Day 28 - Tiny terror: Procariama.

Argentina, 10 million years ago. Its now the Neogene period, and the world has become more and more like it is today; the climate is cooler and drier, and open grasslands dominate the landscape for the first time in history. Most of the modern groups of mammals, birds and reptiles have become dominant, but some oddities remain, and they were abundant on the then isolated continent of South America, including the phorusrhacids or terror birds. This flightless predatory birds were often huge, but some were surprisingly small. Enter Procariama simplex, one of the smallest terror birds. Despite its size, it would have been a formidable predator, and here we see one installing terror into a Miocene plains viscacha (Lagostomus sp.) that is desperately clambering over rocks trying to escape. This time though, the bird is simply curious, and the rodents freakout is probably somewhat amusing to it.

https://www.deviantart.com/rahonavis70m/art/Dinovember-2020-28-Tiny-terror-Procariama-862548302