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A new fossil study by researchers from China and Canada suggests that ancient mammals may have attacked and eaten larger dinosaurs.

中国和加拿大研究人员的一项新化石研究表明，古代哺乳动物可能攻击并吃掉了更大的恐龙。

The scientists looked at a fossil found by a Chinese farmer in 2012. A fossil is the mineralized remains of an animal or plant left in an ancient rock.

科学家们观察了一位中国农民在 2012 年发现的化石。化石是古代岩石中动物或植物的矿化遗骸。

The scientists said the fossil is from 125 million years ago. They published their findings recently in the journal Scientific Reports.

科学家称这块化石距今1.25亿年前。 他们最近在《科学报告》杂志上发表了他们的发现。

The scientists believe a mammal, similar to a badger, attacked a small, beaked dinosaur. During the attack, the animals were caught up in a lava flow from a nearby volcano. The moment was locked in time until it was found over 12 years ago.

科学家们认为，一种类似于獾的哺乳动物袭击了一只小型的有喙的恐龙。 在袭击过程中，这些动物被困在附近火山的熔岩流中。 这一时刻被时间锁定，直到 12 年前才被发现。

Researchers call the place where the fossil was found “China’s Pompeii.” Pompeii was a city in Italy that was caught in a volcanic eruption about 2000 years ago. Ash covered the city and preserved moments from daily life. Researchers discovered the ruins of the city about 500 years ago.

研究人员将化石发现地称为“中国的庞贝古城”。 庞贝古城是意大利的一座城市，大约2000年前曾遭受火山喷发。 火山灰覆盖了整个城市，保留了日常生活的瞬间。 研究人员发现了这座大约 500 年前的城市遗址。

In the past, dinosaur researchers believed small, scavenging mammals might have eaten dead dinosaurs. However, they were not sure that mammals attacked living dinosaurs.

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