Antarcticoolithus
| Antarcticoolithus Temporal range: Maastrichtian
~ | |
|---|---|
| File:The Hatching of a baby Mosasaur during the Cretaceous Period 2.jpg | |
| Life restoration showing it as a mosasaur egg | |
| Egg fossil classification Edit this classification | |
| Oofamily: | †Mosasauroid |
| Oogenus: | †Antarcticoolithus Legendre et al., 2020 |
| Oospecies | |
| |
Antarcticoolithus is an oogenus of large fossil eggs from the Maastrichtian part of the Lopez de Bertodano Formation of Seymour Island, Antarctica. The genus contains the type species A. bradyi, described by Legendre et al. in 2020.[1] The fossil egg, the first found in Antarctica, was discovered in 2011 by a Chilean team of researchers. They named the egg fossil "The Thing" in reference to the movie. The fossil measures 11 by 7 inches (28 by 18 cm).[2]
Description
[edit | edit source]
The fossil egg is visibly collapsed and folded and is characterized by a thin eggshell with a layered structure that lacks a prismatic layer and distinct pores. The oofossil is similar to that of most extant lizards and snakes (Lepidosauria). The identity of the animal that laid the egg is unknown, but these preserved morphologies are consistent with the skeletal remains of mosasaurs found nearby. Phylogenetic analysis suggests that the egg belonged to an individual that was at least 7 metres (23 ft) long, hypothesized to be a giant marine reptile. The large egg with a relatively thin eggshell may indicate a reproductive investment linked with gigantism, and lepidosaurian viviparity, in which an egg is laid and hatches immediately.[3] However, it is possible it was actually laid by a dinosaur.[4]
See also
[edit | edit source]References
[edit | edit source]- ^ Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2172: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).
- ^ Fossil egg discoveries, including one in Antarctica, show dinosaurs and marine reptiles laid soft-shell eggs - CNN
- ^ Legendre et al., 2020
- ^ Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2172: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).
Bibliography
[edit | edit source]- Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2172: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).
Lua error in Module:Taxonbar at line 165: attempt to index field 'wikibase' (a nil value).