Buzz
Through the study of ancient dung, scientists have gained valuable insights into the prehistoric ecosystem. Recently, researchers from the University of Colorado-Boulder and Kent State University uncovered that some herbivorous dinosaurs were not as selective in their meals as previously thought. While their primary diet was plants, massive dinosaurs living in Utah 75 million years ago also seemed to consume ancient crustaceans, as reported by Nature News.
According to the recent study, published in Scientific Reports, it appears that large dinosaurs from the Late Cretaceous period indulged in crabs and rotting wood, as indicated by the contents found in their coprolites (the scientific term for fossilized feces). These ancient waste remains were discovered in the Kaiparowits rock formation within Utah's Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument, a renowned site for Late Cretaceous fossils.
The poop's significant size and the presence of woody material suggest that these droppings were from dinosaurs well-suited to digest fiber, according to the study. Researchers propose that the waste likely originated from large herbivores, such as hadrosaurs, which have previously been found in the region.
Chin and colleagues, Scientific Reports (2017)Previous assumptions suggested that plant-eating dinosaurs like hadrosaurs were strictly herbivores, but new findings challenge this view. The researchers note, "The diet indicated by the Kaiparowits coprolites would have been a mix of woody plant matter, fungi, and invertebrates," including crabs (delicious!). These crustaceans likely offered a valuable source of calcium, while the other invertebrates living in the decaying wood provided much-needed protein.
However, it’s unlikely that the dinosaurs consumed decaying wood year-round. Instead, they probably feasted on dead trees during seasonal periods or when other food was scarce. Another possibility, according to the researchers, is that these "ancient fecal producers" may have eaten the rotting wood, rich in calcium from crustaceans and protein from invertebrates, during egg-laying seasons, similar to the behavior of modern birds during their breeding periods.
Whatever the reason, these new findings could reshape our understanding of the diet of large dinosaurs.
