Apr 26, 2021 05:00 AM EDT According to scientists, giant cloud rats once roamed the Earth thousands of years ago. They believe humans played a part in the extinction of the now-extinct creatures, which were furry with large, bushy tails. The findings of the study were published in the Journal of Mammalogy. Bushy Tailed Ancient Rodents (Photo : Julan Shirwod Nueva on Wikimedia Commons) Scientists have found that "cute" furry, bushy-tailed rodents twice the size of gray squirrels once roamed the Earth thousands of years ago. Since the rodent went extinct a few thousand years ago, the fossilized bones of this giant cloud rat population were discovered in a network of caves in the Philippines.