Dinosaur mummy

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The Edmontosaurus mummy AMNH 5060 at the American Museum of Natural History, New York, in top view Pasta - mummified trachodon - AmMusNatHist.jpg
The Edmontosaurus mummy AMNH 5060 at the American Museum of Natural History, New York, in top view

Dinosaur mummies are exceptionally preserved dinosaur fossils with skin traces covering substantial parts of the body. [1] [2] [3] The term was coined by Henry Fairfield Osborn in 1911 for an Edmontosaurus specimen (AMNH 5060) discovered in 1908 by fossil hunter Charles Hazelius Sternberg and his three sons in Wyoming. [4] A handful of similar dinosaur mummies had been found since. These include two Edmontosaurus specimens subsequently discovered by the Sternberg family, one of which (SMF R 4036) was sold to Germany, while the other was lost during World War I when it was shipped to England and the ship was sunk. Barnum Brown, in 1912, discovered a mummy he described as a new genus, Corythosaurus . In 1999, another Edmontosaurus mummy nicknamed "Dakota" was discovered, and in 2000, a Brachylophosaurus mummy was nicknamed "Leonardo". [5]

The term "mummy" has, in the context of dinosaurs, only been used informally. [2] All dinosaur fossils that have been regularly called "mummies" were found in North America and belong to the Hadrosauridae ("duck-billed dinosaurs"), and are therefore also known as "hadrosaur mummies". [5] [1] Occasionally, the name "mummy" has also been used for other exceptionally preserved dinosaur fossils such as the type specimen of Borealopelta [2] and the Fighting Dinosaurs specimen. [6]

Osborn noted that the skin of the first Edmontosaurus mummy was tightly wrapped around the specimen and partially drawn into the body interior. [7] This indicates that the carcass had dried out and deflated before burial; the specimen is therefore the fossil of a natural mummy. [1] It is now understood that not all specimens that are known as dinosaur "mummies" are necessarily mummified, and that other processes, including rapid burial and the absence of oxygen, may also lead to the preservation of such specimens. [2]

Edmontosaurus NDGS 2000 preserved tissue (2).png
Edmontosaurus NDGS 2000 preserved tissue (3).png
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Detailed and labelled photographs of the preserved soft tissue of the mummy Dakota

Skin is typically preserved only in the form of impressions that the original skin left in the sediments that were encasing the specimen. In contrast, the "Dakota" specimen still preserves the original skin three-dimensionally, including biomarkers. This specimen also preserves skin injuries inflicted by scavengers (possibly crocodyliforms or theropods), the first such record documented in dinosaurs. [2] [8] Other soft tissues and traces may be preserved, including the skin frill that run along the back of the animals; nostrils; ossified tendons; the horny beak; and stomach contents. [8] [5]

Dinosaur mummies had a significant impact on the scientific and popular perception of hadrosaurids, and dinosaurs in general. Skin impressions found in between the fingers of the first two mummies have originally been interpreted as interdigital webbing, bolstering the now-rejected perception of hadrosaurids as aquatic animals, a hypothesis that remained unchallenged until 1964. [9] Gregory S. Paul, in 1987, stated that the life appearance of Edmontosaurus and Corythosaurus can be more accurately restored than that of any other dinosaur thanks to the well-preserved mummy specimens. [10]

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<i>Hadrosaurus</i> Hadrosaurid dinosaur genus from the Late Cretaceous

Hadrosaurus is a genus of hadrosaurid ornithopod dinosaurs that lived in North America during the Late Cretaceous Period in what is now the Woodbury Formation about 78-80 Ma. The holotype specimen was found in fluvial marine sedimentation, meaning that the corpse of the animal was transported by a river and washed out to sea.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hadrosauridae</span> Extinct family of dinosaurs

Hadrosaurids, or duck-billed dinosaurs, are members of the ornithischian family Hadrosauridae. This group is known as the duck-billed dinosaurs for the flat duck-bill appearance of the bones in their snouts. The ornithopod family, which includes genera such as Edmontosaurus and Parasaurolophus, was a common group of herbivores during the Late Cretaceous Period. Hadrosaurids are descendants of the Late Jurassic/Early Cretaceous iguanodontian dinosaurs and had a similar body layout. Hadrosaurs were among the most dominant herbivores during the Late Cretaceous in Asia and North America, and during the close of the Cretaceous several lineages dispersed into Europe, Africa, and South America.

