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After the extinction of dinosaurs came the age of mammals. A new book brings readers into this world with well-researched species profiles by Aaron Woodruff, collection manager for vertebrate paleontology at the Florida Museum of Natural History. The book also includes stunning illustrations by paleoartist Julius Csotonyi.

In "Prehistoric World: Over 1,200 Incredible Mammals and Discoveries from the Mesozoic and Cenozoic," readers will learn about the warm-blooded animals that rose to prominence once the dinosaurs were gone. Woodruff offers incredible facts about each species, including what they ate, where they lived and how they behaved.

While the book includes new information about popular animals like woolly mammoths and saber-toothed cats, it also features many more recent discoveries that many people may not have heard of before.

"Bear-dogs are some of my personal favorite carnivores," Woodruff said. "Before large cats evolved, they were the top predators across the Northern Hemisphere and Africa."

The book also introduces readers to prehistoric mustelids, a family of carnivores that includes weasels, badgers and wolverines. These ancient mammals were far larger than their modern relatives. Some species that lived during the Oligocene and Miocene epochs grew to the size of today's wolves and jaguars and were able to hunt animals the size of deer and horses.

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