SCIENTISTS have made a cracking discovery after uncovering mysterious impressions of reptile skin from almost 300million years ago.
The fossil has left experts shocked after they were able to make out the creature’s bum hole, a rare find that reveals key details about the early development of reptiles.
Remarkable discovery has clear impressions of the limbs, head, and tailCredit: © Lorenzo Marchetti
But experts also noticed a dent along the bottom which they believe is a bum holeCredit: © Lorenzo Marchetti
The shocking traces were found in Germany’s Thuringian ForestCredit: © Lorenzo Marchetti
You can already make out impressions of the limbs, head, and tail of the critter in impressive detail, showing its skin and complete scales.
But looking a bit closer the team noticed a narrow slit near its tail too.
They believe this is the ‘s cloaca, an opening many vertebrates have for pooing and mating.
It’s the oldest known impressions of reptile skin from ‘s Thuringian Forest.
Scientists say it dates back around 298 to 299 million years ago, from a period known as the early Permian period – well before were around.
“Such soft tissue structures are extremely rare in the fossil record — and the further back we look in Earth’s history, the more exceptional they become,” said Dr Lorenzo Marchetti, from ’s Natural History Museum.
“The traces from the Thuringian Forest open new perspectives on the early development of reptiles and their skin structures.”
But this isn’t just a bizarre find, it also tells researchers some key information about early reptiles.
Notably, the specimen’s bum hole appears to be a narrow slit-shaped impression near the tail base.
This is different from the shape and orientation from that of dinosaurs and crocodiles meaning it more closely resembled those of turtles, lizards, and snakes.
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“Trace fossils are far more than simple footprints,” Dr Marchetti continued.
“They preserve anatomical details that would otherwise be completely lost and play a key role in improving our understanding of the evolution of early terrestrial vertebrates.”
The trace – named Cabarzichnus pulchrus – was left by a creature only about 9cm in length.
It’s thought to be a bolosaurian, an early ancestor of the reptile family tree.
The research was published in the Current Biology journal.
Why did dinosaurs die out?
Here's what you need to know...
- The dinosaur wipe-out was a sudden mass extinction event on Earth
- It wiped out roughly three-quarters of our planet’s plant and animal species around 66million years ago
- This event marked the end of the Cretaceous period, and opened the Cenozoic Era, which we’re still in today
- Scientists generally believe that a massive comet or asteroid around 9 miles wide crashed into Earth, devastating the planet
- This impact is said to have sparked a lingering “impact winter”, severely harming plant life and the food chain that relied on it
- More recent research suggests that this impact “ignited” major volcanic activity, which also led to the wiping-out of life
- Some research has suggested that dinosaur numbers were already declining due to climate changes at the time
- But a study published in March 2019 claims that dinosaurs were likely “thriving” before the extinction event
Eze Chidiebere Paul
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