Scientists claim first discovery of mammal eaten by dinosaur

‘It gives direct evidence of what they were eating,’ said Dr David Hone, lead author of a study in the Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology. Photograph: Alex Dececci/Mount Marty College/PA

It may have been a pressing fear for the fictional characters in the 1993 film Jurassic Park, but scientists believe they have uncovered the first known incident of a mammal being eaten by a dinosaur.

However, the fossils from 120m years ago are not of a human ancestor, but instead the foot of an animal inside the ribcage of a small feathered dinosaur, known as a microraptor.