© 2026 Connecticut Public

FCC Public Inspection Files:
WEDH · WEDN · WEDW · WEDY
WEDW-FM · WNPR · WPKT · WRLI-FM
Public Files Contact · ATSC 3.0 FAQ
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

What Happened To The Other Mesozoic Mammals?

Season 7 Episode 8 | 12m 28s

In 2003, a fossil belonging to a mammaliaform was discovered in an ancient lakebed in what's now China. It was an almost complete skeleton the size of a platypus, a find that complicated the history of mammaliaforms. It painted a picture of their explosive diversification, their mysterious disappearance, and how our own ancestors might have survived thanks to a leg up from some leafy allies…

Aired: 11/04/24
Extras
Get ready for the all-new season, coming January 17, 2027 at 9/8c.
The cast play a game of "What's in the vet bag?" with sentimental props from the series.
Celebrate the legacy of Gene Wilder, the actor behind Willy Wonka and Young Frankenstein.
Stephanie J. Block and Sebastian Arcelus join The Tabernacle Choir for an epic holiday celebration.
Explore the site of the Battle of Camden and its importance to the American Revolution.
Formerly enslaved Americans formed Britain's Colonial Marines unit and marched on Washington, D.C.
A metal detector survey reveals long-lost soldiers at Camden Battlefield.
A musket ball reveals the deadly reality of Revolutionary War combat.
DNA may help identify a soldier killed at the Battle of Camden.
The chimpanzees in Fongoli have adapted humanlike behaviors to survive their environment.
Latest Episodes
All
  • All
  • Eons Season 9
  • Eons Season 8
  • Eons Season 7
  • Eons Season 6
  • Eons Season 5
  • Eons Season 4
  • Eons Season 3
  • Eons Season 2
  • Eons Season 1
What about the Great Dying caused a global age of mutant plants?
During the Permian Period many tetrapods, or four-limbed vertebrates, took to life in the trees.
Around 300 million years ago sails were all the rage, but we're still not sure what they were for.
Life begins to rebound after the destruction of the mass extinction ending the Permian Period.
An apocalypse ended the Permian Period 252 million years ago, wiping out more than 80% of species.
The first saber-teeth and tusks evolve in the Late Permian and our ancestors, the cynodonts, appear.
For millions of years after the Great Dying microbes ruled the Earth.
An extinction in the Middle Permian decimates life, from a fossil reef to our ancient relatives.
The first herbivorous vertebrates evolve on the side of the amniote family tree leading to mammals.
Seed plants and amniotes adapt to dry climates, helping them thrive on Pangea in the Permian Period.