July 1st, 2022
by: Synthia Durrant
Quiz :
Which kind of dinosaur is thought to be the ancestor of modern birds?
A)Arthropods
B)Sauropods
C)Theropods
D)EarPods
Which mammal that exists today lays eggs?
A)Emus
B)Monotremes
C)Marsupials
D)Wombats
Dinosaur Eggs Help Tell the Story of Dinosaurs
Dinosaurs became extinct 65 million years ago (1), but thanks to the fossils they have left behind, we have been able to learn a lot about them. Bones from dinosaurs or impressions left behind from them, such as footprints or coprolites, can tell us the story of dinosaurs. One of the many things scientists have discovered that help tell the story of dinosaurs includes their fossilized eggs.
“Dinosaur Eggs in Collection at LVNHM” (A)
Dinosaurs, like today’s birds, fish, amphibians, reptiles, and insects were animals that laid eggs (2). “Conditions have to be just right to preserve dinosaur eggs as fossils,” says Mircalla McNeely, Education Director of Las Vegas Natural History Museum. “The shells of dinosaur eggs are so thin that just like birds’ eggs of today, they are easily broken.”
“Collection of Various Types of Eggs from Modern Animals” (B).
Unfortunately, the climate and other factors kept Nevada from being one of the sites that were able to preserve dinosaur eggs, so they are not typically found here. However, on the continent of Asia; much of China had the right climate, the right landscape, and the right soil in the past for dinosaur eggs to be preserved as fossils. Many dinosaur eggs have been found there and continue to be found there.
“Actual Fossil of Pre-hatched Dinosaur Still In Egg”—Courtesy of Wang Yi (C).
One of the most amazing discoveries found in China has been an “embryonic dinosaur” found perfectly preserved inside of a dinosaur egg that was discovered in the Jiangxi Province (3). It is an oviraptorid dinosaur, part of the family of dinosaurs known as therapods. Therapods include Tyrannosaurus Rex and velociraptors. Modern birds are thought to be descended from this type of dinosaur.
“Baby Dinosaur Still in Egg”—Courtesy of Darla Zelentsky (D).
The pre-hatched “baby dinosaur”, nicknamed Baby Yingliang, was found tucked inside of its egg in a similar way that pre-hatched baby birds are positioned inside of their eggs today. This beautifully preserved and unique fossil helps us to understand how birds of today are related to therapods of the past and also shows us that even today baby birds exhibit some of the same types of behaviors as that of baby dinosaurs millions of years ago!
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Answers to Quiz:
Which kind of dinosaur is thought to be the ancestor of modern birds?
Answer: C—Theropods—this includes T-Rex and Velociraptor.
Which mammal that exists today lays eggs?
Answer: B—Monotremes—an example of a monotreme is a Platypus.
References
Photographs
A) “Dinosaur Eggs in Collection at LVNHM”—Synthia Durrant (author)
B) “Collection of Various Types of Eggs From Modern Animals”—No Photographer Cited https://borbl426-526.blogspot.com/2014/01/laboratory-1-general-anatomy-of.html
C) “Actual Fossil of Pre-hatched Dinosaur Still In Egg”—Courtesy of Wang Yi https://edition.cnn.com/2021/12/21/asia/baby-dinosaur-inside-egg-scn/index.html
D) “Baby Dinosaur Still in Egg”—Courtesy of Darla Zelentsky https://edition.cnn.com/2021/12/21/asia/baby-dinosaur-inside-egg-scn/index.html
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