3 – Bed bugs

Another true maxim is: what the eyes don’t see, the heart doesn’t feel. So what do you want to make your eyes see for? When you search for “bed bugs” on Google , there are pictures of tiny bed bugs and several tips on how to eliminate them.

Of course, you hadn’t even thought that such animals existed, let alone that they were infecting your mattress. Maybe sleeping after this quest will be a little more difficult.

4 – How much does Facebook know about you

Maybe that’s not such a big surprise to people. Even because of the privacy scandals that the social network has had in recent years. Still, it’s impossible not to get a little apprehensive and paranoid when you see how much Facebook knows about you. Sometimes, along with the search result comes that urge to delete your account.

5 – Insomnia

Insomnia is a problem that affects many people around the world. And if you’re no longer able to sleep, it’s not recommended to Google the term. That’s because maybe you get into a great spiral of macabre stories that end up chasing away any traces of sleep once and for all.

6 – Causes of cancer

Another popular maxim that is 100% right is that to die you just have to be alive. Normally, people are encouraged to enjoy life to the fullest, but take care of themselves at the same time. And one of the important points for health is food.

However, searching Google for whether a particular food or habit is associated with cancer may not be a good idea. This is because almost always there will be a link saying that food, apparently harmless, or some habit is indeed related to the dreaded disease.

7 – Belly button bugs

This search made in English can be quite traumatizing. That’s because it brings up something you’ve certainly never even thought about in your life. The navel can be a veritable haven for bacterial concentration. And on the internet, several people have extrapolated this concept and created terrible images that will haunt you forever.

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