<i>Corythosaurus</i> Extinct genus of dinosaurs

Corythosaurus is a genus of hadrosaurid "duck-billed" dinosaur from the Late Cretaceous period, about 77–75.7 million years ago, in what is now western North America. Its name is derived from the Greek word κόρυς, meaning "helmet", named and described in 1914 by Barnum Brown. Corythosaurus is now thought to be a lambeosaurine, thus related to Lambeosaurus, Nipponosaurus, Velafrons, Hypacrosaurus, and Olorotitan. Corythosaurus has an estimated length of 7.7–9 metres (25–30 ft) and has a skull, including the crest, that is 70.8 centimetres tall.

<i>Edmontosaurus</i> Hadrosaurid dinosaur genus from Late Cretaceous US and Canada

Edmontosaurus, often colloquially and historically known as Anatosaurus or Anatotitan, is a genus of hadrosaurid (duck-billed) dinosaur. It contains two known species: Edmontosaurus regalis and Edmontosaurus annectens. Fossils of E. regalis have been found in rocks of western North America that date from the late Campanian age of the Cretaceous period 73 million years ago, while those of E. annectens were found in the same geographic region from rocks dated to the end of the Maastrichtian age, 66 million years ago. Edmontosaurus was one of the last non-avian dinosaurs to ever exist, and lived alongside dinosaurs like Triceratops, Tyrannosaurus, Ankylosaurus, and Pachycephalosaurus shortly before the Cretaceous–Paleogene extinction event.

<i>Parasaurolophus</i> Hadrosaurid ornithopod dinosaur genus from Late Cretaceous Period

Parasaurolophus is a genus of hadrosaurid "duck-billed" dinosaur that lived in what is now western North America and possibly Asia during the Late Cretaceous period, about 76.5–66 million years ago. It was a large herbivore that could reach over 9 metres (30 ft) long and weigh over 5 metric tons, and were able to move as a biped and a quadruped. Three species are universally recognized: P. walkeri, P. tubicen, and the short-crested P. cyrtocristatus. Additionally, a fourth species, P. jiayinensis, has been proposed, although it is more commonly placed in the separate genus Charonosaurus. Remains are known from Alberta, New Mexico, and Utah, as well as possibly Heilongjiang if Charonosaurus is in fact part of the genus. The genus was first described in 1922 by William Parks from a skull and partial skeleton found in Alberta.

<i>Lambeosaurus</i> Hadrosaurid dinosaur genus from Late Cretaceous US and Canada

Lambeosaurus is a genus of hadrosaurid dinosaur that lived about 75 million years ago, in the Late Cretaceous period of North America. This bipedal/quadrupedal, herbivorous dinosaur is known for its distinctive hollow cranial crest, which in the best-known species resembled a mitten. Several possible species have been named, from Canada, the United States, and Mexico, but only the two Canadian species are currently recognized as valid.

<i>Claosaurus</i> Extinct genus of dinosaurs

Claosaurus is a genus of hadrosauroid dinosaur that lived during the Late Cretaceous Period (Santonian-Campanian).

<i>Brachylophosaurus</i> Extinct genus of reptiles

Brachylophosaurus was a mid-sized member of the hadrosaurid family of dinosaurs. It is known from several skeletons and bonebed material from the Judith River Formation of Montana, the Wahweap Formation of Utah and the Oldman Formation of Alberta, living about 81-76.7 million years ago.

<i>Hypacrosaurus</i> Extinct genus of reptiles

Hypacrosaurus was a genus of duckbill dinosaur similar in appearance to Corythosaurus. Like Corythosaurus, it had a tall, hollow rounded crest, although not as large and straight. It is known from the remains of two species that spanned 75 to 67 million years ago, in the Late Cretaceous of Alberta, Canada, and Montana, United States, and is the latest hollow-crested duckbill known from good remains in North America. It was an obscure genus until the discovery in the 1990s of nests, eggs, and hatchlings belonging to H. stebingeri.

<i>Olorotitan</i> Extinct genus of dinosaurs

Olorotitan was a monotypic genus of lambeosaurine duck-billed dinosaur, containing a single species, Olorotitan arharensis. It was among the last surviving non-avian dinosaurs to go extinct during the Cretaceous–Paleogene extinction event, having lived from the middle to late Maastrichtian-age of the Late Cretaceous era. The remains were found in the Udurchukan Formation beds of Kundur, Arkharinsky District, Amur Oblast, Eastern Russia, in the vicinity of the Amur River.

<i>Thespesius</i> Dubious extinct genus of dinosaurs

Thespesius is a dubious genus of hadrosaurid dinosaur from the late Maastrichtian-age Upper Cretaceous Lance Formation of South Dakota Size 4,8(16ft) Height 18(60ft) and 18 Tons

<i>Prosaurolophus</i> Extinct genus of dinosaurs

Prosaurolophus is a genus of hadrosaurid dinosaur from the Late Cretaceous of North America. It is known from the remains of at least 25 individuals belonging to two species, including skulls and skeletons, but it remains obscure. Its fossils have been found in the late Campanian-age Upper Cretaceous Dinosaur Park Formation in Alberta, and the roughly contemporaneous Two Medicine Formation in Montana, dating to around 75.5-74.0 million years ago. Its most recognizable feature is a small solid crest formed by the nasal bones, sticking up in front of the eyes.

