Conserved in-ovo cranial ossification sequences of extant saurians allow estimation of embryonic dinosaur developmental stages.

ABSTRACT: Dinosaur embryos are among the rarest of fossils, yet they provide a unique window into the palaeobiology of these animals. Estimating the developmental stage of dinosaur embryos is hindered by the lack of a quantitative method for age determination, by the scarcity of material, and by the difficulty in visualizing that material. Here we present the results of a broad inquiry, using 3D reconstructions from X-ray computed tomography data, into cranial ossification sequences in extant saurian taxa and in well-preserved embryos of the early branching sauropodomorph dinosaur Massospondylus carinatus. Our findings support deep-time conservation of cranial ossification sequences in saurians including dinosaurs, allowing us to develop a new method for estimating the relative developmental percent

SUBMITTER: Chapelle KEJ 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7145871 | biostudies-literature | 2020 Apr

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature