Which animal had horse hooves, a duck's beak, and miniature scales all over its body? The answer is not some fictional creature with parts sewn together like Frankenstein's monster, but Edmontosaurus annectensa dinosaur that once roamed the western United States. Things get even stranger with this strange species: some members of its species were found mummified under a clay blanket.
new study published in Science shed light on the mysterious backstory E. annectens specimens that were preserved in such a way that they essentially became “mummies” of dinosaurs. The researchers analyzed two specimens discovered in Wyoming, as well as several others buried in an area they called the “mummy zone.”
Unlikely Dinosaur Fossil
Two known species Edmontosaurus — E. annectens And E. regalis — were among the last dinosaurs to exist before the Cretaceous-Paleogene extinction event wiped out all non-avian dinosaurs 66 million years ago.
These two species were hadrosaurids, also known as “duck-billed dinosaurs.” True to its name, Edmontosaurus carried long bills, which were useful when collecting plants for food. Their fossils are now found in several western US states (such as Wyoming and Colorado), as well as in the Canadian provinces of Saskatchewan and Alberta.
Two E. annectens the specimens discovered in Wyoming are particularly notable for the way they are preserved. Late juveniles (about 2 years old) and early adults (5 to 8 years old) from the Cretaceous era in the Lens Formation attracted the attention of paleontologists because their bodies were perfectly outlined in the sediments.
Typically, paleontologists are accustomed to seeing dinosaur remains in the form of fossilized bones or teeth, which can last for millions of years, as opposed to soft tissue, which is easily destroyed. two E. annectens mummies, however, are an exception; some of their features, including skin, spines and hooves, were painted on clay, presenting researchers with a rare form of mummified preservation.
Read more: Japanese mermaid mummy turned out to be papier-mâché
In search of dinosaur mummies
In a new study, researchers have identified a site in east-central Wyoming they call the “mummy zone” where E. annectens samples.
However, these dinosaur mummies are not like human mummies. They did not have any organic tissue preserved, instead their bodies were preserved as a clay film only 1/100 of an inch thick.
How exactly did these dinosaurs become mummies? The researchers determined that their corpses were submerged in a flash flood, and soon afterward, biofilm pulled clay from the surrounding sediment to cover them. Although the organic material underneath eventually dissolved, the three-dimensional pattern of the carcasses remained.
“It's a mask, a template, a layer of clay so thin it can be blown away,” said senior author Paul Sereno, a paleontologist at the University of Chicago, in his paper. statement. “He was drawn to the outside of the carcass by a fluke.”
The first hooves in history
Using imaging tools such as microCT and X-ray spectroscopy, the researchers were able to describe several features E. annectens.
E. annectens had a fleshy crest that framed the neck and body, turning into one row of spikes that went down the tail. Most of their scales were tiny, only 1 to 4 millimeters across, and the wrinkles on their thorax suggest their skin was thin.
Most surprising, however, are the dinosaur's hooves, which the researchers were able to reconstruct using CT scans and 3D images of other duck-billed dinosaur tracks. The tip of each of the dinosaur's three hind toes is said to have been encased in a wedge-shaped, flat-bottomed hoof, similar to the hooves of horses.
“These duck-billed mummies preserve so many amazing 'firsts' – the earliest hooves recorded in a land vertebrate, the first confirmed ungulate reptile, and the first ungulate quadruped with different positions of the forelimbs and hindlimbs,” Sereno said.
Read more: Mummified dogs show pre-Incan people revered this shepherd 1,000 years ago
Article Sources
Our authors in discovermagazine.com use peer-reviewed research and high-quality sources for our articles, and our editors review scientific accuracy and editorial standards. Review the sources used below for this article:
