© Romain AMIOT / LGL-TPE / CNRS Images
Reference
20170067_0002
Ponte d’oviraptorosaure du Crétacé supérieur du Jiangxi, en Chine
Clutch of oviraptorosaur eggs from the Upper Cretaceous, Jiangxi, China. Research scientists have been studying these 70-million-year-old fossilised eggs, which still contain the embryos of these beaked, bipedal dinosaurs. The shells and bones were analysed to establish their oxygen isotope composition, as the oxygen concentration depends on the temperature of the egg. This geochemical analysis method made it possible to find out that the eggs were incubated at a temperature of between 35°C and 40°C. This work opens up new perspectives for palaeontology as it could help us learn about the incubation strategies adopted by other dinosaurs.
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