<i>Edmontosaurus</i> mummy AMNH 5060 Exceptionally well-preserved fossil in the American Museum of Natural History

The Edmontosaurus mummy AMNH 5060 is an exceptionally well-preserved fossil of a dinosaur in the collection of the American Museum of Natural History (AMNH). Discovered in 1908 in the United States near Lusk, Wyoming, it was the first dinosaur specimen found to include a skeleton encased in skin impressions from large parts of the body. It is ascribed to the species Edmontosaurus annectens, a hadrosaurid. The mummy was found by fossil hunter Charles Hazelius Sternberg and his three sons in the Lance Formation. Although Sternberg was working under contract to the British Museum of Natural History, Henry Fairfield Osborn of the AMNH managed to secure the mummy. Osborn described the fossil in detail in 1912, coining the name "dinosaur mummy" for it—several dinosaur mummies of similar preservation have been discovered since then. This specimen has considerably influenced the scientific conception of hadrosaurids. Skin impressions found in between the fingers were once interpreted as interdigital webbing, bolstering the now-rejected perception of hadrosaurids as aquatic animals, a hypothesis that remained unchallenged until 1964. Today, the mummy is considered one of the most important fossils of the AMNH.

<i>Edmontosaurus regalis</i> Extinct species of dinosaur

Edmontosaurus regalis is a species of comb-crested hadrosaurid dinosaur. Fossils of E. regalis have been found in rocks of western North America that date from the late Campanian age of the Cretaceous Period 73 million years ago, but it may have possibly lived into the early Maastrichtian.

<i>Edmontosaurus annectens</i> Hadrosaurid species from the Late Cretaceous Period

Edmontosaurus annectens, often colloquially and historically known as the Anatosaurus, is a species of flat-headed saurolophine hadrosaurid dinosaur from the late Maastrichtian age at the very end of the Cretaceous period, in what is now western North America. Remains of E. annectens have been preserved in the Frenchman, Hell Creek, and Lance Formations. All of these formations are dated to the late Maastrichtian age of the Late Cretaceous period, which represents the last three million years before the extinction of the dinosaurs. E. annectens is also found in the Laramie Formation and magnetostratigraphy suggests an age of 69-68 Ma for the Laramie Formation. Edmontosaurus annectens is known from numerous specimens, including at least twenty partial to complete skulls, discovered in the U.S. states of Montana, South Dakota, North Dakota, Wyoming, and Colorado, as well as the Canadian province of Saskatchewan. It had an extremely long and low skull and was quite a large animal, growing up to approximately 12 metres (39 ft) in length and 5.6 metric tons in average asymptotic body mass, although it could have been even larger. E. annectens exhibits one of the most striking examples of the "duckbill" snout that is common to hadrosaurs. It has a long taxonomic history and specimens have at times been classified as Diclonius, Trachodon, Hadrosaurus, Claosaurus, Thespesius, Anatosaurus, and Anatotitan before all being grouped together in Edmontosaurus

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dakota (fossil)</span> Fossil Edmontosaurus annectens

Dakota is the nickname given to an important Edmontosaurus fossil found in the Hell Creek Formation in North Dakota. It is about 67 million years old, placing it in the Maastrichtian, the last stage of the Cretaceous period. It was about 12 m (40 ft) long and weighed about 7-8 tons.

Tyler R. Lyson is an American paleontologist. He is the discoverer of the dinosaur fossil Dakota, a fossilized mummified hadrosaur. He has done significant research on the evolution of turtles and on the rise of mammals after the extinction of the dinosaurs.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hadrosaur diet</span>

Hadrosaurids, also commonly referred to as duck-billed dinosaurs or hadrosaurs, were large terrestrial herbivores. The diet of hadrosaurid dinosaurs remains a subject of debate among paleontologists, especially regarding whether hadrosaurids were grazers who fed on vegetation close to the ground, or browsers who ate higher-growing leaves and twigs. Preserved stomach content findings have indicated they may have been browsers, whereas other studies into jaw movements indicate they may have been grazers.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Timeline of hadrosaur research</span>

This timeline of hadrosaur research is a chronological listing of events in the history of paleontology focused on the hadrosauroids, a group of herbivorous ornithopod dinosaurs popularly known as the duck-billed dinosaurs. Scientific research on hadrosaurs began in the 1850s, when Joseph Leidy described the genera Thespesius and Trachodon based on scrappy fossils discovered in the western United States. Just two years later he published a description of the much better-preserved remains of an animal from New Jersey that he named Hadrosaurus.

