Dinosaurs hatch eggs on hot water circuits

Scientists have discovered traces showing that the eggs of some dinosaurs are placed in their mother's hot water circuits.

Soaking in hot water is a hobby of many people because it brings a pleasant and refreshing feeling. In a recent study, the researchers found a few dinosaurs selected hot water vessels to send their children in their eggs, to take advantage of the heat source.

Old Faithful hot spring in northwestern Argentina is one of those locations. In the Cretaceous period more than 100 million years ago, the Sanagaste Valley in Argentina was a geological area with many hydrothermal activities, like the Yellowstone National Park (USA) or Iceland, with many mineral-rich hot water circuits , with the temperature nearing the boiling point running brightly below the soil surface.

Researchers have found about 80 nests of fossil dinosaur eggs in this area, most of them contain a dozen or more eggs. Strangely, these nests are within 3 meters away from hot water injection circuits. It shows that, instead of staying away from dangerous hydrothermal activities, the dinosaurs set eggs deliberately near hot water circuits, as a way to hatch eggs during the first 1-2 months. .

Photos of the excavation area of ​​dinosaur eggs.

Scientists have not yet identified which dinosaurs have left eggs here. They did not find any bones directly related to the eggs. But the eggs found are very large. Particularly, there are fruits that sell more than 20 centimeters, larger than many ostrich eggs.

In addition, bone fragments in the excavation area were identified as belonging to the Titanosaurus dinosaur family. This is a species that weighs hundreds of tons and is one of the most massive animals ever to exist on the planet.

Grellet-Tinner and Fiorelli, a member of the research team, said that the nesting area was chosen by the dinosaurs because the amount of heat here is guaranteed to keep the giant eggs warm.

The dinosaur egg shells are nearly 8 mm thick and a radius of 20 cm.

Scientists analyzed and found that their shells were extremely thick, ranging from 1.29 to 7.94 mm. Meanwhile, chicken eggshell is only about 0.3 mm thick. According to Fiorelli, healthy eggs will increasingly thicken as an evolutionary adaptation to protect eggs from hydrostatic acid damage in the area.

It is not uncommon for dinosaurs to choose harsh conditions to lay eggs. However, this discovery for the first time provides evidence of dinosaur dependence on Earth's thermal energy in the original period to survive and develop.