AN international team of scientists has found animal fossils more than four million years old near the southeastern Ethiopian town of Gadamaitu. The 250 pieces of unearthed remains, including parts of a hyena and lion and a complete baboon skull, are “in most cases pretty rare fossils.” The group of anthropologists, paleontologists and geologists from Austria, Ethiopia, the United States, Germany and Italy also found remains from land mammals such as the giraffe, horse, antelope, hippopotamus and pig. The researchers said the finds indicate that the area was covered with bushes and trees, unlike today’s semi-arid open grasslands. – AFP