Scientists have found a species of beetle from the fossil of a dinosaur living in Poland during the Triassic period. This species is 23 million years old.
Species of beetle found in dinosaur fossil
The scientific community is not very excited about the feces found in the fossils of dinosaurs. But new research on a specimen has unearthed a hidden ‘treasure’. This treasure is 23 crore years old. In fact, scientists have discovered a hitherto unseen beetle species in the feces of dinosaurs. According to a study published in the journal Current Biology, Triamyxa coprolithica is a small worm, which has been found for the first time in a fossilized feces.
According to the report of CNN, this insect has been detected by scanning technique done through an X-ray beam. In addition to the beetle discovered in feces, its scientific name also refers to the Triassic period. This period was from 25 crores to 21 crores years ago. At that time this beetle used to eat algae. Sam Hades, director and chief curator of the PRI Center for Paleontology at the University of Ininos at Urbana-Champaign, said the existence of these types of insects preserved in such three dimensions is unheard of in the Triassic period. That’s why this discovery is very important.
Scientists surprised to see beetles better preserved
“I was really surprised to see how well the beetles were preserved,” said Martin Kvarnström, the study’s author, a postdoctoral fellow in paleontology and Uppsala University in Sweden. He was modeled on the screen so it felt like he was watching you. This, he said, must have been protected by the calcium phosphatic structure of the stool. This together with the early mineralization by bacteria helps to preserve these delicate fossils. Explain that calcium phosphate is important for the formation and maintenance of bones.
Dinosaur named Silesaurus opollensis ate these beetles
Based on the size and other characteristics of the fossils analyzed by the authors of the current study in previous research, the scientists determined that the dinosaurs may have eaten this beetle. Its name is Silesaurus opolensis. The length of this small-sized dinosaur would have been two meters and its weight was 15 kilograms. It lived in Poland 23 million years ago. Silesaurus used to have a beak, with the help of which it used to eat insects present inside the ground. It is exactly like today’s birds.
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