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Dino Poo Unlocks Bird Survival Mystery
14 Sep
Summary
- A 66-million-year-old fossilized dinosaur dropping contains a preserved bird feather.
- This finding offers clues to why some birds survived the mass extinction event.
- The dinosaur likely lived in the area now known as Montana, USA.
Scientists have unearthed a 66-million-year-old piece of fossilized dinosaur excrement that may solve a persistent paleontological puzzle. Within this ancient coprolite, a feather from a bird consumed by the dinosaur has been found remarkably preserved. This discovery provides a fresh perspective on why some avian species survived the catastrophic asteroid impact that caused the extinction of dinosaurs and most other birds.
The fossilized dung is believed to belong to a medium-sized dinosaur, possibly a young Tyrannosaurus Rex, that inhabited the region now recognized as the US state of Montana. Research indicates the feather and bone fragments within the excrement came from a Hesperornithiformes bird. These were flightless, toothed seabirds, which aligns with the fish scales also found in the dinosaur's digestive remains.
This finding is significant because the Hesperornithiformes were closely related to Neornithes, the group of birds from which all modern birds descend. The study's lead author suggests that the type and shedding pattern of feathers in these aquatic birds might explain their survival, while others perished during the end-Cretaceous mass extinction.