<i>Edmontosaurus</i> mummy SMF R 4036 Dinosaur fossil in Naturmuseum Senckenberg

The Edmontosaurus mummy SMF R 4036 is an exceptionally well-preserved dinosaur fossil in the collection of the Naturmuseum Senckenberg (SM) in Frankfurt am Main, Germany. Found in 1910 in Wyoming, United States, it is ascribed to the species Edmontosaurus annectens, a member of the Hadrosauridae. The fossil comprises a nearly complete skeleton that was found wrapped in impressions of its skin, a rare case of exceptional preservation for which the term "dinosaur mummy" has been used. Notably, the horny beak is preserved with this specimen. Plant remains found within the thorax cavity had been interpreted as stomach contents, although later research questioned this identification. The mummy's hands are wrapped in skin impression, which was interpreted as evidence for interdigital webbing and an aquatic lifestyle in hadrosaurids; this hypothesis, although universally accepted once, is now widely refused. SMF R 4036 is one of the four best preserved hadrosaurid mummies, and was the second to be discovered. The find was made by fossil hunter Charles Hazelius Sternberg and his sons, who sold their numerous finds to various museums in North America and Europe. Only two years earlier the Sternbergs had discovered the Edmontosaurus mummy AMNH 5060 in the same region, which is now on display at the American Museum of Natural History (AMNH) in New York City.

References

  1. 1 2 3 Carpenter, Kenneth (2007). "How to make a fossil: Part 2 – Dinosaur Mummies and other soft tissue". The Journal of Paleontological Science: 5–14.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 Drumheller, Stephanie K.; Boyd, Clint A.; Barnes, Becky MS; Householder, Mindy L. (2022). "Biostratinomic alterations of an Edmontosaurus "mummy" reveal a pathway for soft tissue preservation without invoking "exceptional conditions"". PLOS ONE. 17 (10): –0275240. Bibcode:2022PLoSO..1775240D. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0275240 . PMC   9555629 . PMID   36223345.
  3. ↑ Joubarne, Tristan; Therrien, François; Zelenitsky, Darla K. (2022-12-14). "Integumentary impressions on hadrosaurid specimens from the Upper Cretaceous (upper Campanian) Dinosaur Park Formation, Alberta, Canada: implications for integument patterns and hand morphology". Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology. 42 (6): –2213287. doi:10.1080/02724634.2023.2213287. ISSN   0272-4634. S2CID   259402283.
  4. ↑ Osborn, Henry Fairfield (1911). "A Dinosaur Mummy". The American Museum Journal. New York, NY. 11: 7–11.
  5. 1 2 3 Manning, Phillip Lars (2008). "Chapter four: Dinosaur Mummies". Grave Secrets of Dinosaurs: Soft Tissues and Hard Science . Washington, D.C.: National Geographic. ISBN   978-1426202193.
  6. ↑ Schweitzer, Mary Higby (2011). "Soft tissue preservation in terrestrial mesozoic vertebrates". Annual Review of Earth and Planetary Sciences. 39 (1): 187–216. Bibcode:2011AREPS..39..187S. doi:10.1146/annurev-earth-040610-133502.
  7. ↑ Osborn, Henry Fairfield (1912). "Integument of the iguanodont dinosaur Trachodon". Memoirs of the American Museum of Natural History. 1: 33–35, 46–54.
  8. 1 2 Prieto-Márquez, Albert; Wagner, Jonathan R. (2015). "Soft-tissue structures of the nasal vestibular region of saurolophine hadrosaurids (Dinosauria, Ornithopoda) revealed in a "mummified" specimen of Edmontosaurus annectens". In Eberth, David A.; Evans, David C. (eds.). Hadrosaurs. Bloomington and Indianapolis: Indiana University Press. pp. 591–599. ISBN   978-0-253-01385-9.
  9. ↑ Forster, Catherine A. (1997). "Hadrosauridae". In Currie, Philip J.; Padian, Kevin (eds.). Encyclopedia of Dinosaurs. San Diego, CA: Academic Press. pp. 294, 297. ISBN   978-0122268106.
  10. ↑ Paul, Gregory S. (1987). "The science and art of restoring the life appearance of dinosaurs and their relatives; a rigorous how-to guide". In Czerkas, S.J.; Olson, E.C. (eds.). Dinosaurs, Past and Present. 2. University of Washington Press. pp.  40–42. ISBN   978-0-295-96570-3.
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