10-03-2009, 12:06 AM
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/21134540/vp/...9#33138769
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/science/science...on-mystery.html
<b>Jurassic egg hoard in India 'could hold clues to dinosaur extinction mystery'</b>
A massive hoard of fossilised eggs found in India, being hailed as a "Jurassic treasure trove" could help explain the mystery of how the dinosaurs became extinct, scientists believe.<!--QuoteBegin-->QUOTE<!--QuoteEBegin-->Geologists uncovered hundreds of clusters of the football-sized eggs by chance while investigating the site of an ancient riverbed in the state of Tamil Nadu.
The eggs, estimated to be 65 million years old, were found in layers suggesting that it was a major nesting site for leaf-eating sauropod dinosaurs, who returned to the same spot year after year.
Scientists are investigating why the eggs, which were all unhatched, were apparently infertile.
Significantly, they were found coated in traces of ash, prompting speculation that volcanic activity over several years could have caused the creatures to die out.
The site was discovered by chance when a team of geologists from Periyar University, visited the area searching for a suitable spot to excavate the riverbed.
They were resting by a stream near a village in Ariyalur district when they noticed a series of sandy holes containing unusual spherical objects.
"Soon we found them in clusters and realised that these might have been nests," said MU Ramkumar, head of the university's geology department.
Photographs were sent to other universities for confirmation that they were dinosaur eggs. Investigations subsequently showed that the nesting site extended over more than a square mile.
News of the discovery comes just days after Dr Xu Xing, the fossil hunter often dubbed Chinaâs Indiana Jones, unveiled the remains of four-winged dinosaurs being hailed as âmissing linkâ finally proving how the prehistoric creatures evolved into birds.
The five fossils recently found in the tiaojishan and daohugo rock formations in China are estimated at between 164 and 158 million years old, outstripping the oldest known bird, archaeopteryx.<!--QuoteEnd--><!--QuoteEEnd-->
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/science/science...on-mystery.html
<b>Jurassic egg hoard in India 'could hold clues to dinosaur extinction mystery'</b>
A massive hoard of fossilised eggs found in India, being hailed as a "Jurassic treasure trove" could help explain the mystery of how the dinosaurs became extinct, scientists believe.<!--QuoteBegin-->QUOTE<!--QuoteEBegin-->Geologists uncovered hundreds of clusters of the football-sized eggs by chance while investigating the site of an ancient riverbed in the state of Tamil Nadu.
The eggs, estimated to be 65 million years old, were found in layers suggesting that it was a major nesting site for leaf-eating sauropod dinosaurs, who returned to the same spot year after year.
Scientists are investigating why the eggs, which were all unhatched, were apparently infertile.
Significantly, they were found coated in traces of ash, prompting speculation that volcanic activity over several years could have caused the creatures to die out.
The site was discovered by chance when a team of geologists from Periyar University, visited the area searching for a suitable spot to excavate the riverbed.
They were resting by a stream near a village in Ariyalur district when they noticed a series of sandy holes containing unusual spherical objects.
"Soon we found them in clusters and realised that these might have been nests," said MU Ramkumar, head of the university's geology department.
Photographs were sent to other universities for confirmation that they were dinosaur eggs. Investigations subsequently showed that the nesting site extended over more than a square mile.
News of the discovery comes just days after Dr Xu Xing, the fossil hunter often dubbed Chinaâs Indiana Jones, unveiled the remains of four-winged dinosaurs being hailed as âmissing linkâ finally proving how the prehistoric creatures evolved into birds.
The five fossils recently found in the tiaojishan and daohugo rock formations in China are estimated at between 164 and 158 million years old, outstripping the oldest known bird, archaeopteryx.<!--QuoteEnd--><!--QuoteEEnd-->