Eggshell Porosity Provides Insight on Evolution of Nesting in Dinosaurs.

ABSTRACT: Knowledge about the types of nests built by dinosaurs can provide insight into the evolution of nesting and reproductive behaviors among archosaurs. However, the low preservation potential of their nesting materials and nesting structures means that most information can only be gleaned indirectly through comparison with extant archosaurs. Two general nest types are recognized among living archosaurs: 1) covered nests, in which eggs are incubated while fully covered by nesting material (as in crocodylians and megapodes), and 2) open nests, in which eggs are exposed in the nest and brooded (as in most birds). Previously, dinosaur nest types had been inferred by estimating the water vapor conductance (i.e., diffusive capacity) of their eggs, based on the premise that high conductance correspo

SUBMITTER: Tanaka K 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4659668 | biostudies-literature | 2015

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature