Dinosaur Embryo

Some paleontologists, or referred also to the fossil expert, recently identified the world's oldest dinosaur embryo. It was presented in the Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology.

Embryos of more than one, found in eggs and is still well maintained. Age is estimated according to the era where dinosaurs still roam, about 190 million years ago.

Researchers said that, until now, the embryo is an embryo of the oldest land vertebrates. Then, what kind of dinosaur that has the oldest embryos that?

Massospondylus, one giant ancestor of the group prosauropod, plant-eating dinosaurs. Quite easily recognize the sauropods. He has four legs, long neck and tail.

Professor Robert Reisz of the University of Toronto Mississauga along with several colleagues is the inventor of the embryo. They found him in the middle analyze egg fossil found in South Africa. At that time, Assistant Reisz, Diane Scott, directly observed with a microscope capable of high which is compiled with illustrations.

"I'm sure no one else is doing this work before," said Reisz. Embryos found his team are still well maintained and has a complete reconstruction framework and its detailed anatomy.

From these findings, embryonic Massospandylus known to have nearly eight inches long, four-legged, relatively long neck, large head is not proportional. In contrast, adults have a long fossil Massospandylus 16.5 feet, his head is relatively small, long-necked, the possibility to walk only with two legs.

With these findings, it can be concluded while that when the embryos are mature, neck and spine is growing faster than the front legs and head.

"This project opens a new window on the early history and evolution of dinosaurs," says Reisz. "Prosauropod is the first dinosaur that has a wide diversity. They are also easily scattered into groups, so that their biology is very interesting to study because it represents the beginning of the life of dinosaurs in ancient times," said he said.